Cisco Systems TechnicalServices for the

Commercial Segment

The Value of SellingCisco Technical Services

Services Guide

The Value of Selling Cisco Technical Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

The Lifecycle Services Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Thinking in Lifecycles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Supporting Business Goals Throughout the Network Lifecycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Partner Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

What Customers Want . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

The Network Lifecycle: A Continuum of Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Services Revenue Stream—Two Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Typical Services Revenue Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Best-in-Class Services Revenue Stream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Loyal Customers Are Good Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Take Advantage of the Cisco Brand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Keys to Success: Building Your Annuity Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Attach at Point of Sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Renew Service Contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Sell Multiyear Contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Best Practices for Building a High-Performance Service Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Top Five Attach Rate Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Top Five Renewal Rate Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Top Five Multiyear Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Cisco Technical Services: A Complete Offering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Cisco SMARTnet Services and SMARTnet Onsite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Cisco SMB Support Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Cisco Software Application Support Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Cisco Unified Communications Essential Operate Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Cisco Unified Communications Select Operate Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Cisco Services for Intrusion Prevention Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Cisco Services for Integrated Services Routers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Next Steps: Building Your Action Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Step 1: Make a commitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Step 2: Analyze and Incorporate best practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Step 3: Train sales staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Step 4: Get involved with Cisco Service Programs and Offerings . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

ARM Training Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC): Useful Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Cisco.com Registration and Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Service Contract: Useful Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Cisco Products: Useful Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Partner Resources: Useful Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Table of Contents

The Value of Selling Cisco Technical ServicesThe information in this guide can help distributors, resellers, and channel account man-agers understand how selling Cisco Systems¨ Technical Services contracts to commercialcustomers can help boost revenue, increase margins, and build long-term customer loyalty.

Within your current business practice today, you have the ability to develop a consistentrevenue stream, much like an investment annuity that pays long-term dividends.

This guide focuses on the value of selling Cisco Technical Service agreements and pro-vides an overview of the Cisco¨ Lifecycle Services approach and best practices for build-ing a high-performance service practice targeting commercial customers with up to 1500employees. The guide also includes an overview of the Cisco Technical Services portfolio,as well as valuable links and resources to help you find the information you need to getyour practice going.

This sales guide is part of an ongoing Cisco effort to increase your service sales effective-ness by helping you sell Cisco services at the very first sales opportunity, secure additionalrevenue through targeting uncovered equipment, better capture opportunities to sell ser-vice renewal contracts, and add value through sales of multiyear agreements. For moreinformation about selling services, please refer to our ongoing series of service sales tools,which can be found at:www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#uncovered.

Selling services can provide a consistent revenue stream, muchlike an investment annuity, but without the upfront cost.

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Selling service agreements canhelp you:

• Increase customer loyalty

• Reduce administration costs

• Improve cash flow

• Increase revenue opportunities

• Enhance margins

Integrate a service practice intoyour business…

• Attach at Point of Sale

• Renew Service Contracts

• Sell Multiyear Agreements

The Lifecycle Approach to Services and Support

Thinking in Lifecycles

There’s another approach that will help you drive growth and differentiate your business.Developed in the process of growing our own business, this approach is repeatable andsustainable, and can lead to substantial profit increases.

When you think of your business, think of the entire network lifecycle, which includesthe preparation, planning, design, and implementation that occurs before you can install asystem. Many partners refer to these lifecycle activities as “professional services.”

Next, think of the time and money your customers spend keeping their network up andrunning after it is installed. These postinstallation lifecycle activities can be thought of as“technical services,” and they include network operation and optimization.

In a recent study conducted by CRN.com, solution providers reported that 55% of theirtotal revenue came from services activity. According to CRN.com, “When asked wherethey expect gross margins to grow fastest, the solution providers responding to (our)survey put system and network integration, custom application development, andremote managed services at the top of the list. In fact, of the top seven services wheresolution providers said they expect gross margins will grow fastest, there were onlytwo product-specific services. Those two, break/fix and installation, showed up sixthand seventh, respectively.”1

Your customers spend a great deal of resources on all aspects of their network lifecycle.Let’s look at how and why you are uniquely positioned to earn their services business,and how this can affect your revenue.

Supporting Business Goals Throughout the Network Lifecycle

Cisco Systems and its partners provide a broad portfolio of end-to-end services and supportthat can help customers improve network total cost of ownership, business agility, and net-work availability to increase your network’s business value and return on investment.

The Cisco Lifecycle Services approach defines the minimum set of activities needed, bytechnology and by network complexity, to help successfully deploy and operate Ciscotechnologies and optimize their performance throughout the six phases of the networklifecycle. Figure 1 provides an overview of the Lifecycle Services approach.

• Prepare—Make sound financial decisions by developing a business case that establishes the financial justification for making a technology change

• Plan—Assess the existing environment to determine whether it can support the proposed system

• Design—Develop a comprehensive detailed design that meets business and technical requirements

• Implement—Integrate devices without disrupting the existing network or creatingpoints of vulnerability

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The Cisco Lifecycle Servicesapproach defines the minimum setof activities needed, by technologyand by network complexity, to helpyou successfully deploy and oper-ate Cisco technologies, and opti-mize their performance throughoutthe lifecycle of your network. Thisapproach views service and sup-port as a comprehensive, proac-tive, and responsive process thatconsiders business and technicalrequirements at each phase.

1Zarley, Craig. “Services Gold Rush.” CRN, October 31, 2005.

• Operate—Maintain network health through day-to-day operations

• Optimize—Achieve operational excellence through ongoing improvement of systemperformance and functionality

Figure 1. The Cisco Lifecycle Services Approach

Partner Benefits

The Cisco Lifecycle Services approach can help you to:

• Gain opportunities to increase your profitability by helping you to improve yourskills in selling and delivering service, enhance your services portfolio, and expandyour service practice

• Improve productivity by providing repeatable, proven processes for selling, delivering,and supporting Cisco advanced technology solutions

• Improve your customer satisfaction ratings and loyalty by helping customers to suc-cessfully deploy and operate Cisco technologies and to optimize their performancethroughout the lifecycle of the network

• Reduce risk in deploying and supporting new and complex technologies by providingknowledge transfer, partner enablement, and Cisco or co-brand services to increasedeployment success

• Increase profitability, productivity, and end-customer satisfaction by providing youwith documented and repeatable business processes by technology

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Lifecycle Services can helppartners:

• Grow your business

• Differentiate your company

• Gain opportunities to increaseyour profitability

• Participate in an enhancedrewards program

• Lower the cost of doing business

Planning and StrategyMake Sound

Financial Decisions

CiscoPartner

Customer

Implement the SolutionIntegrate Without Disruption

or Causing Vulnerability

Prepare

Implement

Plan

Design

Optimize

Operate

Design theSolutionProducts,Service,Support

Aligned toRequirements

MaintainNetwork

HealthManage,Resolve,Repair,

Replace

Access ReadinessCan Your Network

Support the Proposed System?

Operational Excellence

Adapt to ChangingBusiness

Requirements

What Customers Want

As a business owner, you know how costly it is to find new customers. Successful busi-nesses are built on loyal, satisfied customers. Experience shows that Cisco customersvalue the security of having professional network support to build the best networks andkeep them operating 24 hours a day. Customers with network service contracts are ourmost loyal customers—and they can be your most loyal customers, too!

Cisco resources are available to help you build your service business so you can satisfymore Cisco customers. When you share maintenance of customer networks and technicalservices with Cisco, you can build a best-of-class service business that provides you witha recurring and renewable revenue stream—and many more satisfied customers.

The Network Lifecycle: A Continuum of Events

The network is your customer’s platform for all their business applications and solutions.For your customer relationships to progress beyond fulfilling hardware, you need to beable to support their network needs through all phases of the network lifecycle. Yourcustomers need you to regularly maintain the health of that network and improve net-work performance in order to remain competitive. In the network lifecycle approach, theoptimize phase seeds a new prepare phase.

Services Revenue Stream—Two Examples

Typical Services Revenue Stream

Let’s consider a typical two-tier service business. Figure 2 depicts an average partner whobuys Cisco equipment from a distributor, with annual Cisco hardware sales of $800,000.

On average, the technical service sales (which do not include professional services) come inat around $70,000. The gross margin on the services sale is about $10,000, or approxi-mately 15 percent, compared to hardware margins of about $80,000, or approximately10 percent. The gross margin on services is actually higher than it is for hardware sales!

Thinking in terms of the lifecycle and incorporating the lifecyclemethodology into your own business service offerings will helpyou seize revenue opportunities.

Services create loyal, satisfied customers.

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Figure 2. Typical Services Revenue Stream

Typical Revenue Stream

Hardware Sales $800,000Cisco Services $69,000Services Gross Margin $10,000Return on Working Capital 19%Value of Services Annuity $31,000

Attach Rate 40%Renewal Rate 30%3-Year Contract 0%

Now let’s look at the return on working capital (ROWC). This is the annual rate of returnon business investments, equivalent to the annual rate of return from a stock portfolio.The typical rate of return on a service business is 19 percent.

The “Value of Services Annuity” measures the value that services are adding to yourbusiness. In other words, if you were to sell your business, what would it be worth?

One way to evaluate this is to base it on anticipated future cash flows. We use it here toestimate the value of the typical service business by showing the impact of the annuitystream created by service contracts. The typical service business adds $31,000 to thevalue of a partner’s network business.

Attaching services at point of first sale (attach rate) is a key factor in the value that servicescan add to a partner’s network business. Figure 2 shows that the typical two-tier partneronly has a 40 percent attach rate. This means that the partner has attached services toonly 40 percent of the equipment it sells—and the partner misses out on 60 percent ofthe total opportunity.

Typically, only 30 percent of a partner’s service contracts are renewed. Perhaps thesepartners are too busy working on the next deal, or trying to repair customers’ networkswho don’t have service contracts. These partners didn’t know or consider that they couldsell contracts for more than a year.

With higher attach rates, technical services can add significantlymore to the business.

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Best-in-Class Services Revenue Stream

Let’s take the same partner who had $800,000 in hardware sales and make it a “best-of-class” partner—one who has a thriving services practice.

Figure 3 shows what happens when the partner’s attach rate increases to 85 percent, therenewal rate increases to 80 percent, and the 3-year contract sales rate increases to 33percent, or one-third.

Figure 3. Best-in-Class Services Revenue Stream

Typical Revenue Stream Best in Class Revenue Stream

Hardware Sales $800,000 $800,000Cisco Services $69,000 $495,000Services Gross Margin $10,000 $74,000Return on Working Capital 19% 48%Value of Services Annuity $31,000 $222,000

Attach Rate 40% 85%Renewal Rate 30% 80%3-Year Contract 0% 33%

Look at the impact of best practices on the partner’s services revenue—almost half a mil-lion dollars! The partner’s services gross margin at $74,000 almost equals their hardwaremargins at $80,000. And they’ve increased the value of their services business by morethan seven times! This partner did all this by attaching services at point of sale, renew-ing service contracts, and selling multiyear contracts.

In a moment, we’ll look at some practical ways for you to integrate a service practice intoyour business. But in case you’re thinking that the service business sounds too good to betrue, take a look at our value proposition.

Loyal Customers Are Good Business

Loyal customers are good business. Our partners have access to thousands of customerswho can become “loyal” customers when offered the right level of service support. Asyou grow your highly profitable professional and services business, your customers willenjoy higher levels of quality service. In addition, you add a renewable revenue streamand, ultimately, sell more network products and services.

Our Value Proposition

As you invest in your service business, Cisco will provide thebusiness and training support you need to make the transition.Cisco will share the best practices of our “best-in-class” partnersto help you build a best-of-class services business withoutdepleting your own technical resources.

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Take Advantage of the Cisco Brand

Focus your technical resources on developing new projects, while using Cisco brandedand delivered services to maintain your customers’ installations.

Cisco offers a family of services to meet the needs of different types of commercial customers. The Cisco Technical Services portfolio includes offerings such as CiscoSMARTnet®, Cisco SMARTnet Onsite, Cisco SMB Support Assistant, Cisco SoftwareApplication Support Services, Cisco Unified Communications Essential Operate Service,Cisco Unified Communications Select Operate Service, Cisco Services for IntrusionPrevention Systems (IPS), and Cisco Services for Integrated Services Routers.

Now, let’s look at how simple it is to establish a best-in-class service business.

Keys to Success: Building Your Annuity BusinessThere are three main elements to building your annuity business:

• Attach at point of sale

• Renew service contracts

• Sell multiyear agreements

Attach at Point of Sale

The most critical action is to attach services at point of sale. If you do not include servicesas part of the original solution—or give in to price pressures—you lose much more thanjust the margin on the services. Experience shows that once the equipment is installed, youare unlikely to get an opportunity to sell services. As a result, you lose the opportunity for a recurring stream of revenue that could last five to seven years. In addition, you risk losingyour customer because of lower satisfaction and loyalty.

Equally as important, you may lose the opportunity to stay regularly involved in yourcustomer’s business during times of renewal, additions, moves, and other changes.

Renew Service Contracts

Service contracts have expiration dates, much like insurance policies. Each year contractsexpire and must be renewed. You need to develop a sales plan to renew contracts, just asyou develop plans to sell new equipment. Renewal times offer a great opportunity tomeet with your customers and review their changing business requirements. When han-dled with this type of lifecycle perspective, the focus changes from renewing contracts tobudgeting for the appropriate support services early in the purchasing cycle.

Customers with technical services are more satisfied and loyalcustomers than those without attached services.

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Sell Multiyear Contracts

Cisco multiyear contracts can have significant impact on your cash flow. Unlike annualcontracts, three-year or five-year service contracts offer cash up front for the entire ser-vice duration. These multiyear contracts can lower your cost of sale, especially withsmaller customers, because you donÕt have to sell a renewal each year. With five-year ser-vice contracts, it is not unusual for the services portion to equal the hardware portionÑat significantly higher margins.

Your customers benefit from multiyear contracts because they can lock in prices, matchthe service contract to the term of a lease, and reduce overhead (because they donÕt haveto handle a new contract every year). Depending upon whether they want to pay up frontor finance the solution, they benefit from either prepay discounts or monthly billing. ItÕswise to set up a practice that encourages multiyear contracts on both small and large deals.

For more information on best practices for selling at the point of sale, renewing servicecontracts, and selling multiyear services contracts, refer to the training resources providedon the ARM Service Incentive Website at:www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#uncovered.

Best Practices for Building a High-Performance Service PracticeThe path to profits clearly lies in services, and Cisco has defined key best practices thatcan help you build a high-performance services practice.

Top Five Attach Rate Best Practices

1. Require executive sign-off on all nonservice orders. Incorporate senior sales manage-ment early on in every dealÑr equire executive sign-off on deals booked withoutCisco Technical Services or those that do not meet margin requirements.

2. Quote Cisco Services on every deal. Make it a practice to attach services to everyquotation.

3. Regularly review services contracts. Develop internal systems that regularly reportyour attach-rate metrics and uncovered equipment (equipment that does not haveattached services) for your customers.

4. Add sales-commission acceleratorsÑpay on mar gins. Focus your sales team onreaching higher sales levels through commissions, which drive sales-team behavior. Thebest compensation plans for developing a service practice reflect margin impact.

5. Bring in your Cisco sales representative. Stay in close contact with your Cisco ser-vices account representative, who understands the details of your services practice andCiscoÕs current programs.

Contract renewal meetings turn into new sales opportunities.

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Top Five Renewal Rate Best Practices

1. Hire a renewal sales specialist. Hire a dedicated person or create a team that focusessolely on renewing contracts. The margin and cash-flow potential is certainly worththe salary investment.

2. Create a 120-day renewal process. Initiate the renewal process four months prior tothe contract expiration date to allow time to tailor the renewal.

3. Compensate managers and sales team. Compensate managers and all salespeopleengaged in the account. It is important that everyone is motivated and feels responsi-ble for getting the contract renewed.

4. Hire a service contract specialist. Contracts are complex systems that require constant maintenance and upkeep. Primarily an administrative job, a strong detailed-oriented person will improve customer satisfaction while providing invaluable infor-mation at the time of renewal for your sales team.

5. Create a customer contract and asset database. Proactively manage your customerinformation including additions, moves, and changes up-to-date within the contractand asset database.

Top Five Multiyear Best Practices

1. Fully compensate sales team and managers. Compensate all players engaged in thesales process.

2. Train, train, train. The best sales teams are those that are knowledgeable about allareas: service programs, financing options, quoting tools, and so on.

3. Regularly review multiyear metrics. Ensure senior management reviews multiyearcontract processes, metrics, and performance by establishing an internal process togather and convey service contract information.

4. Bring in your Cisco sales representative. Your Cisco sales representative has experience in selling multiyear contracts and can assist in establishing methods tomonitor and measure results and training in financial-selling techniques and the latestfinancing options.

5. Take advantage of Cisco Systems Capital® financing. Spread out the costs through aconvenient payment plan—your customers will benefit from lower entry costs andmonthly billing and you will benefit by receiving your service money up front.

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Cisco Technical Services: A Complete OfferingCisco offers a family of services to meet the needs of different types of commercialcustomers:

• Cisco SMARTnet services and SMARTnet Onsite

• Cisco SMB Support Assistant

• Cisco Software Application Support Services

– Cisco Software Application Support plus Upgrades (SASU)

– Cisco Software Application Support (SAS)

• Cisco Unified Communications Essential Operate Service

• Cisco Unified Communications Select Operate Service

• Cisco Services for Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)

• Cisco Services for Integrated Services Routers

Cisco SMARTnet Services and SMARTnet Onsite

Cisco SMARTnet services and SMARTnet Onsite can help commercial customers acceler-ate their business success and protect their investment in Cisco hardware and Cisco OSSoftware with support tailored precisely to the needs of their business.

Cisco SMARTnet coverage includes software maintenance (Cisco OS updates), advancedreplacement (of hardware), technical support (access to the world-class Cisco TechnicalAssistance Center [TAC]), and Internet access to an online suite of technology-specifictools to help customers support their networks. With Cisco SMARTnet, customers reducerisk and increase ROI.

The Cisco SMARTnet Onsite option provides a Cisco field engineer to install replacementparts at a customer site.

For more information about Cisco SMARTnet services and Cisco SMARTnet Onsite, visit:www.cisco.com/en/US/products/svcs/ps3034/ps2827/ps2978/serv_group_home.html.

Cisco SMB Support Assistant

Cisco SMB Support Assistant is a service option that provides technical support to smalland medium-sized businesses (SMBs) using select SMB-class products targeted to organi-zations of up to 250 employees. Cisco SMB Support Assistant includes access to theSMB Support Portal and Client, which includes setup, configuration, and troubleshootingof devices, password recovery, and access to basic health checks and network troubleshoot-ing tools. Cisco SMB Support Assistant provides 8x5 access to the SMB TAC, advancedhardware replacement, and minor software updates.

For more information about Cisco SMB Support Assistant, please visit:www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps6193/serv_group_home.html.

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Cisco Software Application Support Services

¥ Cisco SASU

¥ Cisco SAS

Cisco SASU and Cisco SAS help to keep mission-critical software applications (forexample, network management and voice over IP) current with application updates tostrengthen application functionality and to increase the ROI.

SAS and SASU include minor software updates, minor version releases, 24-hour access totechnical support, and registered access to a wealth of technical documentation, tools,and utilities on Cisco.com.

SASU additionally entitles customers to major application upgrade releases, which ofteninclude new software features and functions. Customers never have to pay extra to keepapplications current and can implement major upgrades quickly and efficiently to main-tain a competitive edge.

For more information about Cisco SASU, please visit:www.cisco.com/en/US/products/svcs/ps3034/ps2827/ps2993/serv_group_home.html.

Cisco Unified Communications Essential Operate Service

The Cisco Unified Communications Essential Operate Service combines all of CiscoUnified Communications system support requirements under one contract. This elimi-nates the need for multiple contracts for each application and server. Service contracts aresimplified with reduced administrative overhead, resulting in faster time to problem reso-lution. With one simple phone call, customers can reach a team of engineers certified towork through problems and resolve issues quickly.

The Cisco Essential Operate Service includes capabilities similar to those of CiscoSMARTnet and SAS offerings. Unified Communications software-only application support includes:

• Full-time telephone and remote technical and support services

• Maintenance and minor release updates

• Cisco.com knowledge base, including access to Software Advisor, Technical AssistanceCenter Case Collection, My Tech Support, Output Interpreter, peer-to-peer onlineforums, and the TAC newsletter

Unified Communications software application and server support includes all of the pre-ceding features plus:

• Advanced hardware replacement (with the option of an onsite field engineer)

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Cisco Unified Communications Select Operate Service

The Cisco Unified Communications Select Operate Service provides the same softwareapplication and server support as Essential Operate Service plus a simple-to-install moni-toring solution designed for Cisco Unified Communications family of products.

The Cisco Select Operate Service remotely monitors important environmental, perfor-mance, and availability leading indicators for Cisco Unified Communications systemsbased on leading practices. The monitoring solution, hosted by Cisco Systems, helps youto proactively manage your Unified Communications system by providing critical eventnotification and performance reports using a Web portal.

To learn more about Cisco Unified Communications Services, go to:www.cisco.com/en/US/products/svcs/ps3034/ps2827/ps2993/serv_group_home.html.

Cisco Services for Intrusion Prevention Systems

It pays to keep all your network assets protected and safe, ready for the next step in yournetwork evolution. Cisco Services for Intrusion Prevention Systems helps to ensure yourbusiness can always meet the ever-changing threats to your infrastructure and your keydata assets, as well as keeping all your networking applications up to date and protectedagainst all known threats.

To learn more about Cisco Services for IPS, please visit:www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps6076/serv_group_home.html.

Cisco Services for Integrated Services Routers

Realize maximum potential from your investment in IP communications with CiscoServices. The service offering especially tailored to Cisco Integrated Services Routers +Voice gives you fast access to specialists who can help you with every step of your moveinto the front line of powerful new technologies, sharing their knowledge and expertisewhenever you need it.

To learn more about Cisco Services for ISR, please visit: www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps6779/serv_group_home.html.

Next Steps: Building Your Action PlanNow that you’ve seen the tremendous impact services can have on your profit (and cashflow), you probably want to get started right away. Here’s an action plan to help you builda best-in-class service business.

Step 1: Make a commitment.

You’ve seen the figures, and you’re convinced that a service business will help you capitalizeon your existing customers and build a whole new revenue stream. Before you get started,make a commitment today to:

• Build a best-in-class business

• Assign your best talent to getting your service business off to a good start

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¥ Spend the time up front to establish a plan, train your resources, and work your plan

¥ Use Cisco resources to help you plan, build, and run your service business

Step 2: Analyze and incorporate best practices.

Cisco has many business partners who are growing their sales business into best-in-classservice businesses, too.

Ask your Cisco service account manager (CSAM) to identify some of the Cisco best-in-class partners so you can find out what theyÕre doing to distinguish themselves from thetypical service provider. Work with Cisco to customize a strategy and plan for incorporat-ing services best practices that meet your unique business needs.

Step 3: Train sales staff.

The best plans wonÕt work if your people donÕt know how to execute! Spend the time andmoney needed to train your sales staff on the latest services best practices. Invest inretraining on an annual basis to keep your salespeople up-to-date and motivated.

Step 4: Get involved with Cisco Service Programs and Offerings.

Cisco offers numerous incentive programs and offerings to facilitate your entry into theservice business. Your CSAM can help you obtain the information you need.

ResourcesTechnical services can help you create more loyal Cisco customers, while infusing yourexisting business with a new, renewable revenue stream.

Cisco provides a wealth of resources to help you learn more and get the help you need tobuild a valuable service practice.

ARM Training Resources

Making the First Sale

www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#first_sales

Selling Services on Uncovered Equipment

www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#uncovered

13

The Value of Selling Services

• Services can dramaticallyimpact your bottom line. With abest-in-class service business,you can increase your revenue,earn a return on working capital,and increase the value of yourbusiness.

• Incorporating services bestpractices requires somechanges to your businessmodel.

• Your sales staff must be trainedto integrate services contractsinto their sales approach.

• We can help! Take advantage ofCisco services programs tohelp develop and sustain yourgo-to-market business plan.

Selling Service Contract Renewals

www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#sell_service

Selling Multiyear Service Agreements

www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#multi

Cisco SMB Support Assistant

www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/resources/index.html#smb_support

Cisco TAC: Useful Links

Create or View a Service Request

http://tools.cisco.com/ServiceRequestTool/create/launch.do

Cisco TAC Software Center

www.cisco.com/software

Cisco.com Registration and Support

To create a Cisco.com account, please log on to www.cisco.com and click Register.Follow the instructions to create a new profile by choosing service contract owner andentering your Cisco Technical Services contract number.

If you need assistance with updating your profile, please contact the Cisco.com team atweb-help@cisco.com. Please note that if you change a service contract or add additionalservice contracts, you must submit a request to have these items added to your Cisco.comprofile to have access to these contracts online.

14

Service Contract: Useful Links

Cisco Service Contract Center

www.cisco.com/public/scc/

Distribution Products Reference Guide: Service Pricing and Packaged Categories

www.cisco.com/warp/cpropart/prg/

Cisco SMARTnet Services Contract Registration Tool

www.cisco.com/cgi-bin/front.x/ContractMgmt/tool/action/SMSRegSearchAction?usersource=smsreg

Cisco SMARTnet Services Contract Renewal Tool

www.cisco.com/cgi-bin/front.x/scccibdispatch?AppName=ContractAgent&Form=Home

Cisco Products: Useful Links

Cisco Technical Services

www.cisco.com/go/supportservices

Serial Number Formats and Label Finder

http://tools.cisco.com/Support/CPI/index.do

Product Upgrade Tool: Software

www.cisco.com/upgrade/

End-of-Life Information

www.cisco.com/en/US/products/prod_end_of_life.html

SMB Support Assistant

www.cisco.com/en/US/partner/products/ps6193/serv_home.html

Cisco Services for Intrusion Prevention Systems

www.cisco.com/en/US/partner/products/ps6076/serv_home.html

Partner Resources: Useful Links

Homepage

www.cisco.com/en/US/partner/support/index.html

Current Cisco Channel Incentives

www.cisco.com/web/CA/channels/programs_promotions/index.html

Attach, Renewal, Multiyear (ARM) Guide

www.cisco.com/web/CA/go/arm/guidelines/index.html

15

Partner Support Center

800 GO-CISCO, option 4

Distributor Questions

For credit questions, please contact your distributor’s customer service department.

Ingram Micro

800 456-8000, extension 76471 Smartnetquote@ingrammicro.com

Tech Data

800 237-8931, extension 72105smartnetquote@techdata.com

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