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IT Solution Price Determining Factor For SMBs, Study Reveals

Although SMBs are becoming more conscious of the benefits of adopting IT solutions, cost is a key factor hindering companies from finding optimal hardware. According to a study conducted by Wakefield Research in partnership with HP, companies have noted that hardware performance has not matched up to the price of implementation.

The study, which surveyed more than 500 IT managers of small businesses across the U.S., revealed that a vast majority (93%) of companies are more concerned with price than finding the best IT solutions. In turn, 89% of respondents admitted to experiencing IT-related problems.

“The survey findings confirm that budget-constrained small businesses are playing tug of war when it comes to balancing smart IT purchasing decisions and their budgets,” said Stephen DiFranco, SVP and GM, Personal Systems Group – Americas, HP.

Nearly half (46%) of cost-conscious respondents cited the main IT problem they encounter is low-performing hardware. Out-of-date hardware was another key issue, garnering 37% of responses, and unreliable hardware, which accumulated 23% of results. Overall, these three areas were noted to reduce productivity and generate suboptimal computer efficiency.

Small business IT managers looking to optimize systems find computer processing speed (35%) and overall reliability (19%) to be vital improvements for their current systems, while energy efficiency was not as prominent, gaining concern from only 9% of respondent. Survey results allude to executive influence in opting to adopt more thrifty purchases, and in turn, creating snags in IT departments.

Respondents said that if given the chance to tell their CEOs how to solve IT issues, they would recommend upgrading to newer, better-quality components (29%), investing more money into IT systems (21%) and being more efficient in conducting solution research based on company needs and overall pain points (13%).

 

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About Alicia Fiorletta

Alicia Fiorletta is Senior Editor for Channel Marketer Report. Working closely with industry analysts and experts, Alicia reports on the latest news, technologies, case studies and trends coming to forefront in the channel marketing world. With a focus on emerging marketing strategies, including social, mobile and content for demand, Alicia hones in on new ways for organizations to market to and through their partner networks. Through her work with G3 Communications, Alicia also acts as Associate Editor for Retail TouchPoints, a digital publishing network focused on the customer-facing area of the retail industry.

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