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Some Managing Directors are offloading business growth to AI and automation. While this offer significant efficiencies, the human cost is often overlooked, as every transaction involves people with emotions and needs. Shift in purchasing decisions AI-driven tools like “automated demo rooms” or “AI buyer tools” simplify decision-making by breaking down pros and cons tailored to specific needs. However, purchasing decisions in enterprises are still primarily made by humans, typically by C-suite teams of 7 to 8. This suggests that human-led business growth is here to stay in a complex sales. Finding Balance in the Age of Automation Tools like content marketing and email automation can enhance efficiency but should not replace human connection. Managing Directors who value human insight & critical thinking will hire people whose skillset go beyond just selling services to grow. Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Managing directors & Ceos sometimes regret investing in sales because the ROI is non-existent.  Yet, they cannot tolerate the status quo, as they frequently need more customers. This a recent Linkedin DM that has actually required zero investment in SEO, paid ads, salespeople and marketing spend: It is clear that the message ticks many of the qualification criteria. The prospect is ready to buy, has the budget, there is a pain point, and a timeline exists. At NO STAGE was there a discovery call, endless follow-ups, or a lead magnet, etc. This is the power of an optimised LinkedIn profile that speaks directly to your Ideal Client. clear to see that the message ticks a lot of the qualification criteria.The prospect is ready to buy, he has got budget, there is a pain and there’s a timeline. Topsalesdev encourage tech companies, MSPs & IT support services to take Linkedin seriously and focus on a few aspects: 1️⃣ Have a professional and compelling banner 2️⃣ Have an optimised title for your job role 3️⃣ Direct people visiting your profile to a relevant landing page via your Feature Section. 4️⃣ Have a few Linkedin recommendations about people talking about how great you are to work it. You will quickly see and feel the difference. If you need someone that sources and closes deals or trains your sales teams, get in touch ! Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Here is a short article on how MSPs & tech companies can grow their pipeline and find new clients organically using some of the most inexpensive ways. Sometimes what may happen is that MSPs & tech companies tend to indulge in paying upfront agencies on 3-6 month retainers without seeing significant returns or envelopes of money ranging from £100k to 500K involving Business Development Manager & Directors without seeing enough Return On Investment. Here are a few suggestions you may wish to consider BEFORE making major investments.                                                                      1️⃣ LINKEDIN This one platform is mysterious to some but vetted by most. There are 1 billion people on this international directory. I would advise founders to all look at the following aspects in order to grow their pipeline and close deals: Is your overall profile optimised and speak to your Ideal Client? How frequently do you add new prospects to your network? Do you attempt to do a hard sale or are you providing incessant value? It’s important to put yourself in the customer’s or buyer’s shoes and make the process simple for people I’m breaking down a simple process on the following video.                                                                   2️⃣ OTHER MSPS: Some customers may not be the right fit for you which may mean that you need to offboard them. They do not spend a lot, they are money pinchers, they keep on complaining,etc.. This may also mean that they could be suited for other MSPs who are used to those types of customers and can better cope with them ( through rigorous SLAs,etc..)                                                            3️⃣ STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS: I have had the chance to talk to MSPs that had influx of qualified leads thanks to key relationships with resellers aware of neglected clients that pay IT retainers without getting the support they deserve. For some of them, up to 95% of their business is coming from it. This IS an opportunity worth looking into. Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Today, we are going to explore another principle that can help MSPs sell more of their cybersecurity offerings.   Clients and prospects often show sales resistance because they believe they will be offered a bunch of tools they do not need.   As a result, MSPs struggle to sell cybersecurity products alongside their core services, leaving them caught in a crossfire, forced to deal with tighter margins and dissatisfied customers. Here are a few suggestions you may wish to consider to help upsell without friction as an MSP/tech company:   1️⃣ Spot the best Account Manager on your team. It might be you if you’re a one-person operation, but if you have a larger team, leverage your talent. Here’s why: The person with the best relationships is likely in the best position to spot buying triggers, such as fears of breaches or concerns about the ever-evolving and stringent standards surrounding cyber insurance, etc. By identifying these triggers, it becomes easier to map your customers’ needs and suggest the right solutions.   2️⃣ Use good old SEO! It’s crucial to have backlinks, optimized keywords, plenty of customer testimonials, and more. This serves as your passive, 24-hour publicity, speaking on your behalf. To understand where you stand with your SEO, you can use free tools like Buddler, which provide a snapshot of what could be improved.   3️⃣ You may want to look for more visibility in places where there is a high concentration of businesses that could potentially need your services. Consider connecting with local Chambers of Commerce, the Confederation of British Industry, etc.   The suggestions mentioned can help you avoid coming across as pushy and guide buyers along the journey you want them to take. Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Founders wanting to increase their conversion rates when selling cyber can discuss their clients’ needs by focusing on their buying triggers.   End users do not care about the technology that protects them; they just want to avoid any breaches. Here are a few buying triggers I believe MSPs should consider: 1️⃣ Customers want to be trusted by you. A small project or short-term job can pave the way for longer-term contract. 2️⃣ Customers fear being the next company in the news for a breach. 3️⃣ Customers know that their insurance may not be valid if they do not meet basic security requirements. 4️⃣ Regulations, laws, and frameworks are constantly changing, leaving customers with little time to stay updated. There’s no need to add complexity to the conversations. Just address the right topics with the right stakeholders to have meaningful conversations. Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Let’s discuss an ingrained issue that is not often addressed: client growth complacency. Some MSPs claim they want a ‘lifestyle business’ by sticking with existing customers to grow. Yet, when surveyed, their number one priority is finding new clients (CompTIA, 2024). MSPs often resort to short-term tactics that are misaligned with their business strategies, leading to losses and unnecessary stress.   1 – Is it cognitive? In the case of Managing Directors, there may be a dissonance between the outward preference for a lifestyle business and the internal drive or external pressure to pursue growth. 2 – Is it about control? For some Managing Directors, motivation might be influenced by the need for autonomy (control over the business), competence (feeling effective in their role), and relatedness (connecting with their team and clients). 3 – What to do? Here are some of the most conventional ways to grow a business. Most of us are familiar with these, the real challenge is to choose which are the ones that align with the company’s goals and values: Should you wish to refine your sales playbook or engage an outbound revenue partner as your extended arm, get in touch! Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Today, I’m going to show you simple steps to be more effective at selling cyber security products. It matters because a lot of prospects and clients push back, feeling that cyber security protection is optional and/or that you are simply pushing products to them which triggers sales resistance. MSPs fail to sell cyber products in addition to their bread and butter offering and end up being caught up in a crossfire, left to deal with tighter margins and dissatisfied customers. 69% of buyers say “ Listen to my needs”   1 – Build your client profile One of the first things you should be doing is to understand what your Ideal Client looks like and build a client profile.   Once you have you’ve built an Ideal Client Profile , you should be asking questions that will help them understand which business areas require more support. You could be asking questions like the following: Are you protected against internal threats and accidental leaks? How secure is your document sharing and internal communication? How do you manage security risks for remote employees?   2 – Lead with fear There’s a myth that SMEs are less vulnerable than bigger corporations to cyber attacks. It’s important to know that a cyber attack on a small UK business costs on average £10,830 (Twenty-four.it, 2024), without considering the impact on reputation, which has a knock-on effect on suppliers, brand, etc. This figure may not be entirely representative of sector-specific attacks, which can be much more significant in terms of financial damage. 3 – Simplicity always wins   If you need a team to support you with your sales, one that you can bring on and make redundant upon satisfaction, consider an Outbound Revenue Partner like Topsalesdev that will handle the sales cycle from beginning to end. Get in touch! Contact 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

We’ll find out in this blog how professional services are either necessary for MSP or more of a “nice to have” option. Professional services tend to be one-off costs, project-based expenses that either add value or set MSPs back if they can do it all themselves. MSPs usually offer all-around IT help, but they might not have the know-how needed for tracking down threats, dealing with incidents, and digging into forensics. About 1/2 of businesses are short on basic cybersecurity skills, and a third are feeling the pinch when it comes to advanced skills. The need for specialist cybersecurity know-how is growing as businesses lean more on digital tech (Worldskillsuk, 2024). You might rely on a Managed Security Service Provider to keep your network safe, while bringing in professional services for a particular cloud migration project. Looking ahead, when it comes to future maintenance, you’re pretty much on your own with professional services. Once they finish the project, that’s usually it, and you’ll have to set up follow-up services or handle network maintenance yourself. That said, a lot boils down to quality collaboration, and whether you are considering large IT consulting firms like Accenture or the more specialist and agile ones such as Morgan Cyber Consulting, you can draw significant benefits. Here is a key piece advice from the consulting firm:”Once you get to the point you are big enough to have your own IT team I would recommend (even as an MSP) using your own team and pulling in PS when needed (Morgan,2024).” One-off: If you’re dealing with just one project, situation, or problem, ongoing support might not be necessary. You might not even need to pay anything at all. Targeted: Professional services tackle a specific issue. It’s simpler than a full project management solution but offers more adaptability than a basic task list. You can count on thorough support throughout most, if not all, stages of the process. Adaptable: You’re not limited to standard IT problems. A professional service provider can craft a solution for even the most unusual situations. In summary, professional services offer specialised assistance for specific IT issues, which MSPs really need, especially when facing problems like a lack of skills or resources, or navigating strict regulations. Getting support from experts not only solves immediate problems but also helps MSPs stay flexible and prepared for future cybersecurity challenges.

Commission or non commission sales reps? In this blog, we will determine whether commission-only sales professionals could effectively work with modern Managed Service Provider (MSPs). Finding the right approach to increase sales through hiring salespeople doesn’t always yield desired results. As the Managed Service Provider industry experiences year-on-year growth, it’s crucial to devise the right strategy to avoid revenue loss. The issue lies in IT companies potentially allocating a significant budget to Account Executives /closers with an impressive sales track record, only to see no tangible outcomes. While this statement dates back a decade, it remains relevant. In this article, we will discuss: Pros & Cons Fit with MSPs Recommendations I recently discussed this with a Managing Director who considered this approach for his 10-employee MSP to minimise expenditure. It seemed like a quick fix for the wrong problem. If an IT support service company aims to sell low-ticket offers (3-4 figures) with a quick turnaround, it presupposes high-quality prospects and the MSP’s ability to onboard clients rapidly at a high rate, which isn’t always the case. If you’re considering commission-only reps as the preferred option, you should take into account the following: Your marketing and brand awareness are at the necessary level. You have a short sales cycle to enable your reps to leverage commissions. You have a well-defined sales process. You have robust service delivery. You have strong sales leadership and can provide sales training.  The best approach is to gain hands-on experience with the sales process. If it exceeds 2 months, consider having an in-house team of Account Executives (Commissioncrowd, 2024). While commission-only reps may be suitable for entry-level roles, they may lack industry-specific experience and familiarity with lengthy sales processes. Consider this: you may not be in a position to pay commissions to your staff within 3 months, leaving reps struggling to pay rent in the meantime. I believe it’s best to have Account Executives fully committed to your MSP without the stress of earning commissions when delivering compelling presentations to your long-term clients who seek a lasting partnership. 7 Mistakes MSPs Make That Lose Sales in 2024 Avoid these common pitfalls that could be hindering your sales success. Download my guide now. Download Now

Are You An Accidental Salesperson? As the MD or team leader of an MSP or IT company, you may find yourself torn by a myriad of responsibilities – including generating sales But do not panic. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Here are some key steps you can take to systemise your sales process without having to employ sales professionals. Ramp UpSet aside time each day or week to understand how best to optimise your schedule so you make dedicated time to build your sales pipeline and attract and qualify new leads.Be YourselfSales can be daunting, especially when we try to overdo it and you can easily end up sounding like characters from movies or being overly salesy. Be the salesperson you aspire to be, not an imitation. Discard what you dislike about sales approaches and enhance what you love.Use a Proven Sales ProcessAs the person who knows the MSP sales process best, make sure you write it down so that you can use it, replicate it, and share it with your team to help with in outbound outreach. Begin with a Discovery phase, where you take control of the conversation and ask prepared questions to really understand your prospective clients’ pain points.Learn to Pitch & CloseMaster the art of presenting and pitching new business. Once you’ve built a relationship, smoothly guide your prospect towards making a purchase without causing friction or losing deals. Consider incorporating storytelling, following the six attributes defined by Paul Smith: a time, a place, a main character, an obstacle, a goal, and events.Track Progress Remember the adage: “You can’t manage what you can’t measure.” Conduct regular meetings to understand the state of your lead generation and pipeline. You can identify actions necessary to work towards your goals, leveraging Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as meetings attended, qualified opportunities opened, and the number of conversations held each week.If you don’t have time to take these key steps yourself, I can help.