Rob Merklinger

It’s often said that the only thing that is constant is change. Anyone who’s been working in the IT channel for more than six months —IT service providers, in particular — can certainly attest to this simple truth. Now more than ever, business models are changing rapidly— whether it’s by choice or chance—and the channel needs to be ready to capitalize on it.

The debate about which cloud is the right for business — public, private or hybrid — has been ongoing and may never be completely resolved, but most will agree the choice depends on the business and its unique requirements.

You’ve more than likely heard the saying, “jack of all trades, master of none,” and while in most cases this applies to individuals, it can also pertain to businesses, including solutions providers and MSPs (managed services providers).

If the nightly news is your primary source for the latest happenings in cybersecurity threats, you’d think that retail was cybercriminals’ number one target (no pun intended). Many would be surprised to find out that healthcare is actually at the top of the hit list.

There’s no such thing as a free lunch, and the same goes for technology. You get what you pay for.

When it comes to selling managed services, most managed services providers (MSPs) understand the benefits to the customers — less downtime, more scalability, and predictable monthly IT costs, all for a fair price. Where many MSPs struggle is predicting how much time they’re going to invest in monitoring and troubleshooting customers’ IT assets and then establishing a monthly price based on that estimate.

According to the latest research from Gartner, three years ago only 2% of all cloud transactions went through the channel. Today that number has grown to 20%, and it’s growing at a faster pace every day. The reality is, however, that many VARs and MSPs struggle to close cloud business. If you find yourself in this category, take heart, the solution is probably simpler than you think. Below is a handful of common objections MSPs face when selling cloud backup solutions, as well as some tips on how to overcome them.