3 Ways To Grow Your Small Business Market

There are more than 40 million small businesses in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, employing more than 80 million people. Even though they fuel local and national economies, small businesses have long been overlooked when it comes to the IT solutions and support they need to grow. This disparity has become even more glaring as local businesses of all types have moved online. Always-on connectivity, support for business-critical applications, and robust cybersecurity are no longer “nice to have”—they are essential. 

Bridging the Productivity Gap for Small Businesses

Calix developed SmartBiz™ as a purpose-built managed service solution for small businesses, enabling broadband service providers (BSPs) to bridge that gap. And beyond addressing a pressing need for key members of your community, offering SmartBiz enables you to grow your business by tapping into a lucrative new market segment. 
 

Whether you’ve already launched your small business offering or are considering SmartBiz, here are three ways you can grow your small business market. 

Put an Amazing Home Experience To Work for You

You’re probably already taking advantage of our Calix SmartHome™ managed services to give subscribers an exceptional, personalized experience at home. Besides providing super-reliable Wi-Fi, you’re keeping them safe with home network security, advanced parental controls, social media monitoring, and connected cameras. Now show them what you can do at their business. 
 

Think about how many of your residential subscribers own or work for a small business. You have a ready-made audience—make sure they’re aware of your small business offering. While there are several marketing channels to choose from, social engagement is particularly useful for building credibility, growing goodwill, and increasing word of mouth. 

Cast a Wide Net When Prospecting Small Businesses

When identifying your market, don’t limit your prospects to a specific industry or type of business. Whether a boutique, restaurant, auto repair shop, or farm, every small business owner needs connectivity and productivity tools. Sure, a law office will have different requirements than a brewery, but the flexibility of SmartBiz allows you to accommodate them all with a single, comprehensive solution. 
 

Businesses get it all in one package: dedicated networks for business devices, point-of-sale systems, staff, and customers; network security and content restrictions; a customizable customer Wi-Fi portal; staff device management; network resiliency; and a mobile app to control everything. You can tailor the solution for the unique requirements of each business while keeping things simple and cost-effective. 

Think Outside of the Box To Address Different Use Cases

Backed by the Calix Broadband Platform, SmartBiz gives you the flexibility to adapt to your small business customers’ changing needs. For instance, you can continue to serve small businesses as they expand and open satellite locations—even outside your service area. With Calix Cloud, remote offices can be set up with a GigaPro® or GigaSpire® BLAST® system and immediately enjoy the same features used in the main business location. So, even though your small business customers grow, it doesn’t mean they outgrow you.

And of course, Calix is here to help you at every step of your small business journey, with expert guidance, best practices, and other resources. Smart Start for Managed Services ensures you can plan, launch, support, and grow managed services like SmartBiz quickly and with confidence. And the Calix Market Activation program will help you get into market faster than ever with agency-quality, ready-made marketing materials for SmartBiz. 

Learn how you can meet the needs of small businesses in your community. Download our eBook “How Broadband Service Providers Can Become the Catalyst for Small Business Growth.”