TECHNOLOGY lifecycle services expert Smart CT has launched an AI-powered online quote platform that can deliver an indicative price for any deployment within 60 seconds instead of days.
The Reading company deploys, maintains, replaces and repairs business-critical IT infrastructure on behalf of IT companies who support datacentres, retailers, government organisations and financial services, among others.
Founded in 2002, Smart CT has spent 24 years building a reputation as the services partner of choice for many of Europe’s leading IT VARs, S.I.s, manufacturers and MSPs, delivering reliable, cost-effective ‘smart hands’ and maintenance support to their end customers.
CEO Andy Morgan said giving its customers a price for engineering services that can involve multiple devices across a number of locations can be complex. “When giving customers a price for a project spanning multiple devices and sites there’s a lot to factor into a quote,” he said. “We’ve built an AI-powered tool that delivers a reliable, indicative quote in five clicks, and a full quote within 60 seconds.
“Normally there’s a whole chain of conversations between the seller, manufacturer, distributor and end customer, with us somewhere in the middle — and that takes time. We know responding fast gives MSPs and System Integrators far more confidence in us as a partner. If you can order a Tesla in five clicks, why can’t a services business do the same?”
The portal asks the potential customer a series of questions to ascertain what services it needs, for example a multi-site SD-WAN roll out, how many devices are involved on how many sites, the size of the sites and the timescale involved – as well as questions on access.
It will return a quote that can be finessed once further details are confirmed. “By giving the customers greater control, it will enable them to offer an even better service to their customer – ultimately driving faster time to market,” said Mr Morgan.
Research by MIT Sloan School of Management published in the Harvard Business Review found businesses responding to enquiries within five minutes were 21 times more likely to keep customers engaged than those waiting longer.
“Speed and service are what matter most to our customers, and no one else in the market is doing this,” said Morgan. “Combined with on-time delivery of 99 per cent, it’s a compelling offer.”
Mr Morgan said the portal was developed after customer feedback and is part of Smart CT’s strategy to use technology to continue to grow its services. “Our aspiration is to have a million supported devices – we currently support 600,000,” said Mr Morgan. “Our mission is that we keep our customers’ technology connected and our purpose is to grow technology services with people they can trust.”
—
Pictured: Smart CT CEO Andy Morgan, second right, with CFO Allen Browning, left, Director of Service Delivery Claire Jones, second left, and Business support manager Helen Pollard