Nov 23, 2007 Ottawa, Ontario – The Utility Company, a single-source provider of technology, communications and business management solutions for small and medium-sized businesses across North America, held its inaugural Utility Revolution Summit at the Brookstreet Hotel and Resort in Ottawa from November 8-10.
Most Utility Service Provider (USP) franchisees from across North America attended the event to hear from Utility’s management team, some of the most successful USPs and even several end-user customers on their experience with the Connected Office services. The main theme of the event was the preview of Connected Office 3.0 Technology-as-a-Service program – the first single-source solution addressing “ALL things technology” for small and medium-sized businesses (SMB). Connected Office 3.0 focuses on the five main areas of technology for business: IT (network, desktop, security, and storage), business applications, Web/Internet, copier/printer and telecommunications.
“Having only officially launched the business 16 months ago, obviously we are proud of how quickly we have established ourselves in the marketplace with a growth rate of over 1000% and a customer base doubling every month,” stated Mark Scott, President and Founder of The Utility Company. “The enthusiasm, entrepreneurialism and expertise of our USPs, along with the leverage of our business model, positions us well to be the first national SMB service organization with the breadth and depth of services that parallels enterprise consultancies, but that is specifically designed for businesses from 5 to 100 employees.”
Key highlights of Utility Revolution ’07 included:
Keynote: Virtually There – The Future of Utility Computing (is Now)
Preview of Connected Office 3.0
The Evolution of the Single-source Provider
Utility Service Provider Successes and Panels
End-user Customer Panel
“The Utility Box” Virtual Desktop
“The end-user panel by far is the session that absolutely blew me away,” stated Leonard Lutes, President of Utility Puget Sound (along with many other attendees). “To hear our customers’ account of the lack of professional technology services available, their experiences with past providers of point solutions versus The Utility Company’s single-source provider approach was phenomenal and really cemented why I invested in a Utility franchise. My team and I are really excited about Connected Office 3.0 and look forward to continuing to build out the Seattle market.”
“Quite frankly, The Utility Company represents the best business model addressing one of the largest market opportunities that I’ve seen, added Benita O’Toole, Director of Sales for Madison Park Hotels, Georgia. “As I stated on the end-user panel, there is no comparable service out there and we’ve tried all of them! When you add the strength of their service delivery model with the scalability of the way they approach franchising I don’t know if they even realize their potential.”
“The Utility Company is more then a technology partner. They are actually a trusted business advisor for small business,” commented end-user panelist Steve Hale, President of Documents Majemta of Ottawa. “They just recently helped us win a $400,000 proposal – one we couldn’t even have bid on if we hadn’t signed on to Connected Office. They truly are an integral part of our business now.”
2007 Utility Service Provider of the Year
The inaugural Utility Revolution Summit also awarded the 2007 Utility Service Provider of the Year award to Andre Jones of Quick Fix Computers in Brunswick, Georgia. Andre also presented “Secrets to Our Success as a Utility Service Provider” chronicling their evolution from break/fix reseller to fixed-fee utility services, leveraging the Utility Meter Reading as a key tool to establish business value with the customer. Andre topped all USPs in monthly revenue, end-user seats under management and customer satisfaction. He also outlined his 2008 plan from a marketing and sales perspective to eclipse $1 million in recurring revenue.
“Our affiliate franchise model is really the most intelligent channel approach for managed services and technology-as-a-service for two reasons. One, the total alignment we have to execute activity-based sales and marketing together locally and nationally. Two, off-loading 90% of the service delivery to head office, allowing the USP to focus on building their business,” concluded Mark Scott. “We are very pleased with 2007 and even more excited about being the only single-source provider solution now available to the SMB market going into 2008.”
About The Utility Company™
The Utility Company is a single-source provider of technology, communications and business management solutions for small and medium-sized businesses across North America. Our Connected Office Technology-as-a-Service program provides a single point of contact for ALL things technology - delivering the required hardware, software and service for a monthly fixed fee per user. Customers are supported by local Utility Service Providers delivering on-site service and business-technology consulting to reduce spending and increase utilization – our Beyond Managed Services franchise opportunity is available by prospectus only. Learn how to make technology work for your business today at www.theutilitycompany.com.
