MSPmentor

Here’s another blog entry that’s been spinning around my head for several weeks. It goes something like this: There’s no longer a first-mover advantage in the managed services market. The original theme — proactive, remote monitoring for a predictable monthly fee — is old news. So what’s next?

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As magazines move beyond running print articles on online, they’re asking managed service providers to help run increasingly sophisticated Web sites. That’s the experience of The New York Internet Company Inc., which this week announced Web management deal with US Magazine.

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Zetta, an enterprise-level cloud storage service available to managed service providers and VARs, finally leaves a long closed beta phase and becomes available to the channel at large today. Sure, online storage is an increasingly crowded market, but Zetta claims to have licked a few challenges that plague their peers. Here’s how.

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I’d like to offer Five Nines — a managed service provider in Lincoln, Neb. — two rounds of applause. First, for ranking No. 394 on Inc. magazine’s annual list of the fastest-growing U.S. companies. And second, for being smart enough to participate in the Inc. 500 survey and then promoting the honor to media. This is a timely reminder that media surveys can shine a big spotlight on your business. Here’s how.

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Our next MSPmentor Live: webcast is Aug. 19 at 2:00 p.m. eastern. During the discussion, we’ll cover six ways managed service providers (MSPs) and solutions providers can find and win new business. The format will be interactive. We’ll spend roughly 10 minutes on each business and sales tip.

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Our next MSPmentor Live: webcast is Aug. 19 at 2:00 p.m. eastern. During the discussion, we’ll cover six ways managed service providers (MSPs) and solutions providers can find and win new business. The format will be interactive. We’ll spend roughly 10 minutes on each business and sales tip.

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Take a tour of Computer Service Partners’ network operation center (pictured), and you’ll find all the key tools you need to remotely manage and troubleshoot customer networks. Plus, a putting green. Yes… a putting green. It’s part of Computer Service Partners’ effort to recruit and retain hard-working, talented employees. Here’s the story.

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Time for me to eat a little more crow and also follow-up on an old story. Back in November 2008 I praised MaxSP for having a clear mission statement and a clear channel model for partners that wanted to profit from business continuity. Perhaps that praise was too strong. Fast forward to the present, and MaxSP allegedly has gone out of business.

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Welcome to my 939th blog entry on MSPmentor. Strangely, I must concede — this is the first time I’ve suffered from real writer’s block. I spent so much time and energy focused on the managed services accreditation “debate,” that I’m sort of drained. Still, a lot of people ask me “how do you come up with your blog ideas for MSPmentor?” Here are five answers, which may help aspiring bloggers find their own rhythm and voice.

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I admit it: I still read Money magazine and Smart Money because I like the basic investment advice they offer (or perhaps I enjoy reading about everyone’s shared pain). Even as the stock market continues to decline, I’m not ready to completely quit on Wall Street. Still, I’m starting to realize there’s a far smarter place for a small business owner like me to invest my money.

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I had a quick call with Jim Hamilton, executive director of MSP Partners, on Wednesday night. He told me a bit about the organization’s new 2009 education program for managed service providers. Here are some details.

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Should  you build your own cloud computing system or simply leverage a third party cloud service? The answer to that question depends on which managed service provider you ask.

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Despite the pathetic economy, the vast majority of managed service providers say their businesses are performing as well as or better than they originally expected for January, according to MSPmentor’s reader poll for the week ended Jan. 23.

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Let’s face it: Some resellers and VARs (value-added resellers) are never (repeat: NEVER) going to make a complete move to managed services and a recurring revenue model. Still, N-able wants to give those traditional solutions providers a taste of remote management with a new tool and hosted service called N-supportPro. Here are some early details.

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Whether you’re a successful managed service provider or an aspiring MSP, circle February 11 on your calendar. We’ve got something special planned that day for the managed services industry. More details coming soon. Real soon.

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The current economic crisis is a monster – no doubt about that. If you are under the age of 80, this is shaping up to be the worst market downturn of your life. Cautious and prudent fiscal, managerial, and operational policy in our personal and business dealings is critical. But what many companies and managers, in the midst of a crisis like this, may not recognize is this: Downturns are significant opportunities that don’t come along very often.

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When a managed service provider stumbles, you can bet plenty of rivals will swoop in and try to steal the MSP’s customer base.

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Despite the recession, the vast majority of managed service providers expect their recurring revenue to rise dramatically in 2009, according to a real-time poll conducted during today’s MSPmentor Live: CEO Exchange Webcast.

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During a two-week road trip across North America, multiple managed service providers and software companies told me they are holding up relatively well during the recession. However, many of the sources told me they will be pleased to show “slight” growth in December 2008 vs. December 2007. Those same sources were expecting strong December growth only a few months ago.

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How does a managed services franchise work? I posed that question to Jason Creally, VP of sales at The Utility Company, during a late-afternoon meeting on December 9. Creally walked me and Amy Katz (my business partner) through The Utility Company’s business model — which extends managed services out to more than 60 IT service provider franchisees across North America.

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Gary Read, CEO of Nimsoft, hints in his corporate blog that the software company is having another strong quarter. Of course: Things can certainly change over the next few weeks. But so far, so good according to Read’s blog.

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Special from MSPmentor’ sister site, TheVARguy.com: The VAR Guy is touring Silicon Valley this week. He met Netscape veterans launching a new company. He visited Trend Micro insiders. He spoke with the CEO of Nimsoft. During more than six hours of meetings, the recession was discussed for about 15 minutes. Fact is, savvy IT businesses aren’t bombing. And they aren’t bogged down in recession talk. Here’s a recap of Day 1 in Silicon Valley.

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Welcome to the final month of 2008. MSPmentor is curious to know how your December business is shaping up. Please complete the following poll and we’ll blog about the results on Friday, December 5.

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