Earlier this year, we partnered with Cavell to develop research looking at seizing the cloud communications market, and how partners can capitalise on the opportunity. In the second part of our evaluation of cloud-based communication systems in the UK, we have partnered once again with Cavell to support our partners on how to build a leading Unified Communications as-a-service (UCaaS) proposition.
UCaaS platforms are a cloud-delivered unified communications model that provides businesses with a consolidated variety of different communication mediums. These often include telephony, audio and video conferencing, messaging, and mobility solutions. Looking at the broader market, the Unified Communication’s (UC) industry in the UK is growing annually at a rate of around 20% and the total market value is set to exceed £1.9bn annually by 2025. To leverage this dynamic and expanding opportunity, service providers and partners need to ensure they are offering their customers the most suitable and innovative communication solutions.
Our research with Cavell explores changes in business communication requirements, investigates the increasingly competitive communications market in the UK, and examines buyer behaviour and preferences to assist our partners in building a leading UCaaS proposition.
Evolving requirements and growing market
The nature of business communication requirements varies dramatically according to the business size and its vertical market sector. However, there are some almost universal factors that are transforming business communication requirements more generally within the UK. For instance, the most dramatic impact on UK business communication requirements has been caused by COVID-19. Enforced remote working from the start of 2020 onwards has compelled businesses to re-evaluate their processes and procedures, and the communication systems used to facilitate these. In fact, Cavell found that large enterprises report the strongest growth in video, with 86% using in 2020 rising to 96% in 2021 – showing a growing opportunity for partners.
That’s why service providers and partners must evaluate their strategies to ensure they have the capabilities to meet the demands of the market. Cavell found that the top ten communications providers who control 54% of the UK market all grew their market share, whereas smaller providers witnessed a stagnation. Second tier providers, outside of the largest three, have grown their market share significantly from just under 10% of the market to over 14%.
That’s why many service providers and partners within the UK are now looking to work alongside technology vendors, to white-label or resell UCaaS platforms. This allows UK providers to reduce development costs and maintain their own customer relationships while offering the most cutting-edge and competitive solutions.
Understanding buyer behaviour and building a leading proposition
Understanding the nature of communications purchasing is key for any partner. Ensuring the correct target customers are identified both in terms of business size and vertical market are vital considerations. The reasons behind technology partner selection can vary dramatically for each individual business. For instance, our research with Cavell found that SMBs value the best management tools and portals, whereas large enterprises will want integration with other key cloud applications, such as Salesforce, when choosing a supplier.
It's crucial that partners select the right UCaaS platform and consider all external factors to ensure their customers are getting what they need. This is a vital step to ensure partners and service providers can stake their claim to a rapidly growing market, forecast to generate more than £1bn in revenue in 2021.
Read the full whitepaper here
