I had a run-in with a potential customer recently.  At The Backup Plan, we provide backup services as a managed service that IT solutions providers can offer to their customers.  So, we approach companies that off IT support and say, “Hey, you, yeah, IT support provider…do you have a backup offering?  Oh, you do, does it do versioning and imaging and continuous data protection and replication and disk to disk…” and so on.  1 in 10 listen and 1 in 10 of those sign up and offer our services to their customers.  10 in 10 of those are satisfied with their decision.  1 in 100 of those like it so much that they start their own backup plan service and stop paying us for it.  What??  Yes, I’m serious.

Anyway, my real point is that there are even a few IT solutions providers that we have approached, or who have approached us, that already offer backup services.  The most recent was so striking because it is a nationwide chain…and…THEY OWN a BACKUP provider?!!!?  Seriously, they bought a company for millions of dollars and offer backup services through that company.  But they are interested in using us to offer the same services.  And when I asked about the service provider they already own, they drew a blank.  Like, didn’t know about it.  So the SCal regional management has no knowledge of all the offerings of the parent company.  But hey, I’m not one to turn away business.  I wish someone would buy my company.  Any takers?  $3 million and it is yours.  And, I’ll we’ll all even continue working for it for a year…cannot beat that.  OK, I’d only sell to the right shop, but if there are companies that are so big that they do not realize that they already own an offering, it really makes you wonder about the wisdom and waste of dealing with some large companies.  More on this later.  It has me thinking.