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16
COVER STORY
Here are the facts – the
UK has 19,000 primary
schools, 3,900 secondary
schools and over 280
universities. In 2014
annual school spending
on computer equipment
will move beyond £600
million pounds. And
total ICT annual
spend is projected
to exceed £2.7
billion.
It’s a massive
opportunity for resellers. Recognising
the commercial opportunity is one thing,
but realising it requires support. This is
precisely why Ingram Micro has launched
a major business development initiative; so
our channel partners, both large and small,
can do just that.
We’re undertaking our first ever
education end-user campaign, helping
schools and colleges to understand the
teaching and learning opportunities of
technology and how to navigate the
complex mix of applications, devices,
infrastructures and services.
Education is changing
“Today’s students are not only fluent in technology; they expect it to be there – at
home and in the classroom. After all, most now have smartphones.
I’ve seen a massive increase in teaching innovations that are starting to
come online – tablets with fun learning apps which are hooking kids in, and
teaching them things without the children even realising they’re learning.
Older students are taking advantage too. Connected college campuses
and virtual learning environments are giving today’s undergraduates the
flexibility they’ll be looking for. Learning is no longer limited to the lecture
theatre.
Of course, it isn’t just the children who benefit. Technology is
revolutionising teaching practices and streamlining classroom
management. It’s also helping schools and colleges reduce
paper, improve their environmental credentials and save
money. All of which are great messages to take to market.”
Spencer Kelly,
Broadcaster and technology expert
To do it, we are engaging directly with
education buyers, answering questions like
“what do education buyers care about?”
and “what are the best selling classroom
and campus technologies?”. All in an effort
to provide commercial insight and drive
demand for reseller partners.
Great deals on the best solutions
Ingram Micro is partnering with leading
vendors to offer a comprehensive range
of education IT solutions – from ProAV,
devices, print & peripherals, through to
infrastructure, software and services.
We’ll bring you the very best deals and,
of course, continue to offer consultancy
and services to support the sale, convert
your prospects and to lend a helping
hand during planning, configuration and
deployment, if required.
Education offers a huge opportunity.
And Ingram Micro is here to ensure you
have everything you need to take full
advantage of it (see right).
The fact that our Learning Live
presentations at October’s SMB Alliance
event were some of the best attended
during the show highlights how important
this emerging market is for partners. So,
too, does the tranche of education-specific
products and services now coming through
from vendors.
Education is a solution sell
The growing margin potential of selling
solutions and services into primary,
secondary and tertiary institutions is a
major attraction for resellers.
According to Intel, revenues are
growing as devices proliferate outside
the traditional PC lab environment –
prompting new opportunities to sell
hardware certainly, but also to deliver
the back-end wireless, server and storage
infrastructures needed to support them all.
Not only this; because much of the
technology is still new to the classroom,
partners can extend relationships by
Ingram Micro has brought together a complete portfolio of
solutions for the education sector, making it easier for resellers
to address this lucrative market.
Opportunity in education
