Cloud Solutions

Microsoft 365—Read This Before Your Next Cloud Discussion

By Denise Sarazin / March 7, 2022

In our downloadable guide Why Microsoft 365 Should Be Part of Your Cloud Strategy—And Best Practices to Get You Started, we talked about why tech advisors’ should focus on services their customers are already using when they’re having discussions about transitioning to the cloud. More specifically, we recommended starting with email and Microsoft 365. Once you’ve got your customers’ ear, you can open the discussion—and your potential revenue opportunity—to many other areas.

In this blog, we provide some key considerations in selling Microsoft 365, and information about the Microsoft 365 plans available for you to sell.

The Microsoft 365 Advantage

Microsoft 365 is one of Microsoft’s fastest-growing services, with more than 50 million active monthly commercial customers. And that number will continue to rise quickly, as an increasing number of SMBs shift their technology to the cloud.

Following are some of the key benefits of selling Microsoft 365, including important things to consider.

• When you sell Microsoft 365 from AppSmart, your customers get more complete support—with 24/7 Tier 1, 2 and 3 support included with every Microsoft 365 license. If your customer needs a higher level of tech support, a service like SmartSupport Premium provides an easy and affordable way to do that. Note that if a company purchases Microsoft 365 for business directly from Microsoft, Tier 2 and 3 support are not included.

• If a customer buys Microsoft 365 directly from Microsoft, you get no commission. But if you sell it through AppSmart, you get a commission, and you have the opportunity to make significant additional revenues by cross-selling other services (see our guide for examples).
• Because Microsoft 365 apps are cloud-based, companies can avoid up-front capital expenses associated with purchasing productivity tools. Less infrastructure also means lower long-term management costs associated with physical assets. If your customers’ needs change, you can scale the number of licenses they purchase up or down, and adjust their plan at any time.

• You don’t need to be an expert on Microsoft 365. You can call in AppSmart experts to support you every step of your sales cycle and beyond, from pre-sales planning and meetings, to post-implementation support. Microsoft has also developed dozens of free learning modules that you can access to familiarize yourself with its features and benefits.

Flexible Packages for Every Need and Budget

There are multiple packages to choose from at different price ranges—from a basic package that includes a cloud-only version of the most common apps, to a full package that includes additional features, like business email, cloud file storage, analytical capabilities, and device management.

As an advisor, you should match your customer’s needs to the right license. If you’re not sure what to recommend, AppSmart can provide the expertise to support you.

The following table provides a basic overview of the available packages, in order of price per license (lowest to highest). To get full details for each package, visit the links below the table. If you’re looking for information specific to Exchange Online, see Microsoft’s comparison of Microsoft 365 Exchange Online plans.

You can also contact AppSmart to get connected with an expert who can help you sort through the options, put together a solution, and close the deal with your customer.

For more information

View more details about the options listed above—including detailed comparison charts—on the Microsoft 365 website.