4 Things To Know About HP’s New Business Boost Platform

The bundled offering, which will be available through solution providers, is aimed at simplifying life for SMBs and customers with remote workers.

HP Inc. is seeking to simplify life for small and medium-sized businesses and work-from-home customers with a comprehensive new offering, HP Business Boost, which is poised to create new opportunities for solution providers.

The offering aims to meet core customer needs with a monthly subscription that includes a wide range of solutions bundled together, from devices to supplies to support.

[Related: HP Overhauls Partner Program To Target New Sales Models, Services, Data Sharing]

“I think we’re creating a platform with HP Business Boost,” said Christoph Schell, chief commercial officer at HP, in an interview with CRN. “Over time we will deploy more services capabilities on that--some of them from HP, and some of them from partners.”

HP is unveiling Business Boost this week in connection with its virtual Reinvent 2020 partner conference. What follows are four key things to know about HP Business Boost.

What Business Boost Includes

HP’s Business Boost offering bundles together hardware, security, support and services, all provided to customers for a fixed monthly payment, the company said. Hardware spans PCs, including laptops and desktops, as well as monitors and printers. Customers can choose between three hardware tiers--good, better or best--depending on their requirements, according to HP.

For device security, Business Boost features HP’s Essential Security suite--which includes solutions such as malware protection (via Sure Click and Sure Sense) and Sure Start self-healing BIOS.

Business Boost services and support include break and fix support for remote workers (including pickup/return or onsite repair); device monitoring and management via HP’s TechPulse solution, which proactively identifies device issues before they become a problem; and HP’s Instant Ink service, which automatically provides printer ink deliveries to users at home.

Premium Upgrade

Business Boost also offers an optional premium upgrade to customers. The upgrade extends device security beyond the base-level Essential Security suite with the inclusion of HP Pro Security--which combines advanced application isolation with endpoint protection that leverages deep-learning technologies.

HP Pro Security includes an enhanced version of the Sure Click malware protection solution--dubbed Sure Click Pro--offering improved isolation protection technologies covering files, browsers and applications. HP Pro Security also includes Sure Sense Pro, which expands on the Sure Sense deep-learning malware protection introduced last year, used for blocking previously unknown malware.

Additionally, the premium upgrade for Business Boost adds accidental damage protection and HP Active Care for automating the creation of support tickets, HP said.

Why HP Is Launching Business Boost

Business Boost aims to enhance HP’s approach to serving SMBs with the help of solution providers, Schell said.

Up until now, “we reached [SMBs] with a product offering. You want to buy an HP printer, display, notebook, desktop? Great. We didn’t reach them for an outcome-based point of view,” he said. “We have to shift the discussion from a product-led discussion to an outcome-led discussion. You want to run this business at a certain cost, how do we do that? How do we make this simple?”

That prompted HP to look at all of its assets to see if there was a better way to meet SMB needs, he said.

“Rather than having product-based engagements with these customers, we said, let’s take all these assets together--from a hardware point of view, from a services point of view, also from a financial point of view,” Schell said. “And that’s what we’ve done in a very simple way. We really keep it simple. You can choose from three packs--good, better, best. You have in there printing components, personal systems components, workflow components, and then leasing and financing components that you can choose. It makes your performance very predictable. It also makes your cost management very predictable--and if you are a small business, that is important.”

Partner Opportunity

Solution providers will have the opportunity to earn margin on reselling HP Business Boost, while also potentially generating revenue through adding their own services, HP said.

“Partners will have the opportunity to add their own services that will complement the HP services offering,” the company said in a statement provided to CRN.

Additionally, a unique feature of Business Boost is the availability of financing through HP, the company said.

“Since the financing is through HP, partners are offering customers monthly payments, at the same time being paid in full at time of sale,” HP said. “That allows them to take immediate advantage of the top and bottom line of every Business Boost sale.”

HP expects to make Business Boost available through channel partners in the fall. Monthly payments for Business Boost will start at $29.99 per month, HP said.