How MSPs get clients (the 2022 way)

Most MSPs still use something called one step marketing.

The step is simple, you get someone’s attention and then you try to sell them something.

Attention -> Sale

You see it in MSP's marketing all the time. Strip away all the fluff, and the marketing says what the business is called, where it’s based, and what services it offers. The owner hopes people will respond to it, visit their website, and enquire.

That’s it.

Only a few MSPs insert a step into that process. It's a step which means:

• Many more decision makers are likely to enquire about what you can do for them
• They are significantly more likely to engage with you
• They are more likely to become a bonded client

Here’s the extra step you put in place. Once you get someone’s attention, you build a relationship with them before you ask for the sale.

Attention ->?Relationship?-> Sale

Why does this work in marketing? Because it's how humans work in real life.

If you’re married or in a long-term relationship, think back to the first date you had with that special person. Wasn’t it a magical time? Do you remember looking into their eyes; dreaming, imagining that you could spend the whole of your life with them?

What would have happened if at the end of the date, instead of kissing them on the cheek and arranging a second date, you had got down on one knee and proposed to them?

??

Here’s what would have happened… you would not be with that person now. They would have thought you were deranged. They'd almost definitely block you on WhatsApp.

Yet this might be what you’re doing in your MSP…

Unless we're in Vegas and really drunk, before we get married or move in with someone, we build a relationship with them.

And we need to do the same with our prospects.

This is a powerful way to grow your business. It allows you to find out who your prospects are and get to know them before they ever contact you.

They get to know you along the way. And once they know you, they are significantly more likely to be fantastic long-term clients. Because we all prefer buying from people that we know, right?

One of the ways to do this is with data capture on your website. You ask people to opt-in to your marketing by giving their name, email address and maybe even their phone number.

Reality check: Few people want to give their details... which is why a box that says “sign up for our newsletter” never works well.

So you motivate them by offering them an ethical bribe in return. Perhaps this would be an educational buyers guide on how to pick an IT support business. Or a book on data security.

A simple PDF will work OK; although nothing beats printed educational material that you mail to them.

Once someone has opted into your marketing, they're then on your email list. You have multiple chances to build a relationship with them.

People only buy when they are ready to buy – and your MSP stands a greater chance of being in front of them at that point.

SIDE NOTE: The members of my MSP Marketing Edge service get a book called Email Hijack. It's a story written from the point of view of an ordinary business owner, about how their email is hacked and money is stolen from their business bank account.

My members can put their name on the front, get some copies printed, and offer it as an ethical bribe on their website.