SMEs Pay Double for Messaging

If the costs of running your own messaging server seems like they're getting out of hand then you're not alone. In a report that Strategic Technology Analytics just co-authored with Osterman Research, mid-size companies are spending twice as much per messaging seat than large organizations.

The report "Enterprise Messaging Server Trends" looks at the purchasing habits of IT organizations across large (over 2,500 email user) and mid-size (under 2,500 email users) organizations. Mid-size organizations on average spent $36.58 per seat per user while large organizations spent $18.09 per seat per user.

Personnel costs account for some of that margin. An email administrator who spends 10 hours per week on security management could easily support a large number of users, but in a smaller organization the cost of labor simply cannot be spread over as many users.

But those numbers don't tell the whole story. Volume discounts enable large organizations to dramatically reduce the amount they spend on messaging software and infrastructure. Smaller organizations spend nearly three times more than larger organization on email servers and upgrades, nearly 30 times more per seat for anti-virus hardware, software, and appliances; nearly 19 times more on email analysis/reporting software; and over 10 times more on anti-spam hardware, software, and appliances.

Moral of the story? Your messaging provider should be discounting their software and service contracts. If you're not happy with the price then push for the deal being offered to the "big guys" and just see what can be found.