In the recent movie Sex Tape, the main couple in the film, Jay and Annie, discuss their frustration with the cloud: “Nobody understands the cloud! It’s a [expletive] mystery!” Though the movie’s premise fits square into the comedy genre — a very personal video gets uploaded to the cloud and spreads across the Internet — Jay and Annie’s confusion mirrors that of many small and medium-sized businesses, which have very real fears of the cloud and feel nervous about changing the way they work.

MSPs should understand exactly why many SMBs have so far resisted calls to adopt cloud technology and, more importantly, why they need to clear the air about the cloud. Here are the three main reasons customers give for why they don’t trust the cloud, as well as recommendations for what you, as an MSP, can do to alleviate these fears.

Many SMBs see new technology as a headache in the making: yet another thing to learn and rob them of precious time. Your job as an MSP is to understand where your clients’ comfort levels lie and provide them with services tailored to their individual needs. For those SMBs who view learning how to use new technology as a huge hassle, you can emphasize hybrid cloud services. By “cloud-enabling” existing servers, customers can gain the benefits of file sharing — seamless syncing across multiple devices and locations and avoidance of data sprawl — while still using the same workflow they’ve always used.

Consumer-grade cloud service providers such as Google Apps and Dropbox don’t feature a hybrid cloud option. eFolder Anchor provides a file server enablement option for users, which allows them to keep all their files and folder structures exactly how they are while letting employees access them from anywhere through the Internet. Offering your clients this service may make them much more open to the idea of putting their data in the cloud.

Though storing data locally has its limitations, one significant advantage of doing so is the owner of that data has complete control. He or she can designate who can and can’t have access to certain information, knows what data has been shared and by whom, and can generate an audit trail if necessary. Many SMBs with sensitive data express hesitation about moving to the cloud because they’re concerned about retaining full control of their information. Fortunately, advanced cloud solutions like eFolder Anchor provide advanced reporting and monitoring capabilities. By giving your clients the peace of mind that their data is always being monitored, they will be more open to the idea of adopting cloud technologies.

The Heartbleed virus, Dropbox’s data troubles in May and recent leaks from iCloud have understandably made many businesses worried about the safety and integrity of their data stored in the cloud. If your clients use platforms such as Google Apps, Office 365, Salesforce or Box, they may not be fully aware of the risks of potential data loss, but they may be open to learning more. As an MSP, you should reassure your clients that even data stored in these cloud services can be securely backed up and recovered if necessary using a service such as eFolder Cloudfinder. Reassuring your clients their cloud data is safe will ultimately benefit your relationship with them in the long term.

As an industry-leading provider of backup, BDR and file sync services, eFolder provides MSPs and VARs with brandable cloud services.

Find out more about how you can use eFolder products to enhance your product portfolio and generate recurring revenue at http://efolder.net.

Neeraj Periwal is Marketing Coordinator, eFolder. Guest blogs such as this one are published monthly and are part of MSPmentor’s Cloud-based File Syncing and Sharing Infocenter.