MSP Sales is tremendously complicated these days. The prospects you’re trying to reach are much more skeptical than they were just a few years ago. They’ve heard every promise imaginable about running the IT end of their business, and more than a few promises that you’d likely never imagine. These days, small to medium business owners are constantly bombarded by salespeople from various industries. And that’s why the owners are so jaded. They’re tired of being looked at as a money pie everyone wants a slice of!

MSP Salespeople know they are contacting businesses because everyone needs help with their IT and business issues, but early in the process, they will look the same as every other salesperson who knocks on the door. Before you walked in, there’s a pretty good chance that the owner had just been contacted by a someone selling insurance, or printers, office supplies, snack machines, furniture, or mass-produced artwork for the walls You need to realize this so you can differentiate yourself from the rest of the sales crowd. The ultimate goal is for you to build a bond so strong that the owner sees you as a true business partner, not just someone who wants his or her money.

Start thinking that way now. Realize that everybody else is just trying to sell small businesses something they might use, products or services they may need, but that they can probably get those things anywhere. You, on the other hand, are selling them what they need to run their business: protection from evil outside forces, a reliable back-up system for their data, updated computers and software, and a promise to help them with future growth. You’re not just refilling their paper trays or watering their plants. It’s your job to communicate that to them.

But how do you do that? Obviously, sales training will help, but be very aware that there are many different kinds of sales training, and what works for one industry doesn’t necessarily work for every industry. Selling Managed Services is completely different from selling cars, or boats, or timeshares in Cabo.

Here at CharTec, we offer in-depth MSP Sales Training. We have our Training Lab: Sales Edition every quarter, which is five days of intensive training, including one-on-one coaching, and ending with the student giving a real presentation in front of judges who know what good presentations look like. For people new to the CharTec way of training, our Academy is a great place to start. Also offered four times a year, MSP owners and employees can learn about every aspect of their industry, including Operations, Cybersecurity, Marketing, Backing-up data, Hiring the right people, and, of course, Sales.

Since MSP Sales is so specific to the industry it is our primary focus during Academy. Alex Rogers, CharTec’s CEO and founder, was recently asked by a new MSP owner, “I’m growing and I need to bring new people in, but who do I hire first: a salesperson or a tech?” Alex explained that, as a small MSP owner, more than likely you’re a tech. He’s never seen an MSP that was started by someone from sales. If you’re doing both sales and tech, it’s a good chance that you’ll get a better ROI on hiring a good salesperson.

Alex goes on to say that there are two types of salespeople: hunters and farmers. Sales Hunters go out and find new clients. They enjoy searching for new prospects, tracking them down, and moving in to capture their business. Sales Farmers, on the other hand, prefer to manage the clients you already have. They touch-base with your clients, they manage the needs of the clients, and they also try to up-sell them when new technology or services come along. Farmers help grow your business from your existing crop of clients.

For your first new salesperson, Alex recommends that you search for a person who is a mixture of both hunter and farmer. A young MSP needs to bring in new clients, but they also need to make sure they’re not ignoring the current ones. This is no easy task as there are very few salespeople around with MSP experience. So then, where do you look for someone with the skills you need?

Alex points you in this direction; “Look for someone with experience selling invisible items. Intangible things like financial investments, Telco lines, copier contracts, and insurance will give salespeople the kind of training MSP’s are looking for.” Alex then stresses that you want to ask the potential hire how they earned their money. Did they earn the bulk of their income by salary or commission? You’ll have better luck hiring someone who is used to cold-calling, digging up their own leads, and who is willing to accepting a low starting salary. That way they’ll be hungry to sign new clients and grow their commissions.

Here at CharTec, we can help you find your first salesperson through our recruiting program. Then we’ll help train that person with our three-month accelerated MSP Sales roadmap. And a great way to get started with that training is to attend our Academy. Not only will your new hire learn tips and tricks about sales, but they’ll also learn every other aspect of what MSPs are. In order for them to sell your business, they need to know the business, and our three-day Academy is the quickest and most efficient way to learn about MSPs.

For more information on attending Academy, click here: https://chartec.net/academy-registration/ 

For information on our Training Lab: Sales Edition, click here: https://chartec.net/contact-us/