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Last year , we saw a 500 % increase in the number of small IT shops that closed their doors either permanently or rolled over to a competitor who absorbed them . All were small and provided mostly break-fix services with no marketing plan in place and no salespeople .
Simultaneously , we saw a small percentage of the industry ( and a large percentage of our Producers Club members ) have their absolute best year ever , nearly doubling sales with bottom-line profits to match . The rest , which I dub the mediocre middle , essentially survived by treading water . They lost some clients and lead flow dipped , but they didn ’ t go out of business .
But the bigger issue is that many MSPs have STOPPED all marketing efforts and haven ’ t started again . They ’ re in a slump and need to get a fire lit under their butts to start moving but don ’ t know where to start or what to do . Many businesses get into similar slumps — COVID-19-related or not — from time to time . Sometimes it ’ s because you get so busy that you stop all marketing . Other times , you lose a major client and funds get tight ( although I would argue that ’ s exactly when you need to start marketing MORE , but that would be the logical response , not the emotional response that most people have ).
Regardless of what PUT you into the slump , here are 10 recession- and slump-busting ideas for when you need to kickstart your marketing and sales efforts .
12 | MSPSuccessMagazine . com • VOLUME 2 ISSUE 6
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1Segment Your Customers Into Buckets To Determine Something NEW They Could Buy , Then Create A Custom Campaign ( Offer ) For That Segment . If they are break-fix , try to sell them on managed services . If they are a managed services client , attempt to sell them a phone system or an upgraded cybersecurity solution . If you ’ re doing QBRs ( quarterly business reviews ) or TBRs ( technology business reviews ), you should be uncovering opportunities — but sometimes you need to just create something new and sell it to them OUTSIDE of those meetings .
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Go To Current Clients And Incentivize Them To Give You A Referral . Don ’ t wait for them to give you a referral . Actively ASK them for an introduction to at least one other business owner they know and put a big incentive on it . Sometimes simply asking will trigger a referral , even if you don ’ t offer a reward , but I suggest recognizing and rewarding that behavior . What kind of gift ? Depends on the client and season . During the summer months , giving away a package of high-end Wagyu steaks can pull them , as can a really nice Yeti cooler or grill . In the fall , you might consider two bottles of wine , bourbon , or whiskey ( their choice , and something really high-end ).
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Seek A Promotional Partner Or JV . A JV , or joint venture , is where you get another noncompetitive company to endorse you to their members or clients for a purpose of mutual benefit . Sometimes , you pay them for that promotion in a formal sponsorship . Other times , they will promote you because they like you and want to help you ( like current clients you have who have clients who could hire you ). But another way to do this is to offer to conduct a webinar or seminar or provide some educational , valuable