Tactics for Selling SaaS Backup

IT spending has been steadily shifting from traditional on-premises offerings to cloud services over the past five years, and spending continues to grow. A recent report from BetterCloud revealed that it is estimated that 78% of businesses will run almost entirely on SaaS by 2022. While enterprises have adopted SaaS rapidly, the current emphasis on remote working has inspired small and midsize businesses (SMBs) to think differently about digital transformation and accelerate their use of SaaS applications. This presents a significant opportunity for managed service providers (MSPs).

SaaS applications such as Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 are popular because they’re easy to use and highly scalable; they standardize employees on the same applications, like Word or Excel; and they are relatively inexpensive. However, SaaS apps don’t deploy and manage themselves. Additionally, SaaS applications require more robust data protection and backup for businesses, just like any other mission-critical app. As trusted advisors, MSPs can strategically and securely guide their clients to use SaaS applications to better their business. This continual shift to SaaS gives MSPs a significant revenue opportunity as clients move to the cloud. To help you take advantage of that opportunity, we’ve compiled three ways every MSP can portray the value of SaaS Backup to their customers.

• Discuss the need for data protection: There’s a common misconception among SaaS users that backup isn’t necessary for their data because it exists in the cloud. However, SaaS applications are just as vulnerable to data loss as on-premises apps. You should also educate your SMB clients on the shared responsibility model, which explains what their SaaS provider will cover and what the businesses are responsible for themselves. Having this knowledge will help SMBs understand and value the need for SaaS backup.
• Outline the impact and cost of downtime: Downtime can negatively affect your clients’ productivity and compromise their ability to access essential business documents. Even a small incident can cost a business dearly, including productivity loss and reputation damage. In fact, Datto’s Global State of the Channel Ransomware Report revealed that MSPs surveyed reported that the average downtime cost per incident has increased by 94% from 2019 and a staggering 486% from 2018. You can use statistics to help sell business owners on the need for a backup solution for those who may be more numbers-oriented. You can also share real-life examples of SaaS data loss and downtime with clients as cautionary tales.
• Reveal the opportunity for cost savings: With Datto SaaS Protection, if you no longer need a Microsoft license, you don’t have to pay for it to keep the data. Instead, data is backed up to enable clients to safely access data from past Microsoft licenses. Explain to your prospect or client that using this feature is an easy way to save SaaS license costs should employees leave the company. The investment in SaaS backup can serve as both insurance for user data and a cost savings tool in the future.

MSPs vary in their approach to selling SaaS Protection. While some sell a la carte, the vast majority of successful MSPs include SaaS in some form of a security bundle for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. Another option is to bundle backup with other Microsoft 365 services. If you already provide Microsoft 365 administration and management to clients, adding backup as a line item or only as a part of the service can be a relatively easy sell. Ultimately, you need to price and offer services based on what’s best for your business.

No matter what stage of growth your business is in, SaaS backup should be an essential part of your service portfolio. The move to the cloud has been accelerated in recent months as organizations become more mobile and the need for collaboration tools increases. If you want to protect your brand’s reputation, build more profitability and do the right thing for your clients, visit our website to learn more about Datto SaaS Protection.

Erin Stephan is Senior Product Marketing Manager, Datto.

This guest blog is part of a Channel Futures sponsorship.