Pioneer InfoTech calls itself a cloud-based IT solutions provider, but the company recently went seemingly backwards when it yanked the plug on its cloud mail and installed a good old-fashioned physical mail server.
The provider that helped Pioneer, itself a provider, is IceWarp. Pioneer now claims that the e-mail move is driving 50 to 70-percent growth in its business.
Call me skeptical, but for that to be entirely true, Pioneer would have to be as dependent on mail as the Post Office.
The growth is supposedly accounted for by having better security, less spam, and improved email logging.
Again, call me skeptical, but cloud mail does not equal insecure mail. It can be just the opposite, as the provider usually has better security tools and a more qualified security staff than the IT shops they serve.
On the spam side, a good cloud mail service should absolutely have top-notch spam controls, often using Postini.
My guess? Pioneer had a pretty schlubby cloud mail service, and it is doubtful that is was a managed service.
So let’s dig a little deeper into this puzzle.
Turns out that Pioneer doesn’t just manage its own e-mail, but client mail as well, and this is a hodgepodge of different cloud and physical solutions.
It was a nightmare to track the e-mails and block all the spam. The president of Pioneer, Anthony Kuck, looked for a better way. “I tried several products and none of them met my requirements,” said Kuck. “I tried many other mail solutions and they turned out to be too weak, with poor support for mailbox services. Some were too simple in terms of features.”
Kuck then stumbled upon IceWarp Mail Server.
“Some of the most important features I chose IceWarp for were a very comprehensive logging system, as well as powerful anti-spam and antivirus,” Kuck said “We need comprehensive logging to rapidly track customer emails traffic. For example, a customer might call us and say ‘I sent an email to this user and it’s a million dollar deal.’ When I use other mail systems, I cannot get comprehensive email traffic log. After switching to IceWarp I have the confidence that I can provide any log a customer wants.”
The biggest breakthrough may not be the move away from the cloud, but having a central mail system, whether virtual or physical. Now all mail is hosted in one place with one antimalware and anti-spam solution. It also helps Kuck offer relay services for clients that have their own mail.
“IceWarp has been good for us, allowing us to grow our hosting business 50-70 percent a year,” said Kuck. “It attracts more customers who want the features comparable with other mail systems, but without those other mail systems’ problems. Occasionally customers want to have IceWarp on premise, so we sell it as a solution.”
Edited by
Blaise McNamee
