Need to increase your MSP sales? Look at Chris Rock

The other day, during a private consulting call with a client that I recently started working with, I was asked what I thought was, at first, a simple question.

He wanted to know how he could better handle some of the objections that he was regularly facing in terms of price when he pitched his own paid technology assessment to clients. Naturally, I asked him to tell me exactly what the prospect said, as every objection is a little bit different, I needed to know their specific questions before we could proceed.

Based on what he told me, I kind of “freestyled” my rebuttal right back at him that both directly handled the objection and put me in the exact position I needed to be in to ask for the sale.

My client said “well, that sounds great when you say it, but I could never come up with something like that on the fly like you just did.”

Which, of course, stopped me in my tracks.

Because I didn’t come up with that on the fly. Not by a long shot.

The truth is that I’ve personally handled that exact objection on sales calls myself hundreds of times — maybe even thousands of times — over the years. I knew what to say in response because I was acutely aware of the “objection behind the objection,” so to speak.

And that insight — that point of view that I’ve honed over the years — it’s all thanks to, surprisingly, Chris Rock.

The Illusion of Spontaneity

If you had to make a list of some of the most successful — and beloved — stand-up comedians of all time, Chris Rock would undoubtedly be near the top. If there were a “Mount Rushmore” of comedy legends, his face would be on it. He’s won every award you can think of. His comedy specials are beloved by millions. He’s sold out stadium after stadium after stadium, and somehow, he just keeps getting better.

Because he chooses to.

When people see Chris Rock do stand-up, one of the things they’re often taken with is the fact that everything seems so fluid and natural, like he’s just making things up as he goes. Like he’s naturally that funny, that effortlessly witty, and verbose.

But even he would be the first to admit that this couldn’t be further from the truth.

Chris Rock seems like he’s making his set up as he goes along because that’s what he wants you to think. 

When Rock prepares for another one of his massive stand-up comedy tours, he first takes his material out to dozens of different small clubs before he ever thinks about stepping on stage in front of that wider audience. He tries each joke again, and again, and again. He knows where people are laughing. He knows why people are laughing. He knows why they aren’t. He knows what he has to do to get the reaction he wants.

That way, by the time you ever take your seat to see him on tour, he knows exactly which jokes will hit — and where, and how, and why. That puts him in an incredible position to focus less on the jokes and more on his performance — that feeling of off-the-cuff bravado. The jokes, by that point, have taken care of themselves. He can devote 100% of his attention to making it feel like this is the first time he’s ever saying those words, which is what he knows you’ll respond to the most.

That spontaneity — that intimacy and immediacy — is how he strikes a chord with his audience and that’s the exact approach that more MSPs need to take, too.

A Modern Solution to a Modern Problem

The major problem that a lot of MSPs face is, one of perspective.

Most MSPs view sales in particular as something you’re either good at or you’re not — they don’t think that it’s possible to improve. If they see themselves in the latter position instead of the former, they just seem to “wing it” every time they get a sales call.

How is that working out for them, do you think?

In reality, MSPs need to treat their sales meeting exactly like Chris Rock treats his standup comedy. Not only do they need to write a script, but every comma — every pause — needs to be accounted for.

Then, they need to practice it, time it, and practice it some more. They need to know where they can make adjustments, what those adjustments are, and what impact they ultimately cause.

The net benefit of all this is simple: your sales closing percentage WILL go up. Just like Chris Rock keeps selling out venues around the country. Because you’ll be in the best position to focus less on the words and more on how you’re performing them.

Not only that, but you’ll see a far shorter sales process. Because of the newfound sense of confidence you’ll have because you’re closing, that in turn will lead to more closes across the board. It’ll become a self-fulfilling prophecy in the best possible way.

At that point, you’ll no longer be reciting a script — it’ll feel natural to both you and your prospect because it is natural.

Just like Chris Rock.

Perform Like Chris Rock, Bring the House Down Like Chris Rock

At my MSP marketing company, this is just one example of the many, many different ways that we’re trying to change the perspective of all of our customers — for the better. Again, so much of your success is less the result of any one major move and is more the product of little ones like this. Once you start to add them all together, that’s when the magic happens.

If you’d like to find out more information about how to change the approach you’re taking to your MSP marketing, I encourage you to download my free guide, The MSP Lead Generation Formula, or simply apply for your one-on-one strategy call with either myself or one of my esteemed team members at Tech Pro Marketing today.

Photo:   Fer Gregory / Shutterstock.