Print in the Channel – issue #20

CLOUD PRINT MANAGEMENT

Blue sky thinking

While adoption of cloud print is growing among SMBs, there are still some that are resistant to it and for a variety of reasons. But these perceived barriers can be overcome by resellers.

Cloud print management solutions have been growing in popularity among small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in recent years. Indeed, Quocirca’s Cloud Print Services 2024 report found that 67% of SMBs (which it classes as businesses with 250-499 employees) already use a cloud print management solution. Meanwhile 27% of businesses don’t have a solution in place but are planning to and 6% have no plans. It seems there are still barriers that SMBs face to adopting cloud print management solutions. Louella Fernandes, CEO of Quocirca, notes that Quocirca’s research shows that the biggest barrier to cloud print adoption among SMBs is cost, followed by concerns about protecting company data. “In addition, 27% of SMBs are concerned about the perceived risk of vendor lock-in, compared to 13% of larger enterprises,” she says. “These barriers differ considerably from the perceived barriers among larger organisations, which revolve more around functionality and management. Resellers serving this market should be prepared to address these specific SMB concerns.”

Stuart Brookes, EMEA head of sales & channel at PaperCut, adds that awareness is probably the first barrier for SMBs, particularly those at the smaller end. “Many SMBs may not be aware what cloud print is, why they need it, its benefits and how they go about implementing it,” he says. “Other concerns relate to how disruptive cloud migration will be, given that downtime typically impacts SMEs more acutely than larger organisations.” Graham Foxwell, product marketing lead at Kyocera Document Solutions UK, adds that cost is another common barrier. “The initial investment and ongoing costs associated with cloud services can be overwhelming for SMBs,” he says. “Kyocera provides flexible pricing models and scalable solutions tailored to fit the budget of SMBs. “The lack of skilled resources is also a challenge; SMBs may struggle to find IT professionals with the necessary skills to manage cloud services. Kyocera offers comprehensive support and managed services, allowing SMBs to focus on their core business activities. “Maintenance and reliability issues arise from the perception that cloud services

Louella Fernandes ceo

quocirca.com

Quocirca’s research shows that the biggest barrier to cloud print adoption among SMBs is cost, followed by concerns about protecting company data.

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