In the telecom industry, change is the only constant. We've seen it before: telecom once started as part of electrical engineering firms. Then came the rise of dedicated telecom companies, followed by a shift toward IT companies offering telecom services — and vice versa. Right now, we’re in the middle of another fundamental transformation. It’s already well underway. The problem is… many telecom providers haven’t noticed yet.
You focus on Microsoft — they focus on your customer.
While many telecom providers today are almost blinded by the delivery of IT services such as Microsoft licenses, a quiet revolution is unfolding. More and more CRM providers no longer see telecom as a separate component, but as an essential part of their application. Whether they develop communication solutions themselves or integrate them via third parties, the lines between CRM and telecom are rapidly fading.
Already in 2025, we're seeing a clear rise in campaigns and offers from these CRM providers targeting end customers — with telecom included effortlessly as an add-on. And for customers, that makes perfect sense: they expect a fully integrated system where communication and customer data come together seamlessly. Only a handful of telecom providers seem truly awake and are leveraging this shift as a strategic advantage.
Meanwhile, most of the complaints we hear come from providers focused primarily on IT services — they’re the ones lamenting a lack of leads and market opportunities, all while missing the underlying shift that's causing it.
The first question is no longer what you offer — but whether it integrates.
We increasingly hear it from our partner network: customers no longer start the conversation by asking about features or platform choices. Instead, their first question is — can you integrate with our CRM? Whether it's Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho, or something else, CRM integration is right at the top of their wish list. For many customers, it’s become a given that communication and customer data are fully integrated.
CRM providers recognized this shift early and have acted on it. They’ve made the merging of communication and CRM a core part of their strategy. And with the future in mind, this is only becoming more important. Think of AI-driven features like automatic call transcriptions logged directly into the CRM — without this kind of integration, it simply doesn’t work.
Yet many IT service providers are still slow to respond — or not responding at all. As a result, they’re already missing out on opportunities, and that gap will only widen. Because if you’re not offering it, your competitor will.
Stop following — start leading again.
Many telecom providers remain stuck in the belief that the future lies in offering Microsoft services, or that everything revolves around the telephony platform itself. But customers have long moved on — they now want systems that communicate with each other, where telephony is seamlessly integrated with customer data and business processes. Ignoring that integrated approach doesn’t just cost you relevance — it will eventually cost you the customer.
You become a generalist. Your unique value fades, you accept lower margins, your scalability decreases, and you become dependent on a single major vendor. Meanwhile, your entire organization must adapt to a type of service fundamentally different from telecom — often requiring acquisitions just to keep up. But those acquisitions change your company culture, lead to staff turnover, and make hitting your goals harder than ever. You make yourself vulnerable by relying on one dominant supplier. What happens when they change direction — or cut your margins even further?
But here’s the thing: you don’t need to be overtaken by CRM providers. In fact, you have more to offer. As a telecom company, you already have what it takes — deep expertise, years of experience with communication infrastructure, and with a tool like Bubble, a powerful proposition. You can offer everything CRM providers can — and more. Not to mention the added value of your support, implementation strength, and technical depth. If you’ve ignored the market shift up to now, it’s time to correct course. You just need to start telling the right story.
Want to brainstorm further?
Would you like to discuss your strategy or get support in implementing a future-proof approach with CRM integration at its core? Feel free to contact us at sales@redcactus.cloud or call us at +31113405065.