Applications

The Network Has the Services

When we wrote about this service delivery network last year it was reinventing itself. Just one year later, it has a full suite of services and is building the delivery channel.

by Alex Goldman ISP-Planet Managing Editor [August 16, 2007]

When we last spoke to Santa Clara, Calif.-based Jamcracker a year ago, the company had just launched its Jamcracker Service Delivery Network (JSDN) and was looking for channel partners for services and delivery.

A year later, the channel is growing and the product list is growing too. Recently announced service provider partner: XO Communications. Recently announced channel partner: McAfee. Other services delivered over the JSDN include conferencing WebEx, storage from Arsenal (an industry veteran), and Microsoft Exchange.

"We are applying a traditional software channel strategy to on demand services," says Steve Crawford, Jamcracker vice president of marketing. "Most on demand services don't have a significant channel yet. Most are sold direct to the SMB."

Jamcracker has been focused on basic IT services. He says that Jamcracker learned several lessons learned the ASP craze of the late 1990s. An important lesson is that on demand software providers cannot force customers to make a leap of faith. Instead, offering trusted services and a gradual adoption path keep customers within their comfort zone.

Another key lesson is that services don't sell themselves. Jacmcracker works closely with partners to help them sell and support the services offered on the JSDN.

Specifically. . .
We asked for details.

"Okay. For example, when XO finalized their agreement [with us], we met with McAfee and our other partners for joint strategy sessions and training. McAfee provides a lot of content for the training."

So McAfee provides tier 1 help for their products on the JSDN? "No. We provide L1 and L2 helpdesk and sales overlay."

What's a sales overlay? "If an XO rep has a customer on the line who wants to build an SMB bundle, they call in and one of our reps joins in on the conference call. We provide pre-sales support."

Jamcracker has a sibling company (same co-founder) called e4e. The company provides outsourced support, and has offices around the world, with headquarters in Bangalore, India. e4e provides support to Jamcracker customers and partners. "e4e was originally part of Jamcracker," explains Crawford. "It was spun out a couple of years ago when it started to take off on its own."

In conclusion, more questions
The on demand software model is all about using the internet to remove the middle man and realize cost savings and service improvements. Aren't you adding the costs of the old model back in?

"The value of the on demand model is not just about cutting out the middleman," says Crawford. "It's about cutting out everyone who's not providing value. The value for solution partners is that with a flip of the switch they get access to a larger customer base. The value to a company like XO that already provides basic hosting and connectivity to lots and lots of businesses is the ability to bundle that connectivity with other services."

And there's a bigger picture too. "Customer credibility is important. The SMB doesn't have to figure out who to use for security, conferencing, etc. The JSDN helps the SMB make these decisions."

Once the decisions are made, the support is there. "There's one throat to choke. You avoid the worst customer experience, which is calling one vendor, say, of conferencing, and being referred to the e-mail vendor. Then the e-mail vendor refers you to the security vendor. Customers appreciate this and value bundled services."

So you started with simple services. When are you going to move to more complex services and into specific verticals? "Absolutely! We already have vertical solutions. We are starting to provide services into the health care and education verticals. We are also onboarding higher level business apps. Smart Online has a really nice suite of on demand services designed specifically for small business, such as CRM, legal forms, etc."

Crawford says that the current set of services represent Phase 1 and is about 90 percent complete. Phase 2 is building more complex solutions. And there's news for ISP-Planet readers too. "Down the road we will be introducing solutions for the lower tier of the channel, for tier 4 and tier 5 ISPs. When we get closer to launching those, we'll get back to you."

Watch this space.

— End