The No. 1 Cybersecurity Vendor, According to MSPs

In light of all the high-profile hacks making headlines over the last few years, it’s no wonder that the top technology concern for small and midsize businesses (SMBs) is cybersecurity. Since many SMBs lack the resources to manage their own IT infrastructure, this trend means that more and more managed service providers (MSPs) are stepping in to provide security to their clients.

Clarity Channel Advisors, the official aggregator of the MSPmentor 501 survey, reviewed last year’s survey data to examine trends in the MSP space and find out what they look for in a cybersecurity vendor. In looking at the numbers, one overwhelming statistic stood out: Webroot owns a 30% market share with the world’s top MSPs, while the next closest antivirus competitor commands only a 15% market share. The question is: Why?

With these stats in mind, Clarity sat down with various MSPs to get the story. The key takeaways from their discussions were as follows:

Commitment

Sure, just about every software vendor in the antivirus/antimalware market claims to be committed to the channel. That’s just part of a good go-to-market strategy, even as it becomes clear that some vendors are all talk. The difference is that Webroot consistently defers to its service provider partners when any conflict around the customer arises. And, even though Webroot products are widely available for direct purchase, Webroot has stated repeatedly that they prefer to facilitate sales through service providers, helping to achieve mutual success for themselves, their channel partners and their partners’ end clients. This type of loyalty is clearly something the MSP community appreciates.

Quality

MSPs know all too well that meaningful, long-lasting client relationships are based on both the quality of customer service and the quality of the products being offered. But with 100% efficacy¹ over a 24-hour period and faster deployment² than top competitors, it’s easy to see why offering Webroot SecureAnywhere solutions would help support MSPs’ value to their end clients. Additionally, MSPs told Clarity they are impressed with the ease of management, administrative controls, no-software-conflict design and granular visibility Webroot provides.

Automation

Plain and simple, MSPs need automation tools to achieve an efficient, sustainable business. In addition to its products and services, Webroot offers integrations professional services automation (PSA) and remote monitoring and management (RMM) software, such as Autotask, Kaseya, ConnectWise, Continuum, Ninja and Atera. That means administrators can automate their cybersecurity management alongside the rest of their daily routines to help streamline their operations and keep overheads down.

The Bottom Line

Ultimately, the efficiency and ease of use a product can offer will translate into bigger profits for the service provider. But while any vendor software could (in theory, at least) provide these benefits, MSPs still need to work to find clients. The MSPmentor 501 survey showed that the highest-performing service providers are the ones who target larger companies and are moving “upstream.” For example, 79% of high-performing MSPs target companies with 100 to 999 employees, and 37% target companies with over 1,000 employees.

The message is clear: Target the big fish, and partner with vendors who not only provide superior solutions but are also committed to strengthening channel relationships.

Get more detail on these and other findings in your copy of the Clarity Channel Advisors report. Or, see for yourself why MSPs choose Webroot by taking a free endpoint security trial.

[1] MRG Effitas. “Webroot SecureAnywhere Business Endpoint Protection Versus Sophos Endpoint Security and Control”. (January 2016)

[2] Passmark Software. “Webroot SecureAnywhere® Business Endpoint Protection vs. Seven Competitors”. (April 2017)

Guest blogs such as this one are published monthly and are part of MSPmentor’s annual platinum sponsorship.