Ask an MSP Expert is a weekly advice column answering common questions from MSPs and IT service providers. It covers topics ranging from pricing and selling to marketing and communications—and everything in between.
Tag: Ask an MSP Expert

Ask an MSP Expert: What are some ways to find new prospects in my market?
Q: I’ve recently started working in sales and marketing for a local MSP company. Right now, besides the business owner, I’m the only person focused on bringing in new business. With limited resources, how can I reach new prospects in...

Ask an MSP Expert: How do I start a meaningful annual review process?
Q: As the end of the year approaches, I want to set 2016 goals for my 10 employees (administrators and technicians) and outline plans for their career development. We don’t have an HR presence, and I don’t have the budget...

Ask an MSP Expert: How can I thank my customers without breaking the bank?
Q: Earlier this week I received a thank you card in the mail from a vendor I partner with at my MSP business. I really liked the fact that they took the time to think of me and my...

Ask an MSP Expert: How can I use social media to help my MSP business?
Q: I’m not very active on social media, but I’ve noticed that a few of my competitors are using it to promote their business. I understand how social media works, but I’m just not sure how to use it...

How can I convince my customers that the cloud is secure?
Q: One of my customers is reluctant to store their data in the cloud because they’re afraid it’s less secure than an on-premise storage option. As their managed service provider, I know that cloud storage is the best option...

Ask an MSP Expert: Ensure customers are backing up their data
Q: I guess I’ve been watching too many scary movies lately (it’s Halloween after all) because I had a nightmare that my customers weren’t backing up their data! In the dream, one of my customers insisted that they’d backed...

Ask an MSP Expert: How can I convince my customers to move to the cloud?
Q: I have a customer with aging IT infrastructure, and it’s time-consuming for my technicians to keep their systems running properly. I know moving to the cloud will be a better option for their business and make things more manageable...

Ask an MSP Expert: How can I support a customer with remote employees?
Q: I recently signed on a new customer, and many of their employees work remotely. They brought me on to support their servers, PCs, and some corporate laptops, but I know their employees are using other tablets and mobile devices...

Ask an MSP Expert: How can I establish a customer success organization in my MSP business?
Q: My MSP business is growing, and we’ve been signing on more small business customers, which is great. My technicians are always busy managing customers’ day-to-day needs, and they don’t really have time to build relationships with the different customers....

Ask an MSP Expert: How can I optimize my email marketing efforts for my MSP business?
Q: I’ve been regularly emailing my list of prospective small business customers, and I’m getting the hang of it. But, I feel like I could be doing more to make my emails even more effective. How can I optimize my...