The key to remaining profitable as a managed service provider (MSP) is to detect and remediate issues long before a customer ever knows they exist. To help MSP achieve that goal within the context of a voice-over-IP (VoIP) service Cytracom this week unveiled Ivie, which makes extensive use of predictive analytics software alerts MSPs to potential issues that could adversely impact the end customer experience.
Ivie was born of a need to proactively identify issues that tend to occur over time as network configurations change, says Cytracom CEO Zane Conkle.
All too often a VoIP service works as advertised when first deployed only to degrade over time because of issues that are not readily recognizable by MSPs. Ivie provides a means to prevent end customers from becoming frustrated to the point where they suddenly decide to cancel the VoIP contract, says Conkle.
In general, Conkle says VoIP service today are more tactical than strategic for MSPs. The margins MSPs make on these services tend to be nominal. But they are often the service on which the quality of the managed services being delivered is judged most.
Conkle also notes that if MSPs don’t deliver VoIP services, it opens the door for another service provider to insert themselves into a customer account.
“Too often voice services get left out of the conversation,” says Conkle.
MSPs have long struggled to compete with telecommunications carriers that continue to expand the size and scope of the services provided. Much of the entry point for those carriers start with voice services. The rise of the cloud, however, now makes it much easier for MSPs to provide voice services without ever having to engage a carrier directly. The challenge is finding a way to consistently deliver those voice services in a way that doesn’t make the customer end up missing their carrier.
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