Cloud computing has changed the world in more ways than can be explained in a single blog post. From giving greater accessibility to cutting edge technology to powering some of the most ambitious projects in the history of the world, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Google Compute and others have turned the infrastructure world on its head…with no sign of abating any time soon.

Here at Connectria we are proud to partner with Microsoft, Amazon, Google and others to help organizations of all sizes not only use the cloud, but use the cloud correctly. It’s amazing to see what people can do with fewer technological limitations than ever before and we are thrilled to lend a hand.

But that doesn’t mean everything about the public cloud is good news for everyone.  For value-added resellers in particular, there are some pitfalls and challenges that must be kept in mind if you’re to continue on the route to long-term success.  In this post, we will explore four unfortunate truths when it comes to utilizing the cloud as a reseller and offer some ways to mitigate risks before it is too late.

Four Hard Truths About the Cloud

1. When you rely on the cloud, you give up control. While many VARs recognize that they don’t control AWS, Azure or any other cloud services provider very few actually take an honest look at what that means for their business. AWS can continue raising prices. Azure can remove services critical to your offerings. Building your business on the back of a massive cloud provider means you are more of the barnacle than the boat; a rising tide may be good for everyone, but you might be scraped off at any time. Our suggestion is to form contingency plans if one or more of your cloud partners suddenly changes course and leaves you in a lurch. A business that is overly or – worse – solely reliant on Microsoft, Google, or Amazon is reckless.
2. Some clients don’t care about the cloud. Working in the technology space, it’s sometimes hard to remember that many or even most of your clients don’t care at all about the technology you offer them.  It’s true. Customers and clients pay for the solution to a problem they have. Period. Whether that takes sixteen EC2 instances or scaled Aurora databases is likely of zero interest to most of the people that work at your client company. Our suggestion is to lean away from highlighting technology and tech capability, especially as it relates to the cloud. Instead, spend more time highlighting the problems you solve, building value for your brand. As a result, clients will see you as the solution to their problem and not as a reseller of cloud services.
3. Change is good… until it’s not. The large cloud providers are in a battle of their own for market share. This means that they all both launch and remove services on a weekly basis.  In 2018, AWS offered more than 100 new services as part of the AWS landscape. While it at first it seems like more is better for VARs like yours, these providers also EOL or redact services almost as often. The platform upon which you’ve built your business is almost assuredly to look different in just a few years…or even months. Our suggestion is to latch on to core services unlikely to disappear anytime soon and avoid new, hot technologies until the market has been proven out over time.
4. Competition comes from within. The new services launched by AWS, Azure and others? Quite often those new services are in direct competition to VARs that have thrived in the cloud ecosystem. And why wouldn’t that be the case? If Google or Oracle sees a service thriving on their platform then it makes perfect sense that they would offer a similar service themselves. After all, these are for profit businesses. It’s worth noting that no matter how strong your brand and customer base is, an equivalent product offered and featured by AWS would immediately become a threat to the survival of your entire business. Our suggestion is to make sure your service and value allow you to remain viable even in the worst case scenario of big cloud provider offering a similar service. What that means for your business will be different than another, but preparation is often the best plan.

The Right Partner Makes All the Difference

Being a value added reseller in the cloud sector is a great way to help businesses solve real problems through powerful solutions. And as mentioned before, here at Connectria we partner with the world’s leading cloud providers as well. We have hundreds of clients that count on our partnerships with AWS, Azure and Google to help power their most demanding and mission critical applications.  That said, working in the cloud sector isn’t without risk and it’s always a good idea to go forward with both eyes open.

If your reseller business is struggling with navigating the cloud space, our expert team of engineers and architects can help. Whatever challenge you are facing, we’ve been there too and we know the way forward. To better understand how Connectria can lend a hand, contact us now and a Cloud Engineer will be in touch to lend a hand.