Does your MSP suffer headaches providing hardware to clients?

1) Nice design on the iPad - just saw it now 2) morefrom sounds like a no brainer! A few years back I worked for an integrator, which also sold hardware. Trouble was often that some large clients would put the company's cash-flow under such a strain that it would be impossible to source more hardware. The little money you end up making on hardware is just not worth the reputation risk. Focus on the services and outsource non-core activities - like delivering hardware and software - makes total sense!!

Jakob - thanks for the kind words on the new blog layout! I agree with you 100% on your comment "focus on the core services and out-source non-core activities" - not just for Hardware sales, but for any aspect of your business.

I think it is a very difficult one and you layout the options really well Richard. In terms of me, then I always provide the hardware to the client at 'cost' and add a % fee for ordering, delivery and setup. This seems to go down well with the and it offers clients comfort in knowing you are not making a huge margin on the hardware. The key, as you point out, is to show your value in what you do with the kit, not just the supply of the kit. Buying a PC and getting it out of a box is easy............... making that new PC do the things you need is where your MSP skills come into effect and are the skills you need paying for; they should not be overlooked. More importantly, you will have to offer the client some assistance in terms of what PC to buy, what processors to use (http://buff.ly/OPSDVh) and so on................ you need to ensure the client see's that investment of your time as 'of value' and thus 'worth paying for'. A final thought, in terms of the importance of reliable IT hardware. If a standard HP PC costs £500 and is designed to last a min of 3 years, then that means the PC will cost the business £13 per month in its lifetime. Can you think of anything more important to a member of staff than a reliable, efficient and dependable PC ? And to think that the cost for it is so low. It staggers me when business owners quibble over the price of a PC when in fact that piece of hardware costs so little, yet is so important to generating revenue day-2-day in their buiness

Craig - good comment, and I think you've taken a great approach. Transparency towards your mark-up on hardware sales is often the best way, although some clients simply don't appreciate this model and so alternative routes need to be found. You and I both know that the real cost of Hardware is not in the sale price, but the ongoing maintenance and support of the hardware. It pays to buy business class to reduce these ongoing costs. It's our job to educate clients to that truth.

Perhaps I've learned through error, but in the last two years I have always required clients pay up front for harware above £350. That basically always covers for a PC. But I can only think of the one client that doesn't buy their hardware through me, because they can get credit from Dell, but I cannot. So they understand and I charge them "speccing" time. Perhaps I am just lucky with clients. For existing clients, it isn't a problem, for new clients I basically say "Use me or not". I am in the position where I could turn away profitless business... (Perhaps it would be different if I were larger). Also when it comes to hardware, it's Vostro, Latitude or Optiplex. No exceptions. 3 years next business day warranty. No exceptions* (*reinforced by using Lenovo twice recently, and getting bitten hard both times). But I find that if you have faith in the product, know the product and the brand, you shouldn't have much issue in hardware return... But I am a voracious reader of reviews which helps as well... Anyway, back to speccing a desktop which I anticipate to make 10% on to cover my time for speccing it, and Louise's time for billing... Regards Jules

Julian - a word of warning. A 10% mark-up on a Desktop may seem adequate, but in my experience - once you take into account the actual time you've spent speccing up a machine, dealing with administration, chasing overdue invoices, etc - you might well be making a loss on the sale.