How MSPs Should Present Business Continuity, Part 1

Studies show that small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are currently the largest adapters of cloud-based data recovery and business continuity solutions. SMBs are attracted to the low cost, ease of use and lack of dependence on internal infrastructure or IT staff. But even though many SMBs are interested in exploring business continuity options, MSPs must still work to find the most effective methods for selling business continuity solutions.

One key strategy is for MSPs to focus on the value of business continuity by differentiating it from mere backup solutions. Many businesses are aware of the need for cloud backup in order to protect against data loss, but companies need to understand the dangers of downtime as well. In the event of a disaster, even a small amount of downtime can lead to a loss in productivity, communication, access and revenue.

MSPs should emphasize that business continuity takes backup and data recovery to the next level. An intelligent business continuity plan will ensure that data is instantly recoverable in the event of a disaster, and that businesses can even continue normal operations even while the disaster is happening.

Companies looking for a business continuity solution should be aware of two concepts: Recovery Point Objective (RPO) and Recovery Time Objective (RTO). RPO represents how frequently backups are taken (once every 5 minutes is excellent, for example), and RTO represents how long it will take to get data back after a disaster (10 seconds is an excellent benchmark for this). If MSPs emphasize these factors and explain how business continuity is one step beyond backup, they can help SMBs find the right solution to keep their businesses active even during the worst disasters.