As someone who has spent years helping MSPs of all types generate leads and grow their companies, I’ve seen far too many people make the same MSP marketing mistakes time and again. I’m not talking about underestimating SEO or having a website that loads too slowly, mind you, as these are ultimately small problems that can be quickly corrected.
I’m talking about major issues that could cause significant damage to your MSP marketing, business, and brand if left unchecked. Thankfully, the key to avoiding these pitfalls involves understanding as much about them as possible.
Remove “technobabble” from your website
If you’re a “Star Trek” fan, you’re no doubt familiar with the term “Treknobabble” – meaning that point in the episode where everything just stops and Data uses reams of confusing, monotonous, pseudo-scientific terms to explain how the Starship Enterprise is going to get out of whatever situation they’re in this week. Writers would frequently write “(TECH”) in their scripts in place of dialog for these moments, partially to save time and partially because, well, nobody really cared. It was nonsense – they’d fill it all in later.
Industry-specific jargon to describe who you are and what your MSP does, should be treated the same way. One of the worst places for this type of MSP technobabble to appear, for example, is on your website. This is really the last place you should be hitting people with confusing and incredibly dry content. Instead, make sure your website is centered around the fact that A) you understand the unique problems that your customers are facing, and B) that you and you alone can solve them.
You should only be using plain, simple language to help sell the impression that they’ve finally found the partner they’ve been looking for.
Procrastinating your MSP marketing plans
One of the major reasons why having an inbound marketing plan for your MSP is so important, is because it helps guarantee that you always have a steady stream of new clients and projects coming right to your virtual door.
If you know who you are trying to reach and how you are trying to reach them; if you’re well aware of your goals for the coming year; and, you know exactly which strategies and tactics you will use to accomplish those goals, you’re far less likely to let procrastination rear its ugly head and derail your efforts.
In other words, put together your inbound marketing strategy today so your MSP always has a clear direction to head in moving forward.
Problem of commoditization
One of the most important things for you to understand about your customers is that while they may know they need an MSP, they might not be sure why. Your job is to educate them about what you can do and why it matters. If they don’t see a clear distinction between your MSP and all of the other options available to them, they start to get the impression that “all of these companies are the same, and that any MSP will due.” Which, of course, couldn’t be farther from the truth.
To avoid this problem of commoditization, you need to be prepared to communicate why you’re different, what you do and how you do it better than anyone else. Speak not in terms of services or technology, but in terms of value. Highlight the specific problems you solve. Use your branding, MSP websites, and marketing collateral to make sure you stand out in a crowd.
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