RingCentral is dominating the UCaaS channel space, but don’t take my word for it. Baird’s UCaaS Channel Survey affirms that partners are winning more than their fair share of UCaaS business with RingCentral, and are pivoting to RingCentral as their preferred UCaaS solution.
Baird, an employee-owned wealth management, capital markets, asset management, and private equity firm, independently surveyed a range of channel partners who participate in UCaaS sales. These channel partners were asked eight questions about past and expected sales results, the importance of bundled offerings, and more. We honestly couldn’t have asked for better results; in fact, you sometimes can’t even pay for this kind of publicity!
As the survey says, “100% of the partners who expect UC sales to grow 50%+ over the next three months said they sell RingCentral the most.” That is to say, the only partners who project their UC sales will be up more than 50% in the next ninety days state that they sell RingCentral the most.
The Channel is Evolving
Customers are moving from on-premise and demanding UCaaS, and with RingCentral winning in the cloud, partners are choosing to sell RingCentral over other cloud service providers. “In looking at expectations for UCaaS sales based on the cloud provider most sold,” says Baird, “RingCentral appears to be the clear leader.” As the leader, we cannot rest on our laurels. We know customers are making demands to be introduced to UCaaS, and partners who sell RingCentral the most are seeing greater traction with sales this year, compared to those partners who sell hybrid/on-premise the most, such as Cisco and Avaya. As the chart shows, “43% of those who sell a standalone cloud provider’s solution the most believe their UC sales will be up over 50% over the next three months, compared to 9% of those who sell a hybrid/on-premise provider’s solution the most.”
It’s obvious that now is the time for customers to transition to the cloud, and partnering with the number one company in the industry, RingCentral, makes selling even easier. Through our unique collaboration program, Channel Harmony™: One to Infinity, partners win 100% of commissions on every single deal, from one to infinity. Our partners can’t help but think RingCentral first. And as we continue to bolster our portfolio, channel partners can look to RingCentral as the complete cloud solution for today’s modern digital workforce, both in enhancing communications and collaboration.
A Look Ahead: 2019 Predictions for Channel
The channel momentum continues into 2019, as enterprises of every type are increasingly moving their communications and collaboration solutions—along with other various business functions—to the cloud. Considering this big shift to the cloud, and the exceptional results in the Baird survey, this is what I see happening in the channel this year:
- Collaboration of partners – I see big partners merging with other partners to gain synergy in the market. We saw this last year when Scansource acquired Master Agent Intelisys.
- Consolidation of UCaaS providers – the market is crowded with UCaaS providers who offer similar, overlapping features, so providers will need to find ways to either join forces, or will be forced to differentiate themselves.
- UCaaS growth YoY will accelerate from 40% to 45% as more and more customers are asking their Partners (Trusted Advisors) to bring them from on-prem to a UCaaS solution.
Unified communications as a service is maturing, and given RingCentral’s relentless focus on innovative strategies over the past year, it’s no wonder RingCentral is dominating in the cloud. Partnering with RingCentral means you’re part of an award-winning team – let us help your business flourish throughout 2019 and beyond. Learn more about our Partner Program here.
Originally published Feb 08, 2019, updated Aug 07, 2020
