If there is one area where a hosted option really works it is in managing email and blocking spam and viruses. The concept is not only easy to understand but it is a channel favorite because it is something that they can show clearly works and produces a ROI.
Most users understand the requirement for keeping inboxes clear of spam and threats but handling that internally can be a drain not just on resources in both people and money but also time. Security management is rising up the agenda and so the option of turning to a third party and asking them to take on the burden is an increasingly attractive one.
As a result there is a growing number of options for resellers and distributors looking to provide a managed mail service that can beat off spam and viruses. Although there are a few around it would be difficult to find one as dedicated to working to a channel model as the GFI MAX offering.
In a nutshell GFI MAX MailProtection has a tiered level of viewing accounts starting at the distributor level, then reseller then users allowing those running accounts to keep an eye on the activities beneath them in the supply chain. it means that a distributor can manage its channel base in a straightforward way and likewise so can resellers of their customers.
From a channel perspective that makes this a very snug fit with resellers and disties able to offer the service without a trace of the GFI logo and plenty of opportunities for their own to feature heavily throughout the interface that the user views.
You start by going into the welcome screen, which can be accessed through a browser with the flexibility you would expect from a web service. From that screen the user will see the last few days activity with the level of spam stopped and the number of viruses that have been prevented from getting through.
Diving deeper into the system from that welcome screen it is possible to manipulate individual accounts and make sure that users are getting the service they want and generate more in-depth reports.
But for those resellers wary of going in and asking cash strapped customers to invest yet more in security there are a couple of points that need underlining that should remove resistance to investing in the solution.
The first is the price per mailbox, which is very reasonable and not one that would put the SME off making a purchase.
The second is the options that GFI has on offer with the full package, offering spam and virus protection for users that have not got existing protection in place, the MailProtection; alternatively there is the MailEdge product which is a management tool working with a users existing spam filtering product.
The attraction of the MailEdge proposition is that it allows a reseller to go to its existing customer base and introduce them not only to a product with improved management but also to the concept of the cloud and managed services which is a good thing to be doing right now because that is the way more applications are heading in the future.
The final point worth making is that because MailProtection is watching and filtering spam it is also possible to quickly identify when something has gone wrong and as a server goes down the reseller can inform the customer that there might well be problems elsewhere in the infrastructure. It is also possible to use the GFI MAX software as a compliance tool enabling the user to continue to email and check messages even if a server has gone down in their office.
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