MSP Radio Episode 159
On this week's show, we rotate in our staffers from the Grow Your Business Hub at Navigate 2017 to hear their insights and best practices on how to optimize your sales and marketing activities to generate new leads and grow your business. Topics include buyer personas, social selling, homepage design, webinars and videos, marketing ROI and search engine optimization.
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StitcherMSP Radio Episode 145
On this episode, we welcome on Mike Paton from EOS Worldwide to discuss how MSPs can create a clear and powerful vision for their company. We also talk through the recent Petya ransomware outbreak, Continuum's new Continuity247 add-on feature, and do our first Twitter Trivia (aka Twivia).
MSP Radio presents Managed IT Services Providers with helpful information on MSP business, sales and marketing strategies.The Weekly Byte is a weekly series that provides quick, digestible tips and best practices you can use to help your business succeed.Cyber security doesn’t sell itself, and your go-to-market strategy needs to be well-established before you begin engaging in sales conversations with clients and prospects. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore four resources you can download and use immediately to help you enhance your security content library!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Tom Fafinski of Virtus Law returns to discuss the impact of security on the legal aspect of MSP businesses, and how to tackle the aspects of liability and risk exposure as this space rapidly evolves.
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we will talk about how MSPs normally "scare" their customers into purchasing a new solution but we will discuss why you shouldn’t try to scare your clients when it comes to security (and what you should be doing instead)!
On this episode of MSP Radio, we talk to Al Silva, CEO of Murphy, McKay & Associates, on how to discuss the need for advanced security services with your clients, and how to leverage peer groups to enhance your security business.
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explain the difference between these two tactics and explore whether one is more valuable than the other as you look to boost your lead generation efforts!
Navigate is Continuum’s annual user conference—and it’s packed with great content, networking opportunities, and actionable insights that attendees can leverage across a number of key aspects of their businesses. Tune into this episode of The Weekly Byte to discover four can’t-miss attractions at Navigate 2018!
Multimedia content is a great way to make your website more lively, engaging and interactive—and it can help significantly improve conversion and lead generation. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at four ways you can leverage multimedia on your MSP website!
On this episode of MSP Radio, we talk to Continuum Product Manager Bill Hughes on the recent emerging trends and technology surrounding the cloud, and how MSPs can best use it to attract and retain clients.
Losing clients is one of the toughest challenges MSPs encounter—and in some cases losing a single customer can have a significant negative impact to your overall business. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we focus on four ways MSPs can improve customer retention and better-protect their top accounts!
Your sales presentation is one of the most important assets in your toolbelt—and it’s often one of the most difficult to create. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at four ways to enhance your next sales presentation and improve your chances of winning new business!
With so many conferences and industry events taking place these days, it can be difficult to know what to attend or where to spend your time—and it’s even harder to guarantee that you’ll get the right return on investment (ROI).
Hiring and retaining talent is one of the most significant challenges MSPs face today—and a widening skills gap (particularly in cyber security) isn’t helping. Fortunately, the right tactics and approach can help you overcome some of these challenges and keep your top performers.
In an ideal world, you’d never work holidays—but unfortunately, many MSPs find themselves stuck at the office or on-call on days like the fourth of July. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at four things MSPs can do to actually take advantage of being at the office when forced to work holidays!
On this episode of MSP Radio, we talk to Tim Busa, Continuum's Senior Director of Demand Generation, who shares his experience, knowledge and advice for MSPs on how to best create and grow a winning demand generation strategy.
In an ideal world, you’d never work holidays—but unfortunately, many MSPs find themselves stuck at the office or on-call on days like the fourth of July. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at four things MSPs can do to actually take advantage of being at the office when forced to work holidays!
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we break down four resources that you can leverage today to improve your security education and ensure that both your team and your customers are set up for success!
On this episode of MSP Radio, we talk to Tim Busa, Continuum's Senior Director of Demand Generation, who shares his experience, knowledge and advice for MSPs on how to best create and grow a winning demand generation strategy.
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore how you can leverage your website as a powerful marketing tool when adding new products or services to your portfolio!As an MSP, it’s exciting to expand your portfolio but you might struggle to get the traction and adoption you’re looking for.
Without the right pitch, value prop and collateral, it may be difficult to convince prospects (or existing customers) that it’s time to invest in IT security. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore three ways you can enhance your cyber security sales pitch to drive better outcomes!
On this week's MSP Radio, Brandon and Joe talk to Lily Teplow, Content Marketing Manager and Blog Manager at Continuum, who is responsible for bringing home the gold for the Continuum Blog at the 2018 Hermes Awards. We discuss best practices that MSPs can use to start a blog.
LinkedIn is a powerful network that provides MSPs with tremendous opportunities to generate new leads, learn more about prospects and customers, and drive meaningful conversations and interactions—but if you’re not taking advantage of this one particular tactic, you might be leaving money on the table.
On this episode, Brandon and Joe talk to Josh Weiss of LA Creative on the emerging managed services vertical of creative services, how to manage work/life balance (hint: blend your passions), and how to play to your strengths to cater your services to what you do better than anyone.
It can be difficult to stand apart from the crowd and craft copy that’s unique and compelling. Fortunately, the right mindset and a few best practices can help MSPs sharpen their writing and more effectively target prospects and customers. Tune in to this episode of The Weekly Byte to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Brandon and Joe talk to Doug Hazelman, VP of Technical Marketing at CloudBerry Lab, about the importance of joining MSP communities, and the benefits that can be gained from sharing and learning from peers in your.
Events are a great way to generate new leads, increase brand awareness and have meaningful conversations with both prospects and customers. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore four types of events MSPs can leverage to drive new leads and sales conversations!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Brandon and Joe go through a number of important stories in the news as they pertain to the world of managed services, and share some important tips you can use in your business.
You can spend lots of time talking to prospects about the value of your managed IT services—but what do you actually show them? In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore how MSPs can leverage live product demonstrations throughout the sales process!
Who should MSPs create lists? How should they be segmented? How should an editorial calendar be created? All of these questions and more--plus a few radio mad libs, all coming on this episode. Listen now!
Today, for our 100th episode, we’re excited to reveal the single most important piece of marketing advice that MSPs should keep in mind when communicating to prospects and customers. Tune in now to discover what it is!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Brandon and Joe discuss the increasing security issues surrounding cryptocurrencies (and how to discuss them with your clients). Then, they talk to Chris Hoose, CEO of Choose Networks, who shares some important advice on how to lead as CEO
Blogging is a great way to demonstrate thought leadership, improve SEO and generate new leads—but it can be difficult and time-consuming to constantly come up with new ideas and craft new posts.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Brandon welcomes a new-old co-host to the show, and they discuss some recent security news in the tech world. Then, listen a talk to Continuum partner John Cappuccio about growing his MSP Business
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at three free tools you can leverage to understand how your website stacks up on Google and other search engines—and what you can do to improve your ranking!
It's a very special episode of MSP Radio, as we say goodbye to the show's founding member, our original host, Nate Teplow, who welcomes Brandon Garcin as the new host of the show.
Do you know if your homepage is actually providing driving results? In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we dive into five helpful metrics you can track to measure the effectiveness of your website’s homepage!
On this episode, we welcome back Peter Melby, CEO of Greystone Technology (and MSP Radio Hall-of-Famer), to talk about the need to evolve your company culture as your organization grows and how you can create a management framework for building a strong company culture.
Video is playing an increasingly important role in modern marketing strategies—and with good reason. Videos can be more dynamic and engaging than other types of content, they’re often quick and consumable, and they’re a perfect vehicle for getting a variety of messages out to your prospects and customers.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome on Barb Paluszckiewicz, CEO of CDN Technologies, to talk about how she's built her business around an outsourced model, and how it's helped her grow faster and get more out of her team. Tune in now to hear Barb's story!
The managed services market is all about relationships, and Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) are a great way to stay in touch with your customers, showcase your value and identify potential cross-sell and upsell opportunities.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome on Barb Paluszckiewicz, CEO of CDN Technologies, to talk about how she's built her business around an outsourced model, and how it's helped her grow faster and get more out of her team. Tune in now to hear Barb's story!
There’s no denying the importance of having the right security software and tools in place to protect your customers—but what about physical workplace security? In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we outline six things you should never leave out on your desk at the office!
We're excited to bring you a two-part series with Tom Fafinski, Co-Founder of Virtus Law, to share insights and key considerations for M&A in the managed IT services market. Tom discusses the current state of MSP M&A activity and provides tips to increase your value and improve operations.
The managed services market is more competitive today than ever before—and it can be difficult to differentiate yourself from the competition. Fortunately, the right mindset and business practices can help you win out over the competition.
On this episode, we bring you a Q&A discussion between Paul Balkwell, Vice President of International Sales at Continuum, and Hunter Smith, Chief Information Security Officer at Continuum where we discuss Continuum’s journey to GDPR compliance and provide a status update to our European partners.
With so much email cluttering our inboxes today, it can be very difficult to reach prospects and get the type of engagement you’re looking for. Fortunately, a few small changes can create a big impact—and in this episode of The Weekly Byte, we offer four easy tips that can help you boost response rates!
On this episode, we chat with Dan Maier, SVP of Sales, North American Markets at Ellucian, about how to attract, hire and onboard a rockstar salesperson to your team to help accelerate your revenue growth.
What makes the difference between a highly engaging webinar and one that nobody wants to attend? Tune in to this episode of The Weekly Byte to make sure you’re set up for success from the moment you host your very first webinar!
On this episode, we welcome on Corey Prince, Sr. Director of Product Marketing at Continuum, to discuss the current managed services market and help MSPs understand where the threats and opportunities lie in the year ahead.
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we outline five security services offerings and explain how you can drive success with each—tune in now to learn more!
Selling security can be tricky, especially during initial conversations where your prospects may not fully understand the importance of protecting their IT infrastructure.Fortunately, the right discovery questions can help you drive the conversation forward and uncover the right pain points.
On this episode, we welcome on Joe Panettieri, Content Czar at ChannelE2E and MSSP Alert, to discuss the difference between an MSP and MSSP, how the market is converging and what you need to do to prepa.
Case studies are one of the most important assets to include in your marketing and sales library—but how should you actually go about creating them? What information should you include, and how can you write and package case studies in a way that captures the attention of your prospects and customers?
On this episode, we chat with Mary McCoy, Sr. Demand Generation Programs Manager at Continuum, about how MSPs can leverage paid media channels to generate leads and new customer acquisition.
Content creation is an essential component of any modern marketing strategy—but once you've created the content, you need to have effective landing pages to encourage website visitors to actually download it! In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore several landing page best practices designed to help you optimize conversion and generate more leads.
On this episode, we welcome on Meaghan Moraes, Content Marketing Manager at Continuum, to discuss the recent Facebook newsfeed changes and how businesses might be impacted. We also discuss social media marketing best practices, some recent tech and industry news, and more. Tune in now!
On this episode, we chat with Jenn Ewing, Strategic Partner Manager at Continuum, about the SMB need for customized BDR strategies and how MSPs can find the right balance of standardization and customization.
Your website is arguably your most important marketing asset—it’s where you can make a first impression with prospects, offer information about your products and services, and convert visitors into leads. But what should your website include?
Email is one of the most important channels your sales reps have at their disposal—but what makes a great sales email? What combination of messaging and tone will increase your open rates and encourage prospects to pick up the phone? Find out!
On this episode, we welcome Bill Hughes, RMM Product Manager at Continuum, to chat through the recently disclosed Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities and how MSPs can effectively leverage these news events to inform their clients and create sales opportunities.
Happy New Year! As we welcome in 2018, we discuss some keys to creating a successful marketing plan for the year ahead and how to ensure you stick to the plan as well. We also share an update on the WannaCry ransomware attack, debate the value of "office snooping" and close with our small business idea of the week.
It's been a great year of MSP Radio and overall for the Continuum Podcast Network. We wrap up the year on our final show of 2017 and induct our inaugural class of MSP Radio Hall of Famers.
One of the most important functions of a modern MSP website is lead generation—and one of the best ways to actually generate new leads is by using gated content.And how can you go about optimizing your existing CTAs to increase click-through rates? Tune in to this episode of The Weekly Byte to find out!
On this episode, we chat with Meredith Eaton and Manny Veiga from March Communications about how MSPs can leverage PR strategies to increase visibility and thought-leadership for their business in 2018.
One of the most important functions of a modern MSP website is lead generation—and one of the best ways to actually generate new leads is by using gated content.
On this episode, we welcome on Hunter Smith, Chief Information Security Officer at Continuum, to discuss the current cybersecurity landscape and how MSPs can ensure they successfully protect their clients in 2018.
There’s a lot to figure out as we move into 2018, and you’ll want to make sure you’re spending time developing the right sales and marketing plans—but what if you don’t have the budget needed to invest in a formal marketing strategy?
On this episode, we welcome Nicole Hunter Hart, Sr. Manager of Partner Success Programs at Continuum, to discuss best practices for effectively onboarding new clients. We also chat through a new, well-known company breach.
Cyber Monday is a great day to find savings, deals and specials on your favorite e-commerce sites and outlets. It’s important to make sure you’re being careful when browsing and buying via the web—and doing everything you can to protect yourself from cyber attacks.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome Ai-Li Lim, SVP of Human Resources at Continuum, to discuss key strategies MSPs need to know to show your team appreciation and improve employee retention.
The holiday season is upon us, and with it come no shortage of opportunities—and potential headaches—for MSPs. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we outline four ways to plan and prepare for the holidays to keep both your team and your customers happy. Tune in to learn more!
On this episode, we welcome on Randy Bowie, VP of Engineering, to discuss the future of the Backup and Disaster Recovery market and what MSPs can do to be successful in 2018.
You can’t grow your business if you’re not acquiring new customers—but that doesn’t mean you should take on every single opportunity that comes your way. In fact, knowing when to say “no” to a prospect can be just as valuable as knowing when to say “yes.”
On this episode, we chat with Courtney Swift, Marketing Communications Manager at Continuum, about how MSPs can use webinars to generate leads and engage their database, and how to run an effective webinar campaign.
Webinars are a great way to drive leads, engage with prospects and customers, and more—but you’ll need more than just a screen-sharing tool to successfully deliver webinar content. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore how to host the perfect webinar!
On this episode, we welcome on Amala Duggirala, Enterprise Chief Information Officer at Regions Bank, to discuss key priorities for banking and financial institutions for 2018, and how MSPs can effectively approach these types of organizations to offer their services.
In this special Halloween edition of The Weekly Byte, we explore how to take the fear out of cybersecurity sales!
On this special Halloween edition of MSP Radio, we welcome on Ryan Hesske, Strategic Partner Manager at Continuum, to share best practices for selling cybersecurity services to your clients and prospects.
LinkedIn is one of the largest and most successful B2B networks that exists today—but are you using it as a lead generation tool? With the right combination of LinkedIn features, functionality, and a few best practices, you can transform the platform into a robust selling tool for your business.
Featured Episode
On this week's show, we rotate in our staffers from the Grow Your Business Hub at Navigate 2017 to hear their insights and best practices on how to optimize your sales and marketing activities to generate new leads and grow your business.
One of the biggest challenges in MSP sales and marketing today is differentiating yourself from your competition—but with the right value proposition, your organization can stand apart from the rest with every pitch and presentation you make.
On this episode, we chat with Brian Downey, Sr. Director of Security Product Management at Continuum, about how MSPs can effectively define and sell cybersecurity services to their end clients.
Navigate 2017 was a fantastic event! It was so great to see so many listeners there and hope you all had a great time. On this special edition show, we recap the event and share some sound bites from attendees to hear about their experience at Navigate 2017.
Google’s search algorithm is complex and constantly changing, and if your website isn’t keeping up with the latest trends and expectations you may find yourself falling through the ranks and losing visibility.
Live events are a great way to get some facetime with your prospects and customers—but with so many events and meetups taking place these days, it can be difficult to know how and where to spend your time.
On this episode, we chat with Ben Brier, Account Manager at LinkedIn, about how MSPs can use LinkedIn to effectively find and engage new prospects.
A blog is the perfect vehicle for publishing content that attracts new prospects to your website, educates readers and generates leads—but what types of posts should you actually be creating to maximize your blog’s effectiveness?
On today's show, we welcome on Brian Coffey, Channel Account Manager at Webroot (our Navigate 2017 Titanium Sponsor), to talk about the current security threat landscape and why MSPs need multi-vector protection.
Content may be king, but that doesn’t mean you need to reinvent the wheel every time you want to create an asset. In fact, repurposing and refreshing existing resources can at times be even more valuable than building something new from scratch!.
On this episode, we welcome on Simon Wenet from Navigate 2017 Platinum Sponsor, Cisco Umbrella, to talk about how the threat landscape has shifted and what MSPs can do to better protect their SMB clients.
Navigation is one of the most important elements on your website—it helps direct traffic, shows your users what type of content lives on your website, and more.
We're joined by Wayne Berkowitz, Continuum's new VP of Partner Success, to talk about his key priorities and what he's excited for as he steps into his new role.
If you’re relying exclusively on traditional prospecting techniques, you may be leaving opportunities on the table—but don’t worry! In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore how to tap into your customer network to generate new leads.
On this week's show, we welcome on Luis Giraldo, VP of Products at IT Glue, to discuss how proper documentation helps your business run more efficiently and improve profitability.
There’s no denying the value that an effective search engine optimization (SEO) strategy can bring to your marketing and sales efforts—but should you be spending more time focusing on on-page or off-page SEO?
On this episode, we welcome on our first ever end-user Scott Frank, CIO of Capital Blue Cross, to discuss some of his key priorities for the year ahead and how MSPs can best engage CIOs of healthcare organizations in their prospecting efforts.
Content plays a crucial role in your marketing and sales efforts—but in order to maximize its effectiveness, you’ll need to align your resources with appropriate buyer stages to ensure you’re using the right assets at the right time.
On this (half) episode, we share an update on MSP Radio and wish one of our hosts farewell. We also talk through some recent news stories, including a new Continuum VP of Partner Success, Amazon Web Services feature update, and Google paying Apple for iOS search.
Ready to take your SEO program to the next level? Now that we’ve had a chance to discuss the early development of an SEO strategy and explore how to create keyword-rich content, it’s time to dive into long-term planning of your strategy.
On this milestone episode, we welcome back Continuum CEO, Michael George, to discuss his thoughts on the current state of Managed IT Services as well as what the future has to hold. We also bring back our radio MadLibs segment, discuss the recent hack of HBO and talk about our favorite vacation destinations.
Last week we discussed how to begin building a successful SEO strategy to bolster your marketing and lead generation efforts—and this week, we take things a step further and explain how to create keyword-rich content that will attract visitors to your website.
On this episode, we welcome on Tim Lasonde, President at NSK Inc. and Continuum partner, to discuss his experience acquiring an MSP and share tips on how to make a successful acquisition. We also feature a special Game of Thrones radio MadLibs and announce a new keynote speaker at Navigate 2017.
In this episode of a special multi-part Weekly Byte series, we offer several tips and recommendations to help you lay the foundation for an effective SEO strategy that can help you drive more leads and win new business!
On this episode, we welcome on Paul Dippell, CEO of Service Leadership inc., to discuss the results of a recent analysis S-LI completed studying Continuum partners' financial performance compared to the MSP industry.
A strong subject line will encourage your prospects and customers to open the emails your sending them—but once they’ve opened an email, you’ll need to have engaging content inside to encourage them to click through and take that next step forward.
On this week's show, we welcome on Lane Smith, Sr. Director of Strategic Alliances at Continuum, to discuss common MSP growth barriers and strategies you can leverage to overcome them. We also share another AWS misconfiguration, reveal the answer to last week's Twivia question, and provide an update on mall robots (and their mishaps).
Email is one of today’s most popular marketing and sales channels—but if you want your prospects and customers to actually open the emails your sending them, you’ll need a strong subject line. In this episode, we offer helpful tips and tricks you can use to optimize your subject lines and increase email open rates!
On this episode, we chat with Lily Teplow, Content Marketing Associate at Continuum, about how MSPs can build a successful blog and incorporate it into their overall marketing strategy. We also discuss a recent WWE data mishap, reveal the answer to last week's Twivia (Twitter Trivia), and share an article about robots in a restaurant.
What makes a LinkedIn profile great? For MSPs, it’s all about creating the right first impression with your prospects and customers. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we outline five must-haves for your LinkedIn profile
Featured Episode
On this week's show, we welcome on Mike Paton from EOS Worldwide to discuss how MSPs can create a clear and powerful vision for their company. We also talk through the recent Petya ransomware outbreak, Continuum's new Continuum BDR add-on feature, and do our first Twitter Trivia (aka Twivia).
In last week’s byte, we talked about how to conduct a mid-year performance review of your marketing programs to determine what’s working and what isn’t—and this week, we explore how to put that insight into practice and build a successful plan of attack for the remainder of the year.
Tracy Pound, Managing Director at Maximity and Member of CompTIA Board of Directors, joins us this week to talk about the future of the IT industry and how MSPs can position themselves for success in the future.
It’s important to keep tabs on the performance of your marketing efforts to ensure you’re getting the right ROI and are meeting your goals for the year. And since we’re now halfway through 2017, there’s no time like the present to dig into the numbers and make sure you’re on track for a successful second half of the year!
We chat with Mike Barnes, Director of Partner Engagement at Continuum, about how MSPs can build stronger and more profitable relationships with their clients. We also play radio MadLibs, talk through a revolutionary moment in technology history and share our listener tweet of the week.
Making the right first impression with your prospects can be the difference between a successful close or a lost opportunity—and the sales materials and presentations you leverage play a significant role in that process.
On this episode, we chat with Adam Barker (no relation to Ben) about some quick wins and simple strategies MSPs can leverage to improve their web marketing strategy and generate more leads.
Your website needs to have the right blend of copy, visuals and interactive content in order to attract and convert visitors—and when used properly, stock photography can play an important role in the imagery you’re using on the web.
On this episode, we chat with Ai-Li Lim, SVP of Human Resources at Continuum, about how you can find and retain top talent for your business. We also feature 4 special segments, a great "two truths and lie", and of course our mystery question of the week.
Email marketing provides a great platform for you to nurture your leads and prospects and eventually convert them into customers. It’s difficult, however, to be all things to all people—and if you aren’t segmenting your database effectively you may struggle to achieve the results you’re looking for.
On this show, we feature a conversation with Bill Hughes, Product Manager at Continuum, about patching best practices, recent changes to Microsoft Service Model and how MSPs can increase their patching success rate.
Web-based chat provides a great vehicle for engaging with prospects and customers in real-time, and has a number of benefits that phone or email support can’t provide. In this episode, we outline four reasons you should be leveraging chat on your website.
On this episode, we feature an interview with Bob Kocis, Chief Revenue Officer at Continuum, and John Cardarelli, President at Service Revenue Solutions. Bob and John discuss effective sales strategies MSPs can leverage to grow their sales pipeline and KPIs you should be tracking.
So, you want to write a blog post, publish an eBook, record a podcast, host a webinar or anything in between. Where do you come up with the content? What topics and issues are going to resonate with your customers and prospects?
We chat about the recent WannaCry ransomware attack and welcome on Mary Crogan, VP of Marketing at Continuum, to discuss the importance of attending industry events, as well as share some news and updates about Navigate 2017.
In order to understand whether marketing programs are effectively generating leads and attracting the right visitors to your brand and website, you need to track the right metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs).
Recurring guest of MSP Radio and co-Founder of Virtus Law, Tom Fafinski, was back on the airwaves, this time to discuss buy-sell agreements. Many MSP businesses are co-owned, so what happens when one owner wants to leave the company or a relationship breaks down?
Account-based marketing (ABM) is a great way to drive business by targeting individual prospects and high-value opportunities—and it’s quickly becoming one of today’s most popular marketing trends.
On this episode, we chat with Scott Spiro, CEO of Computer Solutions Group and Continuum partner, about how he's established an effective marketing strategy for his business and the need for MSPs to make time for sales and marketing.
Data visualization is a great way to leverage statistics, market research and important metrics in your marketing and sales collateral. In this episode, we dive into this topic and offer access to 20+ charts you can instantly download and leverage in your own efforts!
For MSPs, offering a BDR solution within their scope of products and services is not uncommon. However, not all MSPs are able to use this line of business to accelerate business growth. Steve Ayers, CEO of CCS Business Solutions joined MSP Radio to discuss how he was able to identify the right backup solution and use it to grow his business.
Newsletters are a great way to stay top-of-mind with prospects and customers, while providing valuable and educational information they can use to be more productive in the workplace. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore the value of an e-newsletter and offer 15+ customizable templates you can download to jumpstart your efforts today!
Peter Melby, CEO of Greystone Technology, shares his experience in transitioning from micromanaging mediocre performers to building a team of 85+ self-driven team members moving forcefully in a unified direction. Greystone credits this shift as the biggest key in propelling the home grown MSP to $10M in annual revenue.
Lead generation is arguably the most important function of your MSP website—but it takes more than simply putting a few forms up to drive long-term success. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at five ways you can improve conversion rates on your website to start generating more leads today!
With the launch of our new Network Management by Auvik solution, we chatted with Alex Hoff, VP of Product & Sales at Auvik, about how MSPs can become more proactive and enhance their service offering with a robust Network Management solution.
Defining your value proposition and identifying what makes your business unique is a key component of your marketing and sales strategy—but how do you ensure that message is used consistently across various digital channels and even during sales conversations?
Joy Belinda Beland, CEO of Pink Hat Technology Management, has successfully transitioned her managed services business to focus on security services, allowing her to stand out from the competition and generate new lines of revenue.
How are your sales reps engaging with leads who fill out forms on your website? Leveraging content to generate leads via your website is an essential component of inbound marketing, but how you follow up with those leads is equally important. In this episode, we break four ways you can follow up with web-generated leads.
With the growing competition in the MSP landscape, developing a unique selling proposition is more important than ever. How can you make yourself stand out from all of the managed IT services offerings available?
Capturing leads via your website is one of the best ways to build your prospect database—but what information should you actually be asking visitors to submit when filling out your forms? In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we break down six fields you can include in your lead capture forms!
IBM is one of the largest companies in the world, and they do a lot to power business all over the globe. But how can MSPs tap into their many technologies to generate new revenues, provide better services and prepare for future technology shifts?
For MSPs that are looking to improve their marketing efforts and attract new business, lead generation is key. And while channels like your blog, social media and the content you create are all great ways to encourage prospects to engage with you, there is more to be done.
When used correctly, social media can be a powerful marketing tool, enabling you to amplify your company voice and tap into new selling opportunities. On this episode, we continue our two-part series and discuss how to leverage your company's social media pages in your marketing strategy to generate new leads and engage with new prospects.
AdWords can be a bit overwhelming at times, but with the right strategy MSPs can drive high-quality leads through targeted and focused pay-per-click campaigns and programs. In this episode, we offer three tips to help you minimize cost-per-click (CPC) and maximize the return on your AdWords investment.
You might not think about Social Media as a way to generate new clients, but when used correctly, it can actually be a very powerful tool. On this episode, we kick off a two-part series on social media and focus on how you can leverage your personal social media accounts to grow your network and open up new selling opportunities.
Your website’s homepage is all about first impressions, and whether or not you can effectively encourage visitors to engage with content, learn more about your services and take that next step forward. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at four homepage must-haves that can help you send the right message to prospects.
It's clear that the demand for cybersecurity services is growing rapidly, but many MSPs find it difficult to establish an effective service offering. On this episode of MSP Radio, we speak with Win Pham, VP of Development at RapidFire Tools, about how MSPs can create a tiered service offering and start capitalizing on the cybersecurity opportunity among SMBs.
Social media platforms offer unprecedented opportunities to engage with customers and prospects in real time—but how can MSPs tap into this channel to drive meaningful conversations with their audience? In this episode we outline four key aspects that define a strong and effective social media presence.
The Backup & Disaster Recovery market has seen tremendous growth over the last five years and presents a big opportunity for MSPs. However, many MSPs have trouble developing a BDR line of business and profitably servicing their clients.
Most MSPs struggle to find leads and don't have a standardized sales process, which makes it difficult to consistently win new clients and scale your business. We chat with Matt Waters, Sr. Director of Sales, North America, about how MSPs can standardize their sales process, find effective sales talent and grow their sales pipeline.
There’s no denying the importance of effectively demonstrating the value of your services to prospects—but what about existing customers? In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we dive into three ways you can show your value to clients who are already purchasing from you. Tune in now to learn more!
Client retention is something that you should be focused on throughout the entire year. We chat with Dee Zepf, VP of Partner Success at Continuum about how MSPs can implement strategies that ensure you're keeping customers happy, uncovering their issues and improving client retention rates.
Your MSP website is only as good as the content it’s promoting—and the right approach to copywriting can make all the difference when you’re trying to generate a steady stream of inbound leads. In this episode, we offer six copywriting tips and recommendations that you can use to craft compelling messaging!
The Super Bowl is this coming weekend and we have two great teams that will be facing off. Building a great team is critical to the success of your business. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Mike Barnes, Director of Partner Engagement at Continuum, about what it takes to build a great team and how it leads to business success.
Building an effective MSP website that drives high-quality leads isn’t an easy task—and although there are a number of important best practices you should be following, there are also a number of pitfalls and mistakes you’ll want to avoid.
The right resources, messaging and marketing strategy can transform just about any MSP website into a lead-generating engine—but who’s going to actually create the content? If you’re preparing to hire your first full-time marketer, what are the key characteristics and background you should look for?
On this episode of MSP Radio, we go "down under" to discuss the MSP market opportunity in Australia and New Zealand. We're joined by Frank Bauer, Continuum's new Director of APAC, who sheds some light on the technology trends and market dynamics of the Australian IT Channel.
2017 is upon us, and as we head into this new year, you probably have some growth goals set for your business. On this episode we chat through some specific strategies MSPs can leverage to grow their businesses in 2017 and share details on a new eBook that Continuum has made available to help MSPs grow in the year ahead.
Looking to build a blog to attract new website visitors and generate leads? Tune in to this episode of The Weekly Byte to discover five important questions MSPs should ask themselves when creating a blog!
eBooks, white papers, infographics, webinars, and more—with so many types of marketing collateral, it can be difficult to know which pieces are most important or how to get started creating them. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at the three must-have marketing assets that all MSPs should have in their portfolio. Tune in now to learn more!
Happy New Year! 2017 is upon us, and there’s no time like the present to make sure you’ve got a solid marketing plan lined up to help you generate leads and meet your sales goals. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we offer five tips you can use to set yourself up for a successful year of marketing and demand generation.
Content Strategist Brandon Garcin steps in for Nate to discuss security and how it relates to the managed services space. He talks to Craig Sharp, MD at Abussi, who has a number of insights on how to approach security with new and existing customer and what to expect when offering these services.
Can you believe the new year is just around the corner? As 2016 draws to a close, there are a number of important reminders and best practices MSPs should keep in mind to ensure they’re providing the highest levels of client service and support while preparing for what’s to come.
An email newsletter is a great way to engage with both prospects and existing clients—and there are a number of important elements and factors to consider when creating and promoting one. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we outline five steps designed to help you build a successful email newsletter.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we discuss how to marketing your BDR solution in 2017, some ways to discuss BDR in lead generation, and much more. This is part one of a two-part series on BDR go-to-market strategies.
Backup and disaster recovery (BDR) and business continuity are must-have offerings in managed IT services today—but that doesn’t mean the technology sells itself. Despite the fact that many SMBs see the need for an effective continuity strategy, many still think that traditional backup solutions or off-the-shelf software are sufficient.
Educating and protecting your clients from today’s growing list of cybersecurity threats and risks isn’t easy—but the right tools, training and education can help you ensure that end users are staying safe, smart and secure online.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Joe DeRosa, Senior Director of Product Management at Continuum, on the considerations, preparations, and opportunities that exist when you've decided to migrate to a new BDR platform. Of special interest is the new program set up to help partners migrate to Continuum BDR, which makes it easier than ever.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Frank Bauer, Senior Channel Development Manager, about ways you may not be using RMM to the best of your ability--and conversely, when your RMM platform itself may be holding you back from great scalability and profitability.
In last week's episode of The Weekly Byte, we looked at three essential elements to include on your MSP website in order to generate leads and create a positive experience for your users. This week, we’re looking at three more! Tune in to make sure you’ve got these important elements on your site.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Tom Fafinski of Virtus Law about MSA agreements. How are MSPs are using them in 2016? Should anything be updated? What should you look out for?
A great MSP website can drive valuable leads into your sales pipeline and generate a steady stream of prospects for you to engage with—if you’ve got the right content and layout. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at three essentials that every MSP should have on their website to help transform it into a lead-generation engine. Tune in now to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Zeshan Raja, Assistant Director, Partner Success, about all the options and flexibility with RAID arrays while using Continuum BDR. There's a variety of options and setups available, so which is the right one for you?
Happy Halloween! In this special edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at five spooky cybersecurity statistics you can share with prospects to help build the case for your services. The insights here are pulled from Webroot’s 2016 Threat Brief and offer valuable—and sometimes scary—insights into today’s IT security landscape. Tune in now to learn more!
Microsoft's new rollup patching processes mark a significant change for the company, and it will affect MSPs and end users alike. The good news is that there are plenty of advantages to the new processes, and joining Nate and Joe to discuss it all is Nico Dard, Senior Product Manager at Continuum, to explain it all.
MSP sales and marketing are more complicated today than ever—and to be successful, providers need to ensure they have a strong understanding of who their ideal customers are. Tune in now to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Ben Austin, Senior Product Marketing Manager, about why backup verification is so important to your business, some ways to discuss this feature with your clients, pricing and packaging options, and Continuum's new backup verification feature, Tru Verify.
Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn offer MSPs great opportunities to engage with prospects, uncover potential leads and generate new business. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore three ways IT providers can leverage social media to drive new business!
One of the highlights of Navigate 2016, the Grow Your Business Hub featured dozens of Continuum employees who were able to advise, consult and provide assets to partners looking to increase, improve and augment their sales and marketing efforts.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe speak with Todd Kane, President of Evolved Management Consulting, on how to improve your operational efficiency through better measurement and tracking.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) best practices are constantly changing, and it can be difficult to stay up-to-date on the latest tips and tricks to ensure your website gets a top Google ranking and brings in valuable organic traffic. Tune in now to learn more!
As a special bonus episode, here is our candid interview with the one and only NBA legend, broadcaster and Navigate 2016 Keynote, Bill Walton from Continuum's Third Annual User Conference, Navigate 2016 in Boston, MA.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe are live from the floor of Navigate 2016, where they interview Continuum partners, Continuum technology integration partners, and Continuum leaders such as CEO Michael George and Board of Advisors Member Ed McLaughlin. Join us for this can't-miss episode!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk with Chris Day of IT Glue, who shares insight from his time as an MSP, what he learned growing his business to $10 million, and how documentation and "freeing minds" can unlock more potential and efficiency in your organization.
In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at four key ways that marketing automation can help you save time and build effective marketing and lead generation strategies even on a tight schedule. Tune in now to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe have a look at what's in store at Navigate 2016! Tune in to learn everything you'll need to know about Continuum's Third Annual User Conference.
Creating engaging content is an essential component in modern marketing, but it can be difficult for MSPs to find the time or resources to produce new assets. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we discuss how a pillar-based approach can help you focus your marketing efforts.
On this episode of MSP Radio, Mary Crogan, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Continuum, discusses the benefits of disaster recovery testing, and how regular DR testing with existing clients and prospects can build and strengthen your business, build brand awareness and trust, and add to your bottom line.
There are a number of important factors to consider when pricing and packaging managed IT services—especially when it comes to understanding margins and profitability. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore three factors that can influence your MSP pricing strategy. Tune in to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Eric Townsend of Intel, who talks about their vPro integration with Continuum, the Internet of Things, and the untapped opportunities MSPs have with emergent technology.
Automated drip campaigns and email nurture are powerful tools that can help convert website visitors and leads into customers—if your content and campaigns are properly set up and regularly optimized. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore four essential components of a successful email nurture program. Tune in now to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe sit down with Chris Rimer, Vice President of Cloud Business Partners & Channels at IBM, to discuss the opportunities, challenges tactics and strategies around selling cloud services to MSPs.
The first few months with a new managed IT services client are critical—and having the right onboarding strategy can be the difference between a satisfied customer or someone who’s wondering if they made the right investment.
Quarterly business reviews (QBRs) are a great way to demonstrate your value to clients and can help improve retention rates, identify potential upsell opportunities and more. In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we explore five important things you should look to accomplish in a QBR with managed services clients. Tune in now to learn more!
With so many backup and disaster recovery offerings in today's MSP market, it can be difficult to know what to look for when evaluating a new solution—or simply trying to make sure your current platform is up to par. In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we explore three key considerations to keep in mind when researching BDR technology. Tune in now to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Joe DeRosa, Senior Director of BDR Product Management at Continuum, who explains the differentiators that make a great BDR platform, and why it's essential every MSP today adopt a BDR solution for their clients.
Security continues to be an emerging area that your prospects are concerned about, and to complicate the landscape, threats are also coming through social media as well. Learn how to further establish yourself as a trusted advisor and a VCIO with tips and tactics to keep your clients safe.
Remote monitoring and management (RMM) technology is a key component of any modern MSP portfolio—but managed IT services doesn’t exactly sell itself, and it can be difficult to convince some prospects of the value you’re bringing to the table as a provider. Tune in to learn how!
While HIPAA Compliance and Security a big buzzwords these days, there is actually a massive opportunity out there for MSPs to re-position their business to offer both security and compliance services to the SMB market. But how can you be sure it’s worth the time investment?
Live webinars are a great way to engage with your audience while sharing content, and they can play a big role in lead generation and inbound marketing—but effectively executing a webinar takes careful planning. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we look at the keys to successfully hosting live webinars and growing your audience.
It's the 100th episode! First, we look back at our very first episode with a 2014 clip from Mark Connolly, Vice President of Sales at Continuum. Then, we leap forward to the present with an exclusive interview with Michael George, CEO of Continuum, and his thoughts on the future of Managed IT Services.
Building infographics can be fun, but as with any other content medium it’s important to understand best practices before jumping in to create your own. In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at a five-step process for building awesome and engaging infographics!
As MSP Radio approaches a major milestone with its 100th episode, Nate Teplow and Joe Tavano look back at the top most-downloaded episodes from the last 50 shows. Tune in to relive some of the best MSP Radio memories we have!
With all the things an MSP has to do in the course of one day, it can be easy to let a website fall behind. However, to do so would let a huge gateways to new leads slip away. In this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe discuss the most up to date best practices and methods that MSPs can take to build a thriving, lead generating, SEO-optimized website.
Are you protecting your website traffic with SSL? Proper encryption is a must-have for MSPs today, and understanding the basics behind SSL is an important first step in finding the right certificate for your website. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we explore three reasons why SSL is an essential website technology.
Content creation is the foundation of many modern marketing strategies and tactics, and resources like eBooks and white papers can greatly help businesses when it comes to lead generation and prospecting. In this episode of The Weekly Byte, we talk about how to repurpose your content to expand your reach, generate more leads and win new business!
How do you get a prospect or a client to start thinking about BDR? What gets the regular SMB to realize it is an essential part of their overall business plan? How do you start that conversation? This week on MSP Radio, we talk with Continuum's Matt Waters about effective strategies, tips, and ideas to get your prospect conversations moving in the right direction.
On this episode, we have a recent interview with Darren Hardy, who discusses how MSPs can embrace their failures and use them to fuel future business growth. Darren Hardy is the former CEO of SUCCESS Magazine and author of the book The Compound Effect, which is a New York Times Best Seller.
The managed IT services market is a crowded one, and it can be difficult to differentiate yourself from the competition and showcase what makes your business unique. In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at several steps you can take to increase your visibility, stand apart from the crowd and demonstrate your unique value in your local market.
A picture is worth a thousand words, and images play a big role in Web marketing today—but there’s more to visuals than simply uploading a picture to your website and letting it display as is. By using Alt Tags and Title Tags, you can add additional context and language into your images that both improve user experience and improve SEO.
Losing key employees can have a significant impact on your business. Most MSPs have trouble finding and retaining their top talent, however, equity compensation plans are a great way to incentivize employees to stay with your company. There’s a lot to consider when building equity compensation plans.
Conferences are a great way for MSPs to network, learn, connect with their vendors and focus on growing their businesses. That’s why we created Navigate, Continuum’s Annual User Conference, to help our partners grow their business--and Navigate 2016 is sure to be one of the highlights of the year.
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at several steps to crafting great customer testimonials and case studies. Tune in now to discover what makes a good case study, how to conduct an interview and capture an effective story, and more!
The IT channel has evolved quite a bit over the past decade. No longer are IT companies described as VARs, resellers or distributors to their vendors, but rather, they are partners. So how do you get more value out of your vendor relationships?
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we explore several landing page best practices that you should be including in every landing page you create. Tune in now to discover how the right combination of language, visuals, a strong call-to-action and other elements can help you increase conversion and generate high-quality leads using content!
Nate is back from the Robin Robins Boot Camp, and he brought back some important takeaways from talking to numerous MSPs. From technology, to marketing, to KPIs and forecasting, Nate and Joe cover a variety of topics in this episode of MSP Radio.
This episode of The Weekly Byte explores four ways LinkedIn can help you grow your business, from building your brand to expanding your prospect list and everything in between. Listen now to learn what social selling can do for you!
Effectively pricing and packaging your services can be one of the most difficult challenges to tackle as an MSP. How do you know you’re maximizing your profits while not scaring away prospects with prices that are too high?
In this edition of The Weekly Byte we look five pillars of successful email, and offer our tips and best practices to help you craft powerful messages that get strong engagement and drive conversion.
There’s a lot of talk among businesses about the topic of cybersecurity and how to make sure data and networks are secure. This is an opportunity for MSPs, but how can you take part in the conversation and use cybersecurity as a way to generate new leads and and acquire more customers?
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at five must-have elements in a strong blog. Whether you're a blogging expert or are just getting started, these best practices will help you ensure you're optimizing your blog in all the right places.
Many SMBs need Backup & Disaster Recovery (BDR) services these days, which presents a huge opportunity for MSPs and IT service companies. However, providing these services can be costly and highly-resource intensive, so how can you effectively provide BDR services and still make consistent profits?
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at three ways to improve your Google ranking. Whether you're brand new to SEO or already have some optimization experience, these quick tips can help you enhance your web presence and increase your chances of being discovered.
Most MSPs have tried some form of email marketing, but need help turning it into a true channel to nurture and engage your contacts. So what tools, processes and content do you need in place in order to get the most out of your email marketing efforts?
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at three signs of a strong video marketing presence. Whether you’re a video marketing expert or are brand new to video, these quick tips will help ensure you’re setting yourself up for success and making the most of the opportunities presented by video marketing.
Social media is a relatively new marketing channel and it can be difficult to find time to leverage it effectively. However, if you want to find and connect with new customers, increase your visibility online and grow your business, social media is an important channel you can no longer ignore.
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we look at five homepage mistakes to avoid at all costs. These design and content errors can ruin a user's experience and prevent viewers from engaging with your website. You'll also gain an understanding of the first steps in optimizing and improving your homepage.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Brandon Garcin, Content Marketing Manager at Continuum, about how MSPs can more effectively produce content and use it to drive traffic, leads and new clients.
In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we explore three important elements in a good CTA – placement, look and language. Tune in now to discover how the right visuals, location and copy can transform your CTAs into powerful, high-converting marketing messages that encourage visitors to download content and engage with you.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Win Pham, VP of Development at RapidFire Tools, about how MSPs can market and sell managed security services to prospects and clients and add new lines of revenue for their business.
To gate or not to gate – that is the question. Gated content is an important element of inbound and digital marketing strategy, but knowing what and when to gate isn’t always obvious. In this edition of The Weekly Byte, we try and define gated content and answer these questions in fewer than 90 seconds!
How can you use your network to your advantage in order to grow your business? On this episode, we chat with Arlin & Pete Sorensen from HTG Peer Groups about how MSPs can grow their network, build relationships and use it better your business and your personal life.
Adding new business is a priority for any organization. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Ray Vrabel, Sr. Director of Strategic Partners at Continuum, about how you can upset your competition and bring in new clients.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome back Tom Fafinski, Co-Founder of Virtus Law, who tells us about the process of raising equity for your business and what MSPs and business owners need to be aware of when doing so.
Did you know that there are strategies you can leverage to save money and increase profits during tax season? On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Tom Fafinski, Co-Founder of Virtus Law, about some legal strategies MSPs can use to streamline their business and keep more money for their bottom line.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we talk through some fun results from a recent blog post we did and discuss some of the surprising results of which scenarios MSPs would rather find themselves in.
Referrals to your business are a great source of leads because they convert at a high rate and usual end up being profitable customers. The problem is it's hard to control how many referrals are sent your way. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat through some strategies on how to encourage more referrals and build a formal referral program.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Lisa Hendrickson, also known as Call That Girl, about how specializing your services can help you win more clients and provide better overall services. Lisa also discusses how she’s effectively marketed her business through channels like her podcast.
A great way to find more leads is through offering network assessments. However, it can be difficult to effectively build them into your sales process. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Win Pham, VP of Development at RapidFire Tools, about how to perform automated network assessments.
Whether it’s taking on bad clients, not generating new leads or employee churn, there are a lot of bad habits to look out for as an MSP. On this episode, we chat through some strategies to break out of these seemingly never-ending cycles and take your business to the next level.
It’s hard to improve your sales processes when you’re not tracking your sales activities. So how do you know which metrics and activities to track? On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Dan Nice, Director of Sales Operations at Ambition, about how to get more out of your sales team through sales performance software.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Matthew Rodela, Host of the Computer Business Podcast, and Paco Lebron, Founder of ProdigyTeks PC Repair, about how MSPs can improve their website and use it as a tool to generate leads and find new business.
While there are many different ways to leverage and define “the cloud”, there’s no denying it will be an integral part of all businesses in the future. On this episode of MSP Radio, we join as guests on the Cloud Radio to discuss how the cloud is impacting the IT channel and how MSPs can take advantage.
As 2015 comes to a close we take a look back at our top 5 episodes of the year. We’ve had some fantastic guests on the show in 2015, but not all of them can make the top 5! On this episode, find out whose shows were the best of 2015.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Evan Stein, CEO of CMIT Solutions of Wallstreet & Grand Central, about how he got started in managed IT services and how he deals with the everyday challenges of being an MSP.
Effective email communication is a useful marketing tool. On this episode of MSP Radio, we discuss a previous MSP blog post about how NOT to write a sales email and chat about some easy tips to refine and strengthen your sales emails.
Liz Musgrave, Creative Marketing Associate at Continuum, shares some tips on design and branding for MSPs and how you can take advantage of simple tools to create a professional, customized brand experience.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with members of the Grow Your Business Genius Bar team about their takeaways from the event and how MSPs can take basic steps towards improving their sales and marketing efforts in order to grow their businesses.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Jim Lippie, Chief Advisor at Clarity Channel Advisors, about his process for business planning, some 2016 technology trends to consider and how MSPs can effectively plan for the year.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Milton Bartley, CEO, President & Co-Founder of ImageQuest, about how he has been able to successfully reposition is office equipment business into a true technology solution provider.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Chris Johnson, CEO & Co-Founder of Untangled Solutions, about his keys to success when pricing and packaging his services and how it has contributed to his business growth.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with David Wells, Account Manager at R1Soft, about how both MSPs and Web Hosting Providers can create effective backup strategies and bring on new clients.
As an MSP or IT Solution Provider, you need to be on the lookout for new technologies that will change the way your clients can connect, stay productive and become more efficient as a business. So what are some of those technologies on the horizon that will change the modern day workplace?
They say the only constant is change, and that’s certainly the case in the Managed IT Services industry. On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome Mark Williams, CEO of Pensar, who discusses how he’s been able to stay in business for over 20 years and adapt to the changing landscape of Managed IT Services.
It’s officially September which means it’s officially Navigate month! In preparation for Navigate 2015, Continuum’s annual user conference, we’re playing clips from previous guests on MSP Radio who are speaking at Navigate 2015.
To build a profitable and growing company, it’s important to have repeatable, recurring revenue and to fix as many costs as you can in order to maintain your margins. Building recurring revenue has its challenges, but it can be way more difficult to fix your costs as an MSP because the demands of IT are incredibly episodic.
The role of MSPs and IT Solution Providers has changed dramatically over the past 10 years. MSPs now serve a much more important role for the businesses they support, which means the projects they are tasked with have increased in importance and complexity.
There’s a lot of acquisition activity in the managed services industry. There are opportunities to be acquired as an MSP, but there’s also opportunities to make an acquisition and accelerate your growth. But how do you know if you’re ready to make an acquisition?
How do you take advantage of the security opportunity? On this episode, we chat with Mark Wadnizak, President & CEO of Voice Smart Networks, about how he’s been able to add Managed Security Services to his offering.
We all want to grow our business, but not many people stop to ask “Am I really ready to grow?” Sometimes, growing can be a bad thing for your business if you’re not ready to accept that growth. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Steve Alexander, CEO of MSP-Ignite, about how to build a scalable company that is ready to take on new growth.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with David Russell, CEO of MANAGEtoWIN, about what characteristics make a good manager, how to make your managers successful and how you know if you’re ready for this next stage of growth.
MSPs have plenty of data; but this data is typically spread across multiple systems, like a PSA, billing system and CRM. Enabling your teams with the right data at the right time helps make everyone work smarter and more efficiently, but that’s difficult to do when your data is hosted across multiple platforms that don’t connect to each other.
Finding and retaining good talent is something all small business struggle with. Employee churn is one of the biggest hurdles to growth, so how can you be sure to not just find good talent but keep good talent when it comes to your business?
We recently celebrated 100 days until Navigate 2015, Continuum’s user conference that’s taking place in Las Vegas from September 27-29. Since we’re so excited for the conference, we’re dedicating this week’s show to Navigate 2015.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Harry Brelsford, Founder of SMBnation & O365nation, about recent Microsoft updates, how they affect MSPs and where the opportunities are for the channel in the future.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome back Tom Fafinski, Co-Founder of Virtus Law, who tells us about the process of raising debt for your business, how it’s different from equity and what MSPs need to be aware of when doing so.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Jeff Dryall, Director of Business Development at Plan27, about how MSPs can use search engine marketing to generate more leads, ramp up their marketing and take control of their growth.
We’ve reached our 50th episode for MSP Radio and what a first year it’s been for us! To celebrate this special milestone, we’ll be counting down the top 5 shows of all time and also offering a special giveaway. Thank you to all the listeners and all the guests on MSP Radio so far. We look forward to bringing you many more shows!
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Brian Coffey, Technical Channel Account Manager at Webroot, about the 2015 Threat Brief that Webroot recently published and what MSPs need to know to better protect their clients from the latest data security threats.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Joe Tavano, Marketing Copywriter at Continuum and overall podcast enthusiast, about some of the benefits of podcasting and how you can use them as part of your overall marketing and content strategy.
Developing processes is an important part of your service offering and is what makes you unique as an MSP. Documenting these processes is important, but it can be time consuming for your employees and difficult to get them to buy-in.
CompTIA holds their Annual Members Meeting every March and this year, we traveled down to Ponte Vedra, FL to network, learn and discuss the future of the channel. From Community meetings to whacky keynotes, there was a lot covered at this year’s AMM. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Shannon Mayer, Sr. Marketing Programs Manager at Continuum, about some of her takeaways from the event and what she thinks the IT channel needs to do be continue to be successful now and into the future.
As security concerns continue to plague businesses, especially healthcare organizations, HIPAA compliance has become a growing need for companies. This means there’s a growing opportunity for MSPs to help these businesses become compliant.
Many MSPs struggle with sales and marketing. On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Jay Ryerse, VP of Business Development at Digitel Corporation, to discuss tangible strategies MSPs can put into action to help with their sales and marketing efforts.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we speak with Scott Spiro, CEO of Computer Solutions Group, who shares his secrets on how he’s been able to increase his productivity as a business owner while maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome back Larry Cobrin, Co-Founder of MSP CFO. Larry will tell us about how MSPs can leverage the data that they have in their PSA’s in order to become smarter and more effective business owners in order to increase profitability and drive growth.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome back Steve Hilton, Co-Founder and Managing Director of MachNation, an analyst firm covering the future of the Internet of Things. Steve tells us what we can expect to happen in 2015 and how that will affect MSPs and IT Solution Providers.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Anurag Agrawal, CEO of TechAisle, who discusses 5 of his 15 predictions for the SMB Channel in 2015 and how he thinks it will impact MSPs. Tune in now to learn more!
On this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome back Mike Schmidtmann, an experienced MSP Sales Consultant, who will tell us some keys to success for building out your sales process and your sales team.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we discuss MSP pricing strategies for MSPs with Ray Vrabel, Director of Technical Account Management at Continuum and Frank Bauer, Senior Account Manager at Continuum.
On this episode of MSP Radio, we’re joined by Dawn Farrell and Andrew Luhrmann from MaaS360 to discuss MDM sales and marketing strategies for MSPs. If you’re interested in offering MDM services this year to your clients, this show will help you know how to get started.
On this episode, I’m joined by George Sierchio from Cogent Growth Partners. George helps potential acquirers find and purchase MSP businesses, and discusses what makes MSPs strong targets for acquisition.
I’ve had a blast bringing MSP Radio to you all this year. For our end-of-the-year episode, I’ve gone through and pulled clips from every guest from every episode. It’s fun to hear all of the different topics we’ve covered on the show and I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed putting it together.
In this episode, we chat with Scott Glidden, Director of Media Production at Continuum, and Ben Barker, Content Marketing Consultant at Continuum, who discuss how MSPs can effectively leverage video marketing in a scalable and efficient way.
In this episode, we welcome back Bryan Gilliom, Founder of GrowMyMSP.com, who gives us a number of effective strategies for showing thanks to your clients and your employees this Holiday Season.
In this episode of MSP Radio, we speak with James Kernan of Kernan Consulting about how to create an organization that’s ready for change and welcomes it. Tune in now to learn more and how to apply these tips to your organization.
In this episode, we chat with Hire Heroes USA, a non-profit organization that helps veterans find jobs after returning home from service. Kelly Dempsey, Director of Communications and Corporate Relations, and Brian Stann, CEO, will tell us a little about the organization and the valuable skill set that our veterans possess as a result of serving our country.
In this episode of MSP Radio, we welcome back Tom Fafinski of Virtus Law, who will tell us about the anatomy of a business acquisition and what MSPs can start doing today to set themselves up for a successful acquisition in the future.
In this episode, you’ll hear part 2 of Michael’s keynote speech, where he continues to tell us about the major paradigm shift that we’re in the midst of and how MSPs can leverage outsourced labor to minimize risks and become better business owners. Tune in now to find out how you can achieve your True North!
In this episode of MSP Radio, we chat with Jeanne Hopkins, Chief Marketing Officer at Continuum and Mark Zahar, VP of Channel Sales at Continuum, to discuss the importance of sales and marketing alignment and how to make it work for your business.
In order to survive in managed IT services, you need to chart your course to success. That’s exactly what Continuum’s CEO, Michael George, spoke about in his keynote at Navigate 2014. In this episode, we play part 1 of Michael's keynote address, where he shares how MSPs can leverage smartsourcing to grow their business and thrive in managed services.
In this episode, we chat with Tim Brewer, a former MSP owner who now works with MSPs, vendors and technology companies to help them change their business model and leadership strategies. Tim tells us a little about what’s going on in the cloud market and how MSPs can be ready for change.
In this episode of MSP Radio, we look back at our Inaugural User Conference, Navigate 2014 and play a couple of segments from some of our keynote addresses and sound clips from event attendees. Tune in now to learn more!
While Navigate 2014 has passed, we put together a pre-event radio show with clips from some of our Navigate speakers who appeared on MSP Radio. These guests spoke on a variety of subjects and presented to packed rooms at Navigate 2014.
In this episode of MSP Radio, Nate and Joe talk to Ben Austin, Senior Product Marketing Manager, about why backup verification is so important to your business, some ways to discuss this feature with your clients, pricing and packaging options, and Continuum's new backup verification feature, Tru Verify.
Master Services Agreements (MSAs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are the foundation of your business relationships. They set expectations when certain issues arise and how both parties are responsible for handling them. However, MSPs don’t always understand how important it is to build strong contractual documents.
Increasing profitability is a key priority for all MSPs. In theory, this is easy to do. In practice, it’s hard to know where to look. However, analyzing your financials is one of the best ways to find new revenue opportunities and increase your profitability.
Your website is your storefront these days, and also the hub of all your online marketing initiatives. Websites are critical to your marketing success, yet many MSPs will neglect their website as an afterthought. Your website is not something you can just setup and have live on its own. You need to continuously update and optimize your site for it to work for you.
The Internet of Things is most definitely a major buzzword in the technology world. The concept seems like a lot to take in; machines talking to machines, every object connected to web, what to do with all that data. However, this shift in connectivity will leave huge opportunities for MSPs and the businesses that they serve.
Patching is an incredibly important service that MSPs provide to their clients. In fact, it can even be used a differentiator between your services versus your competition. Practicing smart patching procedures will make you a more effective services provider and add value to your clients. On the contrary, ignoring these best practices can lead to a number of issues.
Tickets are the lifeblood of an MSP, however, they can also be the downfall of an MSP. Managed Services Providers deal with A LOT of tickets on a daily basis; so many that they can eat up a lot of your technicians’ time. Finding ways to effectively monitor, remediate and complete tickets is one of the key components of maintaining profitability.
As mobile device usage has continued to grow, so too has the opportunity for managed IT services providers. In fact, it's predicted that by 2018, the average professional will have 10 web-connected devices. With the growing number of devices per individual, the need for MDM solutions becomes more and more obvious, yet many MSPs neglect this very fact.
No Managed Services Provider has ever had the problem of having too many good employees. Finding and retaining top talent as an MSP can be very difficult, especially when it comes to your sales team, which is a key area to focus on if you want to grow your business.
With the recent July 4th holiday, we’re taking a step back on MSP Radio to pay tribute to our nation’s veterans. It’s not always easy for veterans to return home from service, yet they have many skills to offer their employers that universities alone simply can’t teach.
Continuum recently sponsored a local Boston event called TechJam, where the city helped bring together local bands and local companies, ranging from small startups to large enterprises, to enjoy music, food, drinks and networking. Listen as Nate interviews local tech companies!
The SMB industry is a constantly changing market, which provides a constant opportunity for MSPs. However, it’s important to understand these changes so that you can understand the opportunities at hand. And what better way to understand these opportunities than data?
Running an MSP is a tough job. There are many different components you have to juggle, and two areas where many MSPs struggle is finding ways to grow their business, while also retaining and increasing revenues from their current clients.
While IT solution providers have been around for a while, Managed IT Services is a fairly new offering comparatively. Managed services are not just a product, it’s a way of doing business. In order to be successful as an MSP, you need to fully buy into this business model. But what exactly is this business model?
A help desk is critical for an MSPs success. Your clients will need someone to call when something goes wrong. The problem is that maintaining a full help desk is a business of its own. You need to be available 24/7, call volume can be incredibly volatile and it’s difficult to find and retain top talent. Ultimately, maintaining a service desk in-house isn’t scalable for MSPs.
Communities are an incredibly important part of business. They are where people share ideas, connect, uncover business opportunities and learn from their peers. And now, there are even more opportunities to connect and build communities with the Internet and social media. So how can managed IT services providers leverage these communities for their business?
Last week we attended the CMIT conference in New Orleans and came away with a ton of great knowledge, statistics and fun stories that we wanted to share with you on MSP Radio. This week’s guests are Cindy Phillips, Director of Product Management at CMIT and Todd Wolpert, Senior Account Manager at Continuum, both of whom were at the conference last week.
We’ve talked about building a marketing program for your MSP business, which is important for growth. But that’s only half the battle. None of that really matters unless you can actually close the leads that you generate from your marketing.
The great shift in cloud computing poses both a threat and massive opportunity to managed IT services providers. While some SMBs have purchased cloud infrastructures direct from the providers (like Amazon and Microsoft), the majority of small businesses will need help with their cloud strategy, and they will rely on the MSPs to get them there.
Pricing is a HUGE topic for MSPs. There are many different models you can use to price your services, but which makes the most sense for you business? On this episode of MSP Radio, Nate Teplow chats with Ray Vrabel, Director of Technical Account Management at Continuum and Frank Bauer, Senior Account Manager at Continuum, to talk about MSP pricing models, what’s happening in the market, and how you can effectively price your services.
Last week we talked about the opportunity for MSPs within the market and how they can take advantage from a sales perspective. This week, we’re talking MSP marketing. It's hard to ramp up your sales without the support of a marketing program, yet many MSPs seem to put marketing on the back burner.
There are tons of opportunities surrounding managed IT services, but many MSPs aren't sure of the best way to capitalize on the growing market. The spend by small businesses for IT services is expected to cross the $1 trillion mark in 2015. Clearly, there's a lot of room in the market, but it can feel like being a little fish in a big sea.
