MSP Business School

On this episode we do another virtual case study on using sales metrics as a source of sales rep motivation. Brian kicks off the conversation talking about a rep he took on through an acquisition.  This rep was a textbook salesperson with a mission.  We go into how this mission will drive success From a metrics perspective this rep was consistent, and his sales metrics reflected that consistency.  Knowing how he operated he needed less of a sales manager and more of a sales coach.  Someone to keep on track. We discuss sales DNA and learning what a sales rep looks like based on their DNA.  Once this DNA is recognized, it becomes easy to pull the right levers to move the needle. Robb talks about to provide reps with systems and support in the sales operations process.  What tasks should the rep own what tasks should belong to others?  We discuss how to approach this. We then discuss the activities that are required and how you can use ConnectWise sales activity points to manage the Business Development efforts. We also discuss one critical trait that successful sales people have and how that supplements motivation and drive.

As MSP’s work with their clients’ it is easy to get complacent and work exclusively through your primary point of contact.  What happens when then contact is not the sole decision maker and has an equal partner who has equal say in your renewal decision.  Can you be at risk? Robb and Tim share a real-life case study of a client who ran into the exact issue described above.  The client had been a long-term relationship of the MSP, but primarily in a break-fix fashion.  The relationship to date had been primarily reactive.  Also, client had added a Level 1 tech making this an even more difficult renewal. The MSP walked into the renewal finding out that the client that “who loved them“: Had been educated to the concept of Managed Services by a competing vendor who provided a proposal. The proposal was much lower than his existing fees. The other partner liked his model and price. Tim and Robb then share how the customer worked the deal, and the good, bad, and ugly of the final outcome. 

Today's conversation focuses on client engagement, especially when things are slow in the relationship and things are working and we have moved to cruise control. Brian kicks this one off with a discussion around relationship building and how it is critical to not neglect the relationship or take it for granted.  So, how can we start this conversation when we don't have much to say?  It's all about ice breakers and asking questions about the clients business. This conversation needs to go beyond the point of contact and you need to engage with all key stakeholders in the process. We discuss how there are always changes going in the client environment. Personnel changes, customer wins, budget changes.  These forces can change the client view on our relationship and we need to stay in front of our client so we can see opportunities and problems that may be coming. We can do this through live touch points, CSAT or NPS surveys and gain information we can use.  The challenge is most Account Mangers fall down on touching their client in between sales.  These resources need to schedule time to contact each customer to stay in tune with the customer and build the relationship. Robb speaks about the past, present, and future model and how the AM's often struggle with the future, or strategy, piece of the puzzle.  Brian goes into detail on approaches for junior reps to get the process started.  If we manage the relationship consistently over time we become the sherpa guiding our clients.  The result happier clients with improved sales velocity.

Today's we break down the prospecting process, how to get organized, focused, and targeted in your plan. Robb kicks off the conversation with the concept of the Dream 250, a process OSR Manage and their sales teams live by.  This process helps you get laser focused and find those valued relationships each sales rep requires. Tim discusses tactics to get to those target prospects.  We dive into a multi-channel approach to sales prospecting and using cold-calls as intelligence gathering.  It's not easy to get to your best prospects and the process helps you make each step a valuable exercise on the way to engaging your target. We then engage on how to qualify MSP clients so prospecting time is not wasted on low value targets.  We discuss the information you need to obtain and when to cut a prospect loose. We also address the common sales gripe, "the leads are no good and I don't have enough".  The truth is not the leads, but your approach and mindset will really dictate success.  Most reps give up on a lead to early and we discuss what the proper expectation should be (psst....its not 3 calls).

With more an more staff working from home and many businesses looking at making that move permanent for their staff, we look at the impact on manage those teams and steps to take to keep everyone productive. Sponsored by vCIOToolbox and OSRManage Today's episode focuses on a trend that been growing steadily over the last decade, the remote office workforce.  The work from home model has had steady year over year growth for quite some time, but the recent pandemic event made it a necessity. Companies are now looking at the overall pro's and con's of this workforce model and many are putting in place plans to not bring many of their employees back into the office. Ultimately, for some businesses this offers the opportunity for reduced operating costs through eliminating rents. We kick off the discussion with Robb discussing the OSR Manage approach to virtual management and how they are leveraging teams to get the team on the same page.   Tim follows with talk around needing to increase their daily huddle call to a twice a day event to ensure all team members were on the same page and to facilitate any communication or decision making assistance that might be required. the team discusses there individual approaches and what has been working or not working as they all grow more accustomed to remote management of staff.   The conversation then flows into what is required for an effective remote team.  We discuss tools that are needed, how to structure business hours and staff availability, and we close with a discussion about work-life balance when home is also work.  

Going Vertical! Sounds like we may be talking with skater or snowboarders, but the vertical we will be speaking about today is singular focus on one industry.  Many MSP's have adopted the vertical approach, and quite a few with huge success as we can see in the ChannelE2E's Annual Top 100 Vertical MSP report. But the big question is can a vertical focus be right for my MSP, and is the risk associated with a single industry to big a risk to put all your eggs in one basket? Robb kicks us off with his opinion and we quickly learn that he is not a fan of the vertical approach.  The risk in his perspective of an industry going dry or facing an economic downturn is too big an impact for many MSP's to survive.  This is being shown here in the pandemic as you see MSP's that singularly serve the hospitality and entertainment venues seeing big channels. Brian brings a discussion of not a complete vertical focus, but implementing "pocket verticals" and taking success you may have had as an early stage and leverage that into building these 'pocket verticals".  Robb speaks that you need to capitalize and get better at the markets you have the most success and then research how to beat your competition in that vertical. Tim reflects on the concept of the generalist and how there is too much of a 'one-off' approach across your client base and you do need to narrow down to a few verticals to support your business growth.  The reality for many MSP's the local market is too finite to support pure vertical growth. Brian speaks about how that vertical MSP's have to be open to moving into new markets and finding a marketing mindset and delivery process that can support that footprint. We close with a discussion of vertical industries and where the least amount of vertical risk lives and MSP's can pursue with the least risk.  

In this episode we dig deep into the role of the MSP Inside Sales Representative.  Robb starts the discussion with some of the key responsibilities of the farmer rep and discusses their involvement in deal registration and renewals, proposal generation and customer service. Brian discusses how MSP clients can be the 'gift that keeps on giving" and how it is crucial to keep close to your client and the account manager function needs to support the account and understand the client drivers and obstacles and communicate that internally. The role of vCIO drives the farming process.  In building a roadmap we are better able to illustrate a long term plan.  This allows for better client budgeting and shorter sales cycles if executed properly. We then dive into key activities around communication, cadence, and duties.  this includes staying informed on client and propsect news.  They keep tabs on press releases, annuncements, and events to keep the entires team aware of current events. The farmer should also be responsbile for tracking customer satisfaction.  For EOS users this cn be iin the scorecard.  It is key for the account manager to stay in tune with the overall health of the relationship. For companies that integrate the farmer roles they can be a growth agent and ensure the account blooms.

In this episode we MSP Sales models that can be leveraged beyond the owner led sales model.  We discuss how to get started and the steps you need to take to set yourself up for long-term customer acquisition success. Tim starts the discussion in outlining owner led sales.  This is the most common way most MSP's get started.  Robb expands on the owner-led sales model generally starts with the 'friends and family" referral approach and how that doesn't scale.  We discuss the realities of this model and why it often doesn't scale. The discussion then moves into sales tactics and how the money is in the follow up.  This starts in the prospecting phase and moves through each step in the sales cycle for MSP's.  When this becomes a larger problem this can be an indicator that it is time to expand the sales team. Robb talks about getting focus and really driving opporunity by building your 'Dream 250".  Many MSP's do not focus on clients that are similar to the companies that they have had success and building pocket verticals. We then move into the transition phase of moving past the owner-led sale and building a team.  We also discuss why the oowner can never really remove themselves from the sales process until you have scale in your overall business. We then discuss what these new sales models look like and the roles that need to be filled.  Also, we hone in on when a full-time sales manager is really needed in the business and its later that you think. We close the masterclass on identifying the key roles needed to build a strong MSP Sales engine and drive success.

In this episode we have a special guest filling in for Robb and Tim.  Jason Moss, Director of Marketing at Allied Communications, shares with us the tips and tactics he has employed to grow the Allied following by nearly 600% in seven months on the job. We begin with a discussion on strategy and the approach model Jason leverages when creating content for the team and when he is posting directly.  We talk about the first step is to engage.  Early in a social media strategy, commenting and engaging is often more important that posting in raising brad awareness and demonstrating thought leadership. Jason then dives into how you can train many social media algorithms on the content you prefer and the contacts you want to see most often. Jason then dives into how you can train many social media algorithms on the content you prefer and the contacts you want to see most often. We talk content creation and how to find ways to engage people without "post fatigue".  As we move through the COVID crisis you can see how people are just growing tired of the pandemic rhetoric, work from home strategies and regurgitated posts on new widely known .  We can fight this issue through sharing personal experiences, talking about your company culture and finding entertaining ways to develop your content. Drive intimate experiences vs. a firehouse of news articles or service offerings. We close with tools you can use at little or no cost to build your social media marketing and look spectacular doing it.

In this episode we discuss the role of the MSP Account Manager.   A great account manager can maximize the lifetime value of the relationship and ensure that the relationship sticks long-term Brian outlines the strategic account management process he employed while running his MSP.  Key points are understanding the key initiatives and obstacles that a client is facing and making recommendations to contribute to solving each. We also identify the key difference between the Key Account Manager (KAM) and the Technical Account Manager (TAM).  Key drivers for each role depends on the size on personnel of the MSP.  We also discuss how these resources can "stealth sell". Tim discusses how to leverage the DISC profile for assessing resources and determining how to assess success in each role.  Robb discusses the communication style that can be leveraged within the DISC profile. We dive into QBR's as an account management tool.  We discuss the frequency of Business Reviews and that should drive those meetings.  WE talk about ways to rate your clients to determine frequency and driving value back to your client. We close the meeting with staying in contacts with clients begin the key to account management.  You need to be proactive and stay ahead of issues.