Win With Westcoast 2024: Software isn’t to be overlooked
Published date: 26 November 2024
Our annual Win With Westcoast event saw leaders and experts from across the technology sector come together to ensure our partners are prepared to embrace the opportunities (and steel themselves for the challenges) ahead.
With a focus on channel evolution, the message was clear that in a relatively flat PC market, partners must look to opportunities beyond traditional hardware sales to achieve double digit growth.
Software sales is one such area.
Windows 11 is there for the taking
Windows 11 is the largest and most apparent (but not the only) growth driver in the software market. Take-up hasn’t been as rapid as expected to date, and there’s just one budget cycle left before Windows 10 End of Support (EoS), leaving a huge opportunity for the channel market.
When end of support happens on 14th October 2025, Windows 10 will no longer receive bug fixes or technical support, opening organisations up to vulnerabilities that would both be costly for the business and irresponsible to ignore. Those that choose not to transition to Windows 11 will have the option to continue Windows 10 support via Microsoft’s Extended Security Update (ESU) programme – but this comes at a significant cost.
The ESU programme will typically cost your customers $61 per device in the first year, increasing to $122 per device in the second year, and $244 in year three. For a 5,000-device organisation this would cost $350,000 to support in year one, rising to an eye watering $1.22 million by year three.
These figures alone make a very compelling case for your customers to make the move to Windows 11, before you’ve even discussed the new operating system’s productivity, collaboration and security benefits. But with EoS less than a year away, these conversations need to be kickstarted now, if they aren’t already in progress.
Hyperscalers present a new opportunity
Marketplaces have arguably removed some software opportunities for resellers by standardising the process of buying complex products from multiple vendors. And while the marketplace may simplify the purchasing process for businesses, there are numerous marketplaces to choose from. It will soon become the role of channel partners to support and guide their customers in finding the right marketplace for their organisation’s needs.
Westcoast. We’re evolving with you.
As support partner of the channel, we’re shaping our services so you can keep pace with the ever-changing technology market. We’re here to guide and support you, whether that’s finding inroads with a new customer or growing sales with an existing one. We offer a suite of professional services covering software onboarding, migration, security and beyond. So, whatever your customer’s ambition, with Westcoast you’re their one-stop-shop for every need.
If you’d like to discuss how to scale in the software market, drop us a message, we’re here to help.