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How MSPs Diversify Their Businesswith Managed Print Services“ F INDING THE PEOPLE WHOUNDERSTAND BOTH SIDESOF THE INDUSTRY WHENIT COMES TO MANAGED ITSERVICES AND MANAGEDPRINT TO REALLY DRIVETHAT MESSAGE HOME TOTHE MARKET IS KEY.”JOHN MANLEYBusiness Development Manager,Atlantic, Tomorrow’s Office4 Managed Service ProviderOffering Managed IT Services andManaged PrintIn the managed services space, we oftenhear about the transition from break-fix toMSP. This can certainly be a difficult movebecause it requires a cultural shift within yourorganization as well as a complete rework ofday-to-day operations.However, if you are already delivering managed services, adding new services to yourportfolio can be an easier task. Not to say that itdoesn’t require effort—there’s a learning curvewith any new technology, of course—but youwon’t have to completely rethink your business.The trick is finding services that make senseamong your current offerings.Sometimes, overlaps between services areobvious, but they can occur in areas that youmight not initially expect. For example, we’verecently seen interest in Datto’s business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) productsamong managed print services providers.Print remains an important function amongbusinesses today. According to a recent CompTIA report, 98 percent of U.S. workers printedat least once quarterly. However, the reportalso showed a slow decline in aggregate printvolume year over year. So, managed printshops are diversifying their services to stemfuture print business losses. But why BCDR?According to a Quocirca survey, security isthe top issue driving adoption of managedprint services (MPS) today. IT security threatscontinue to rise, and printers are as vulnerableas any other network device. 75 percent ofrespondents indicated that security was animportant or very important factor in theirdecision to adopt managed print services, and70 percent of respondents reported at leastone printer-related data loss incident in thepast year. If security is a top concern amongclients, perhaps data protection is as well.If you are currently delivering IT managedservices, keep your eyes open out there. Today’sbusinesses have a diverse array of IT needs.You may find business in unlikely places, andoverlaps between service offerings can presentopportunities for growth. Plus, your clientsalready trust your ability to deliver qualityservice, and that’s half the battle.In this article, we are profiling two majorDatto partners who have successfully integrated managed IT services and managed printservices. Each partner is unique - one fromEngland, the other from the United States. Onewith beginnings in managed IT services, theother in managed print. However, each has anequally unique story and valuable experiencethey generously shared.Atlantic, Tomorrow’s OfficeAtlantic, Tomorrow’s Office was founded in1959. They are one of the largest independentcopier dealers in the United States, and afteryears of organic growth in this business, theybegan to shift their core focus to keep themomentum going as the needs of their clientsevolved. During this evolution, their managedIT services division was born.According to John Manley, as they gaineda market share, they began to develop theirteam and built a managed services businessthat best fit the needs of today’s clients. Manleyis currently the Managed Services, BusinessDevelopment Manager at Tomorrow’s Office.He’s held many roles at the company, andworked with a team to build the ManagedServices to where it is today.“A lot of MSPs struggled to go deeper andwider. As they build programs out, the biggestchallenge is people. Finding the people whounderstand both sides of the industry whenBy Chris BrunauBusiness Writer, DattoQuestions? cbrunau@datto.comit comes to managed IT services and managedprint to really drive that message home to themarket is key,” said Manley.The majority of their clients enlist Tomorrow’s Office for all three aspects of their business, including document management, managed IT, and managed print.Mirus IT SolutionsMirus IT Solutions has been working in themanaged IT services space for nearly 17 years,operating out of Milton Keynes and London.Recently, Mirus IT diversified their servicesby entering the managed print sector throughthe acquisition of 2r Systems Ltd, who hasoperated in the managed print space for over30 years. Mirus worked closely with 2r priorto the acquisition, providing managed printhardware and solutions to their client base,and have continued to build on this synergythrough the new managed print division withinthe Mirus Group. They now offer hardwaresupport and services including secure printand workflow solutions.According to Pippa Loveridge, head of marketing at Mirus, their clients (who range fromthree to 500 employees) are encouraged toemploy both Managed IT Services and ManagedPrint. As no two companies are the same, norare their printing requirements, Mirus Managed Print can assess potential cost savingsthrough careful recommendations of devicetypes (from Multi-Function Printers throughto small executive Desktop Printers). They canalso recommend user policy settings shouldyou have confidential printing requirementsor need to identify heavy users, and also assess consumption levels of paper, ink, toner,and ongoing maintenance to identify theright solution.In order for potential managed print clientsto understand the benefits of a managed printsolution, Mirus offers a print audit serviceto record costs for ink, toner, and maintenance. This allows Mirus to calculate true printvolumes and reduce overall running costswhile increasing productivity and improvedprint security.To calculate each client’s usage, Mirus installscustom audit software that monitors all printdevices over a number of days to detail whatthe true cost is to the business, presenting acomprehensive report and highlighting potential cost savings.Overcoming Pain Points and HurdlesAccording to Manley at Tomorrow’s Office,some of the biggest challenges and pitfalls arethe core competencies. “What are you going tofocus on? Managed IT services are so broad,so you have to determine what you are goingto focus on. You have to build yourself a box,and live in it,” said Manley.Advice for MSPs Looking to Expand into Managed PrintYou can’t be subject matter experts oneverything, but it’s imperative to havepeople who can cross both sides andunderstand the managed IT services sideand the managed print side. Understandingand working with multiple vendors can bea major pain point, according to Manley.Tomorrow’s Office has had successemploying and finding the right staff,although Manley stresses there is nosecret recipe or magic bullet. “It startsfrom a leadership perspective. If it is trulyingrained in your mission and what you aredoing as a company, it will trickle downto finding the appropriate people. A lot ofsmaller MSPs tend to fail at this by nothaving the right people and tools in placeto ensure their success,” said Manley.Managed Service Provider 5

“ A S WE EXPANDED, OURSALES STAFF SENT OUTPERSONAL LETTERSTO THEIR CLIENTSINTRODUCING THEMANAGED PRINT SERVICES.THEY KNEW IT WOULD BEAN ADDITIONAL BIT OFWORK, BUT IT WOULD HELPTHEIR CLIENTS FEEL MORECOMFORTABLE ABOUTSERVICE THEY MAY NOTFULLY UNDERSTAND YET.”Once you choose that focus area, it’s crucial tocommunicate changes to clients. According toLoveridge, it’s imperative for providers lookingto broaden services to make sure their clientsfeel safe with the shift and trust their MSP asan advisor. “As we expanded, our sales staffsent out personal letters to their clients introducing the managed print services. They knewit would be an additional bit of work, but itwould help their clients feel more comfortableabout service they may not fully understandyet,” said Loveridge.After identifying your focus areas andcommunicating new services to clients, it’simportant to keep in mind that you don’t haveto say ‘yes’ to every new client or request thatcomes your way. It comes down to learning tosay ‘no’. Manley states that MSPs can’t just sellan off-the-shelf solution or a random piece ofhardware that is outdated. While it may seemcounterintuitive as you are expanding andgrowing your business, you can’t compromisein certain areas just to be an expert at everything and wear yourself too thinly.Thanks to their experience and size, Tomorrow’s Office has the luxury of being ableto formalize more processes. When they introduce a new product or service, they don’tsimply start selling it. They design road maps,go-to-market strategies, and ensure their staffis well prepared and trained to handle everyaspect and potential issue.You need to figure out your baseline anddo the basics 100 percent right, 100 percentof the time. You can’t do this successfully ifyou are taking everything under the sun andtrying to sell it. As Manley says, that is NOTwhat true managed services are.ConclusionWhether you identify as a managed service provider or managed print provider, thesame rules apply to scale your business andexpanding your offerings. If you’re providingmanaged IT services and want to add managed print, you need in-house subject matterexperts to help you get started. The same goesfor managed print providers looking to offermanaged IT services. Hiring people who havethe skills and experience you may currently lackis key to strategically grow your businesses inboth spaces.Beyond hiring, mergers and acquisitionsoffer another avenue for growth. As we learnedfrom Mirus IT, merging with a seasoned managed print provider has given them the abilityto offer clients from both businesses a betteroverall experience. Mirus IT clients can nowaccess managed print services via Mirus Managed Print. Clients from 2r Systems can nowbenefit from the auditing service offered byMirus to better understand costs associatedwith the services they’re buying.The last, if not most important, piece ofadvice any MSP or managed print providershould take away from the experiences described above, is that defining your newlycombined business’s core focus and effectivelycommunicating changes to clients is key tosuccess. Without a core focus, you may biteoff more than you can chew. To succeed inbringing managed IT and managed print together, clearly define your offerings internally,communicate them externally, and start bymastering the basics behind the services youoffer to give your clients the best possibleexperience. Once you’ve checked those boxes,success will follow.Atlantic, Tomorrow’s Office was founded in1959 as Atlantic Photocopy. Since its inception,the Atlantic family has grown from a five personoperation to a 475 employee corporation, supporting over 20,000 organizations. Atlantic isan Office Technology and IT Solutions companyproviding horizontal niche market servicesto small and large corporations in the NewYork City metropolitan area, and the GreaterPhiladelphia and Delaware Valley. Atlantic’sofferings include: Imaging, IT Support, Document Management, and Managed Services.tomorrowsoffice.comMirus provides award-winning strategicIT, Telephony, and Managed Print servicesand support to companies of all sizes. Theirservices range from basic IT support to virtualization, cloud-based services, data recovery,and security, to secure and managed print,hosted VOIP, and low-cost telephony. Miruscombines strategy with a consultative approachto recommend the most effective service

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