Pathway to profitability: ISVs can help partners differentiate in transport and logistics

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Digital transformation in Transport and Logistics presents a big opportunity for partners. Industry 4.0 is here and T&L executives are realising they can't just 'keep on trucking'. Passengers are in the driver's seat now, and they're bulldozing entire business models.

 

'Business as usual' is no longer good enough.

 

Customers expect flexible, on-demand 'mobility as a service' from travel providers. Every journey should be a seamless experience. In response, T&L are looking to technology to improve both operations and customer services while increasing revenue and cost-effectiveness. This is not just wishful thinking either. T&L companies are set to invest the equivalent of 5 percent of annual revenue in digital by 2020.

 

There's a clear demand for new technology in the sector. But, with high demand comes the challenge of remaining competitive. Partners need to position themselves as valuable IT service providers. Partners need to differentiate themselves to compete. The best way to do this is through partnership with Independent Software Vendors (ISV's).

 

What Transport and Logistics need to meet customer demands

 

To stay competitive, T&L companies are looking to the cloud, server virtualisation and the Internet of Things. To meet customer demands, they need to leverage technology to implement things like:

 

Electronic tickets and payments. Airlines are ahead of the game with this. But with the rise of companies like Uber, customers expect quick and easy mobile transactions for all their journeys. Deloitte predict that by 2020, 90 percent of all transport transactions will be paperless.

 

Big data and analytics. Thanks to apps like CityMapper, customers expect real-time information on their journeys. People are now intolerant to delays, disruptions and subpar service. Transport companies are looking to use big data and analytics to predict downtime while maintaining efficiency and passenger safety.

 

But alongside these ambitions, the industry still faces challenges. Legacy IT, lack of internal digital culture and security concerns are ever-present challenges. This presents an opportunity for partners to help T&L overcome these challenges and achieve transformation goals. Through this, they'll see achieve increased revenue and growth too.

 

Differentiate yourself through ISV partnership

 

Despite the opportunities here, it's hard to stand out. Especially if you provide horizontal services across industries. This is where ISVs can help. They typically build vertical products from the ground up. This allows them to focus on client's specific needs and business functions.

 

This is useful because focusing on a niche improves competitiveness while increasing margins. ISV partnership allows you to provide a mix of services that are highly valuable to T&L customers.

 

ISV partnership can also help partners enter the T&L market. This is because you're partnered with industry specialists providing tried and tested products. Partners can take advantage of their expertise to achieve business growth.

 

Spotlight on Veeam

 

Veeam specialize in addressing the demands of digital transformation in Transport and Logistics. Their flagship product Veeam Availability Suite helps customers modernise their IT.

 

The software provided exceptional results for Barloworld Automotive Cruises. They had outgrown their IT and needed to give customers 'always on' services. The company now has 24/7 availability, exceeding customer service level agreements. This has allowed them to save nearly 40% in costs and 120 support hours each month.

 

Watch Mark Murrin, Strategic Alliances Manager at Veeam UK, explain more about how they help Transport and Logistics businesses improve customer service while reducing costs.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3KMdbY49PY\&list=PLNkqarJs84ZxzWssR1rd367eGY3iukoqI\&index=11

Taking the road less travelled for competitive advantage

 

Specialising to gain competitive advantage is an excellent pathway to profitability. But it's a challenging venture to set out on alone. Through ISV partnership you can build something uniquely valuable to T&L companies, while avoiding risks in developing new intellectual property or starting up in the industry from scratch.

 

The road less travelled doesn't need to be a bumpy one. If you're new to the sector, it doesn't need to be a lonely one either. Whichever direction you're coming from, partner with an ISV for the journey.