Tuesday we held the second meeting in our three-part series on social media for small to medium-sized business. Bill Piper with
Claris Networks and Katie Granju of
Ackermann PR shared their experience and fielded questions about social media and Search Engine Optimization. We've included the slides from their presentation below.
Joe Panettieri from
MSPmentor.net offered some thoughts on how managed service providers (MSPs, a type of IT company like Claris Networks) should leverage social media. Mr. Panettieri offers some helpful insights as you jump into the social media realm. We’ve shared a few of his thoughts below and expounded on our experience in social media.
· Blogs
Joe’s thoughts: Make a blog but use Wordpress and post business-oriented news like promotions, case studies, partnerships, etc.
Our thoughts: We’ve found success with blogging by adding value to our readers’ professional lives. In our industry as an IT company, a blog is a helpful way to educate our readers about advanced technology. Accordingly, we have readers from all over the country stumble upon our posts – many of whom are neither clients nor prospects. As far as SEO goes, a self-contained blog on a value-driven website has been a useful tool in our market. If your corporate website is still maturing, a corporate blog through Wordpress is a good option.
· Twitter
Joe’s thoughts: Use Twitter as “a free newswire service that sends out alerts to your key followers.”
Our thoughts: A Twitter “newswire” approach is certainly appropriate. But again, MSPs, like every other enterprise should take advantage of this social medium to build relationships with clients and their community. How can your brand interact with others online? Further, how can your employees’ personal brands supplement your corporate social media initiatives?
Of course, the social media world goes far beyond blogging and Twitter. The potential for MSPs and IT companies to leverage social media is substantial. Originally our firm was skeptical of social media as a legitimate business tool. But as we’ve grown in our ability to connect with Knoxville and its surrounding areas, we’ve grown in our ability to help others in our market and relate to them more as fellow business people, rather than a distant service provider.
Three Claris Networks employees were honored this week with the release of the MSPmentor 250 from MSPmentor.net.
Claris Networks’ Dave Sagraves, Chad Quesenberry, and Bill Piper were chosen this year, giving the company its second year with multiple employees featured on the list. The MSPmentor 250 is an “annual look at the executives, entrepreneurs, experts, coaches and community leaders shaping the global managed services market,” according to the website. Sagraves and Quesenberry appear for their second consecutive year.
“Our employees’ appearance on the list for this second year validates what we’re doing as leaders in the industry,” said Larry Bodie, Claris Networks CEO, “and it validates how great our employees are.” Bodie appeared on the list last year.
A look at
the list reveals a short bio for each of the honorees:
· Dave Sagraves has developed Claris Networks' direct sales team in an industry that is known for principle based selling. Claris has grown over 700% in contracted monthly recurring revenue in the last 6 years as a result of Dave's sales and leadership efforts. Dave has lead Claris in bringing cloud computing to the SMB through a clearly defined go-to-market strategy.
· Chad Quesenberry, director of client services, has developed the IT support structure for billion-dollar companies. Known for beating timelines and implementing projects under-budget, Chad currently oversees Claris Networks’ technical support team.
· Bill Piper blogs extensively for Claris Networks at their cloud computing industry-centered blog, Cloud9. He educates hundreds of readers each week about the basics and nuances of cloud computing, managed services, and the technology industry at large. A cloud computing evangelist, Bill has been cited by ZDNet and coauthored content for CTOEdge.com.
Will the real cloud providers please stand up?
As
cloud computing begins to heat up in the small-medium business market, we’re seeing more and more companies giving themselves the title of “cloud provider.”
Since the
technology is so new, there are no universal regulations for cloud computing security and compliance. So how do you know who to host your network with? How do you know who to trust? How do you know your data is not in the basement of someone’s home?
We want to help you discern what to look for in a trustworthy cloud provider. A few questions to ask as you’re considering providers:
- Where is the information stored? Ask about their data centers. Where the information is physically stored is a big deal. A typical office building can’t ensure the type of security and environmental controls needed to safely house your data. In addition, some so called data centers are nothing more than dressed up commercial office space, with little thought given to redundancy and security.
- Who can access the system? Someone will be accessing it, but are they trustworthy? How a company screens potential employees is a crucial element in maintaining your security. Does ex-con Uncle Fester get a seat at the help desk?
- What they can access? Ask for specifics about how they tier their access. Everyone shouldn’t be able to see everything- only the right people. Choose an IT provider like you choose a friend: Do you trust them? Do they understand your needs and concerns? Do they have your best interest at heart or are they looking to make a quick buck?
- Is the access appropriate? Access to underlying infrastructure should parallel that person’s job role. Examine the provider’s corporate policies in line with the “who, what and why” of data security.
- Do they have a third party audit for security and processes? Ask your prospective provider about the SAS 70 Type II audit. In a cloud context, the Statement of Auditing Standards No. 70 is a report by an external auditor verifying that the appropriate controls, processes, and provisions are in place to effectively maintain your data security.
At Claris Networks, we’ve been providing the cloud for six years now, and the SAS 70 Type II audit has helped us understand the key differences between mature cloud players and those providers just arriving on the scene. The Type II audit is a good means of accountability, and the ongoing audit ensures that providers are continually maintaining their security and compliance standards.
They may not come up on the putting green, but you should include “compliance” and “security” in your IT vocabulary. The ramifications of poorly secured data and applications are huge. Your company’s credibility depends on your IT provider’s ability to develop and adhere to specific compliance standards.