In the end, survey respondents remain upbeat about the future. While only 42% believe that the overall economy will improve in 2023, 53% think that channel pros will fare better, and 59% believe their company will outperform the industry.
Overall, 55% of firms expect customers to ramp up spending in 2023, which is down from 73% in 2022, while 13% believe that they will tighten the purse strings, up from 6% in last year’s survey. More than half of companies surveyed plan to keep company salaries and earnings the same, 76% have no plans to sell, buy, or merge their business, and only 8% are looking to buy a business. Moreover, only 25% plan to execute an exit strategy in the next one to three years.
Clearly, channel pros are navigating today’s turbulent marketplace and looking ahead. Says Yeaman at Fluid Services: “We are focused on new clients that share the same vision and value of technology as it relates to operating and growing a business. These win-win relationships will result in measurable mutual value in 2023.”
Methodology and Demographics
The annual ChannelPro State of the Channel survey queries leaders from managed service providers, VARs, system integrators, custom systems builders, and others, and offers broad insights into how business conditions are evolving and what firms should be focusing on.
The 2023 ChannelPro State of the Channel survey was conducted online from July to October 2022 and was open to everyone in our email database. About 56% of the 810 respondents are MSPs, 32% say they’re primarily VARs, and 21% are custom system builders. Forty-five percent hold executive management titles such as CEO, owner, and president; 17% work in unspecified technical management roles; and 14% are sales or marketing managers. Thirty-seven percent of respondents work at companies with one to four employees, while 20%, 31%, and 12%, respectively, are affiliated with firms that have five to nine, 10 to 49, and 50-plus people on staff. In addition, 49% of the firms surveyed have been in business more than 20 years, and 65% of respondents are aged 50 or older.
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About the Author
Samuel Greengard, a business and technology writer in West Linn, Ore., is the author of The Internet of Things (MIT Press, 2015) and Virtual Reality (MIT Press, 2019).
