70% of SMBs prefer VARs as Preferred Channel for PC Purchase: AMI

AMI-Partners have revealed the key findings of the “2013 India SMB ICT and Cloud Servicers Tracker Overview” study to analyze the preferred channels for ICT purchase by SMBs. From the study, it was observed that local computer dealers/resellers or VARs (Value-Added Resellers) continue to remain the key preferred channels within Indian SMBs for PC purchases. Over 70% of SMBs depend upon local Value-Added Resellers (VARs) for PC purchase. Similar trends are also in place for IT products like on-premise software, Networking, Security and Storage.

Pratik Gupta, Associate, AMI Partners India, said, Research reveals that the preference for VARs is particularly high among SMBs due to their long-standing relationship with SMB customers. Moreover, VARs provide all-time service and support. This is a vital reason behind SMBs’ preference for this channel. However, this factor is particularly relevant for SMBs with a less managed IT infrastructure. AMI has been tracking the SMB channel preference for many years and we find that VARs remain the most preferred channels over the last few years.

VARs are particularly beneficial to SMBs since the latter can avoid the hassle of deployment, upgrades and maintenance of these services. In fact, SMBs obtain the services of an expert hosted services provider in the process which they would not otherwise have access to. This enables SMBs to focus on their core business processes and issues rather than spend time on IT aspects. This significantly saves both time and cost for the SMBs.