In order to effectively market any business—a managed service provider or otherwise—it is important to have a pretty in-depth understanding of the business as it stands. However, this is often easier said than done. That being said, there is a helpful framework you can use to greatly simplify the process and ensure that you accomplish this level of understanding: the five C’s of marketing.
If you’ve never really marketed your business, you’ve probably had a reason that you’ve avoided it. These reasons are likely quite valid…but we have a few reasons that you’ll want to reconsider that decision.
In order for your business to be successful, there needs to be an incoming cash flow, and in order to draw in this cash flow, your audience has to be both aware of what you have to offer them, and have communicated their willingness to make an exchange with you. This outcome will be much more likely with help from two key components of any business’ team: sales and marketing.
The 80/20 marketing rule is based on a century-old economic principle that, despite drastic economic and technological changes over the past century, continues to be effectively leveraged by businesses of all sizes and industries. Conceived in 1906 by famed Italian economist Vilgredo Pareto, the Pareto principle observed that about 80% of Italy’s wealth belonged to 20% of the population.
Upselling is a sales technique that is used to sell additional goods or services to existing customers. It’s a great way to generate revenue because you don’t have to spend the time and effort trying to acquire new customers - you already have these companies as clients. You have a much better chance of closing a sale to an existing customer as well: the probability of selling to an existing customer is between 60-70%, while the probability of selling to a new prospect is somewhere between 5-20%.
Marketing can be a challenging endeavor for a business in any industry to tackle, but this is especially true when considering how a managed service provider should approach it. Indeed, there are a few challenges that can—and, more pertinently, do—stand in the way of an MSP’s success in its marketing and, by extension, its business operations.
There’s no school like the old school, and when it comes to marketing, “old school” more or less means “outbound”... an approach where you are reaching out to your audience, as compared to them seeking out what you offer. Let’s review some of the marketing techniques that you could use as part of an outbound-focused initiative that (especially with our help) proves to be a worthwhile endeavor as you promote your managed services.
A cold call is a useful way to initiate contact with a potential client… but having said that, it needs to be done properly. After all, we all know how frustrating unwanted calls can be, with so many spam calls still plaguing our telephones. So, what’s the key to successful cold calls in this age of call screening? Let’s break down the practices you should follow.
Yes, we’ve mentioned the marketing challenges and hurdles facing MSPs before, and we’re mentioning them again! Marketing can be challenging for any business, in any industry, but it is especially challenging when considering how a managed service provider should approach marketing and the hurdles that stand in the way of its marketing efforts' success.
There are a million and one challenges businesses will have to tackle to market themselves, but things are even more difficult when the business you're trying to market is a managed service provider.
Have you visited a website, left it and then had that company’s ads follow you around the web? This is a marketing tactic known as retargeting (also referred to as remarketing). Retargeting allows you to continue to pursue a suspect or lead who visited your website without converting by displaying ads about content viewed as they continue to browse other websites.
When engaging in business-to-business marketing, your content plays a huge role in your success. Whether you’re creating social media content, blogging, creating articles for your web pages, creating newsletter content, or even working an in-person event, you need to make sure your content is effectively benefitting your marketing.
We’re here to help, so we’ve compiled some key considerations to make as you shape your content marketing strategy through each of the above tactics.
We’ve discussed search engine optimization and how to use it to your advantage. In part three of our five-part SEO series, we’ll dig deeper into some on-page methods to ensure your website is optimized for search engine activity.
As MSPs, we are always telling our clients that the most important aspect of their company is their data. We tell them how taking care of their data is paramount to their business continuity and operational efficiency. Ironically, many of us don’t even take our own advice. Go ahead. Take a look at some of your data (let’s say your prospect list) and ask yourself if it’s getting the attention it deserves.
Businesses everywhere are learning what many cultures have known for millennia: one of the most powerful tools for creating a lasting impression is a simple story. In our Telling Stories series, we’ll explore why stories are such a powerful inclusion even to a B2B marketing strategy, and how you can incorporate them more into your own efforts. In Part 2, the process of creating your story is outlined and explained to help you tell your most impressive and convincing tales.
Procrastination - it’s a practice that many of us find all too familiar. When that task that we just don’t want to do is looming, we suddenly develop a talent for finding something else - anything else - to do instead, despite knowing the consequences. Why is it that we procrastinate at all, and on a related note, how can we stop (especially where our marketing is concerned)?
Your company’s brand is a critical aspect of any and all of your marketing efforts. No matter what medium you are marketing in, and no matter what point in their journey a potential buyer may happen to be, your brand and message has to be consistent to everything you are producing. After all, your marketing establishes a personality of sorts that your audience will begin to associate with your company.
We love tips and ‘how-to’s just as much as the next person. But like many “truths” on the Internet, there are several commonly repeated marketing-related facts that are used out of context, embellished, or just plain made up. Here’s a few of the misconceptions that we run into every day.
A Drip Campaign is an effective marketing tactic during which a prospect is contacted repeatedly about products and/or services in an attempt to increase brand awareness, demonstrate authority, nurture leads, and drive referrals. A good drip campaign can be automated and sent out in bulk, as long as the messaging makes sense to the all of the recipients.
When it comes to managed IT services, the only way to succeed is to successfully relay the value of your services and solutions to your target audience. You’re more than just ‘the computer guy/gal’. You’re an experienced consultant who can help them save money, increase network security, streamline processes, and plan for growth. Your marketing and sales team must be able to demonstrate how your services will benefit your prospects/client, but before you can market to them, you have to understand their needs.
