Are You Still Overpaying for Microsoft Licensing?

Despite best efforts to watch their bottom line, businesses often hemorrhage money by overpaying for necessary software, equipment, and programming.

One place where people consistently spend too much money is Microsoft Licensing.

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, let's make sure you understand what Microsoft Licensing entails. When you buy a license from Microsoft, you're essentially purchasing permission to use their product.

There are various levels and types of licenses, but you must pay the license fees to avoid using Microsoft software without permission.

While buying the proper licenses for your Microsoft software is recommended, it's also possible to buy too many or the wrong license. Figuring out what license to use is one of the most significant stumbling hurdles for many businesses.

It can be difficult to develop a plan for dozens or even hundreds of employees, but we can provide you with some insight into your alternatives.

On March 1, 2022, Microsoft will update their subscription prices for the following commercial products many organizations use: 

• Microsoft 365 Business Basic will rise from $5 to $6 per user 
• Microsoft 365 Business Premium will rise from $20 to $22 
• Office 365 E1 will rise from $8 to $10 
• Office 365 E3 will rise from $20 to $23 
• Office 365 E5 will rise from $35 to $38 
• Microsoft 365 E3 will rise from $32 to $36. 

If your business employs ten people, the difference may not be as significant, but if you have 200 employees, you will spend tens of thousands of dollars a year on these licenses.

Because some employees may not require the same capabilities as others, you can use essential licenses at a lesser cost and more robust licenses for others. This type of flexibility is great, but it might make it more challenging to figure out exactly what you need.

One of the most critical components that we perform for our clients is our licensing assessment procedure. We use it to understand how companies manage workflows across their organization and how responsibilities are distributed across different departments. 

Once we know more about a company's day-to-day workflow and the differing levels of employee responsibilities, we design an optimized licensing plan so they stop overpaying for additional Microsoft features they don't need or use.  

The majority of our licensing audits reveal that companies tend to overpay Microsoft around 10% on average perpetually. That said, some companies overpay even more. We frequently save businesses 15%, and we guarantee we can save companies between five and ten percent on their monthly licensing costs. 

A recent real-world example is a healthcare company with 418 users that reach out to us. They now save $2,015 per month after our Microsoft licensing optimization audit.

Microsoft loves when you overpay—especially when you don't realize it. But we don't. We love seeing when businesses can save money and redirect previously wasted funds to where it's needed the most.

If saving your company hundreds or even thousands of dollars a month would positively impact your department or your company in general, please reach out.