Nine Technology survey taken at MSPWorld reveals low rate of implementation of social media techniques by MSPs
November 2, 2010 – Middleboro, Mass. – Connecting to clients and potential clients one-on-one is a key way managed service providers drive business. The rise of social media has enabled this unique group of businesses to reach out to users confused about aspects of their services, or to respond to questions about what the provider offers. But according to a survey taken by Nine Technology at the MSPWorld conference in Los Angeles, adoption of these techniques by managed service providers is not yet at a high level.
Gene Fay, senior vice president of Nine Technology, conducted the survey during and after his keynote address at the conference, in which he promoted social media tactics as a cost-effective way to build trust and create potential customers. Of those polled, 64% reported no social media activity on behalf of their businesses. In an era in which Facebook has surpassed Google as the most frequently viewed website on the planet, this constitutes a missed opportunity for many managed service providers.
“The MSPAlliance community has had great success in advocating for social media adoption among participating MSPs,” said Charles Weaver, President of MSPAlliance. “We strongly recommend the inclusion of blogging and a full-fledged social media campaign in MSPs’ 2011 planning.”
Fay’s keynote at MSPWorld was among the best-attended and best-received of the conference sessions. Weaver appeared in an episode of Nine Technology TV following the address, and said there that these techniques provide a strong return on investment for businesses using them. But Fay cautioned that a haphazard approach to social media can prove futile, and advised business owners to commit fully to the philosophies.
“ARINC Managed Services is embarking on a carefully constructed plan to make social media an active part of our marketing,” said Don Brien, Senior Director at ARINC Managed Services. “We are integrating the tools that are most relevant to our business and target audience as a way to leverage what we see as a burgeoning communications channel.”
About Nine Technology
Nine Technology delivers simple, powerful and cost-effective turnkey online backup and restore solutions for managed service providers (MSPs), value-added resellers and IT consultants. The “Powered by Nine” solutions enable service providers to quickly offer reliable and scalable services to protect their customers’ critical data stored on desktops, laptops and servers. It is our goal to know our customers’ business and help them build revenue. For more information, visit www.ninetechnology.com.