Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk Astricon September, 2008

Shelton | Johns: History & Overview

• Formed to legitimize open telecommunications in the enterprise

• Focused exclusively in VoIP network design and implementation

• A history of delivering competent and professional implementation services

• Digium Select Reseller and Solutions Partner - 2007 Innovation Award Winner

• Certified by the manufacturer of every product we sell - we only sell open

solutions

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

Asterisk as the Third Option

• Cisco has an enviable marketing machine - see network TV

• Middle-tier vendors have substantial channel relationships - see Mitel / Avaya

• Asterisk has substantial nerd-lust (never underestimate nerd-lust)

• Prospects are increasingly adding Asterisk-based solutions to their RFPs out

of curiosity

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

A Comparison of Relative Equals

• Feature-set comparisons across options vary little

• Hardware selections are actually superior in Asterisk vs. proprietary platforms

• Fancy functionality is available in all platforms

• When you consider the features USED by the average customer, a lot of
capabilities become a secondary consideration

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

But Asterisk has a Distinct Advantage: CHOICE

• Shelton | Johns is built entirely upon choice as an idea

• Choice of platforms
• Choice of networks
• Choice of 3rd party products
• Choice of vendor

• No other VoIP solution can offer choice the way an open, standards-based
solution can

• Choice is the cornerstone of your competitive stance in the sales process

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

Price and Perceived Value

• The importance of not being TOO cheap

• Win on the merits of the product, not on the price

• Make the price of the solution a portion of a larger, conceptual project

• Build a real, tangible business case for the broader VoIP conversion,
independent of the product deployed

• Contrast the ROI on the basis of the selection made

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

Don’t Sell a Phone System, Sell a Network

• VoIP is an application residing within a larger network

• The greatest value comes from a broad network conversion, not a VoIP phone
system

• Most brand-name vendors fail to sell the “smart” network design - it does not
play to their proprietary model

• Dissect your customer’s telecom spend and build a unique selling proposition

• Warning - Selling this broad premise can “confuse” you out of the running

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

The Shelton | Johns VoIP Business Case

• Sell the merits of a VoIP conversion FIRST. Sell Asterisk second.

• The greatest value comes from a broad network conversion, not a VoIP phone
system

• Most brand-name vendors fail to sell the “smart” network design

• Dissect your customer’s telecom spend and build a unique selling proposition

• The S|J VoIP Business Case is a complimentary assessment that

accomplishes / communicates all of these things

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

Voice-Enabled Corporate LAN
Business Case for IP Voice on the Millennium Mats Corporate LAN

Millennium Mats | Suwanee, Georgia | April 10, 2007

Bryan M. Johns
Partner
Shelton | Johns Technology Group
http://www.sheltonjohns.com
Shelton | Johns Overview

Specialists in the design and deployment of media-enabled network

solutions for corporations and carriers

VoIP design and deployment consultants since 1997

Work primarily with open standards and open source platforms such as
Asterisk, SER and Pingtel

Supply turn-key SIP-powered network solutions with comprehensive

training and knowledge transfer services for customer IT and network
management resources

Pioneers in collocated and peered VoIP architectures for private enterprise

VoIP - The Reasons Why
Access to advanced features such as:
• Full-featured IVR
• Find-Me / Follow-Me
• Voicemail-to-Email
• Queues and Ring Groups
• Web-based Administration

Open-standards technology for interoperability

and longevity

By-pass toll and increase efficiency by

linking facilities together to dial over IP

Reduce maintenance and management

costs

Pour a foundation for growth and future

services
The Decentralized Enterprise...
...Powered by Centralized IP Infrastructure
Voice as Just Another Network Application

IP telephony brings voice onto the company network where other

communication tools such as email already live

Voice on the network puts it in the control of the resources who already
handle the data network

Consolidating services onto a single network infrastructure reduces

operation and maintenance expenses

As a network application, voice can be accessed from multiple locations via

multiple means

Centralized infrastructure simplifies security requirements and reduces

points of vulnerability
A Foundation for Future Communications

Centralized | Peered voice infrastructure places systems in the heart of new

services

Infrastructure and service provider changes are simplified

Potential for usage-based as opposed to term-based vendor relationships

Centralized infrastructure establishes base for simple roll-out of new

features and functionality to the network

Centralized infrastructure simplifies security requirements and reduces

points of vulnerability

Centralized infrastructure maximizes opportunities to peer with providers

and partners in both the application and the communication realms
A Promise of Future Savings

Aggregate dial tone services to a single

infrastructure and decommission site-
specific circuits

Remove need for facility-specific

redundancy and machine requirements

Remove need for facility-specific

management, security and support
requirements

Average-down dial tone / circuit usage

across a larger number of users and
reduce overall network capacity
requirements

Increase overall buying / bargaining power

by buying network services and access in
the marketplace in a carrier model
A Wide Array of Standards-Based Product Options
Where can this be done today? -

SIP service hand-off from a recommended

carrier such as Cbeyond.
Cbeyond is an Atlanta, Georgia - based,
publicly traded company that has pioneered
small business telecommunications services.
Cbeyond currently provides service to more
than 10,000 Metro Atlanta businesses
SJTG has more than 30 customers connected
to Cbeyond’s SIPConnect service.
Cbeyond offers a unique combination of VoIP
technology and traditional TDM services to
support faxing and other timing-sensitive
applications
Where can this be done today? -

Metro Ethernet connection to a carrier-rich /

service rich facility such as telx at 56 Marietta
Street.
Telx is home to the VPF (Voice Peering Fabric)
which is projected to switch as much as 100
billion VoIP minutes by 2008
Telx operates 12 dense carrier hotel facilities
in 9 states with a diverse set of carrier
solutions to choose from
Telx facilities are world-class and supply all
the network and power redundancy of its
competitors
Telx MMR (Meet Me Room) service allows for
direct connection to VoIP trunking solutions
Case 1 | JBoss / Redhat
Case 2 | Century 21 Real Estate
 ROI Analysis - Cbeyond

Customer ROI Analysis: Millennium Mats

Existing Telecommunications Infrastructure Operating Expense ROI MONTH

Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 7 Month 8 Month 9 Month 10 Month 11 Month 12
Internet Service (1.544 Mbps) $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00
Telephone Service (23 Line PRI) $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00
Long Distance & Toll Service $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00
Taxes & Surcharges $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00
Phone System Lease $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00
Phone System Warranty $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00
Phone System Maintenance $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00
Equipment Upgrade (as needed) $14,000.00

Monthly Expense $17,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00
Aggregate Expense $17,900.00 $21,800.00 $25,700.00 $29,600.00 $33,500.00 $37,400.00 $41,300.00 $45,200.00 $49,100.00 $53,000.00 $56,900.00 $60,800.00

Proposed Telecommunications Infrastructure Operating Expense

Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 7 Month 8 Month 9 Month 10 Month 11 Month 12
Internet Service (4.5 Mbps) $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00
Telephone Service (36 Line SIP) $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00 $650.00
Long Distance Service $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00
Taxes & Surcharges $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Phone System Lease $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Phone System Warranty $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Phone System Maintenance $1,200.00 $960.00 $720.00 $480.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00
Equipment Upgrade (as needed) $18,000.00

Monthly Expense $20,650.00 $2,410.00 $2,170.00 $1,930.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00 $1,690.00
Aggregate Expense $20,650.00 $23,060.00 $25,230.00 $27,160.00 $28,850.00 $30,540.00 $32,230.00 $33,920.00 $35,610.00 $37,300.00 $38,990.00 $40,680.00

Anticipated Annual Savings Years 2+: $26,520.00

 ROI Analysis - Time Warner Telecom

Customer ROI Analysis: Millennium Mats

ROI Month
Existing Telecommunications Infrastructure Operating Expense

Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 7 Month 8 Month 9 Month 10 Month 11 Month 12 Month 13 Month 14
Internet Service (1.544 Mbps) $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00 $860.00
Telephone Service (23 Line PRI) $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00 $965.00
Long Distance & Toll Service $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00 $800.00
Taxes & Surcharges $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00 $370.00
Phone System Lease $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00 $325.00
Phone System Warranty $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00 $180.00
Phone System Maintenance $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00
Equipment Upgrade (as needed) $14,000.00

Monthly Expense $17,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00 $3,900.00
Aggregate Expense $17,900.00 $21,800.00 $25,700.00 $29,600.00 $33,500.00 $37,400.00 $41,300.00 $45,200.00 $49,100.00 $53,000.00 $56,900.00 $60,800.00 $64,700.00 $68,600.00

Proposed Telecommunications Infrastructure Operating Expense

Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 7 Month 8 Month 9 Month 10 Month 11 Month 12 Month 13 Month 14
Internet Service (6 Mbps) $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00 $400.00
Metro Ethernet (10 Mbps) $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00 $1,450.00
Colocation Fees (2-U) $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00 $300.00
Telephone Service (On-Demand SIP) $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00
Long Distance Service $0.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00 $150.00
Taxes & Surcharges $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Phone System Lease $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Phone System Warranty $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Phone System Maintenance $1,200.00 $960.00 $720.00 $480.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00 $240.00
Equipment Upgrade $18,000.00

Monthly Expense $21,500.00 $3,410.00 $3,170.00 $2,930.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00 $2,690.00
Aggregate Expense $21,500.00 $24,910.00 $28,080.00 $31,010.00 $33,700.00 $36,390.00 $39,080.00 $41,770.00 $44,460.00 $47,150.00 $49,840.00 $52,530.00 $55,220.00 $57,910.00

Anticipated Annual Savings Years 2+: $26,520.00

$14,520.00
That’s it! Thank you for your time and attention!
Overcoming Customer Objections

• “I’ve never heard of Asterisk / Why haven’t I heard of Asterisk”

• “I’ve heard that open source solutions aren’t enterprise-grade”

• “Who supports it?”

• “It seems risky”

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

Overcoming Competitor Objections

• “Asterix is unproven”

• “There’s no solid vendor support for Asterix”

• “Asterix is a toy”

• “There’s no Quality of Service guarantee with Asterix”

• “Asterix isn’t compatible with major vendor’s equipment”

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008

General Q & A

Thank You for Your Time

and Consideration!

Selling the Flexibility of Asterisk | Astricon September, 2008