Frustrated By The BIG Promises Yet LITTLE Results From Most Marketing Programs
SymTec consists of three partners: myself (Robert Christian) as well as brothers Trevor and Wesley Bradford. Since opening our doors 10 years ago, we’ve always seen value in marketing. Problem was in finding the RIGHT marketer or agency. We tried hiring a marketing person. But he was basically a designer who just made things pretty. NO RESULTS. Then we tried a competitor MSP marketing program. After two and a half years, NO RESULTS. We found that every marketing program we tried was like a magician using smoke and mirrors to direct our attention elsewhere while stealing our wallets.
Sure, these marketing agencies defined THEIR success by showing us how many website visitors and calls we were getting. But they never defined OUR success in results that bring growth – qualified appointments, leads and closed sales. Frustrated, we reached a point where we cut almost ALL marketing spending and decided our growth would come strictly from referrals and current clients.
Our Little Secret: We BLOCKED Robin Robins For YEARS…
Here’s a funny story (just don’t tell Robin). We inquired years ago about Technology Marketing Toolkit’s marketing strategies and campaigns. Because Robin Robins has built a proven marketing system in her organization, we were BOMBARDED with follow-up communication for months. E-mails, sales letters, phone calls, you name it.
Instead of viewing it as Robin trying to provide solutions to help us grow, we summed up their follow-up approach as “AGGRESSIVE and ANNOYING.” So, we put filters in place and essentially BLOCKED all their e-mails and calls. Rather than consider TMT to help our marketing, we continued to be disappointed in the UNPROVEN marketers we were using.
It’s amazing how quickly you let your guard down with the R.E.A.L. possibilities of new growth, more clients and higher revenue. Trevor and Wes spoke with their cousin, Adam Spencer at 911 IT Support in Utah, who is a client of Robin’s and has enjoyed a lot of success in sales and marketing. We had not. Hmmm…maybe being “aggressive and annoying” is how you turn prospects into new clients. It was time to UNBLOCK Technology Marketing Toolkit and Robin!
Ranked #5 In MSPs (Without Knowing Marketing)
Last year we attended the MSP 501 Conference in Las Vegas where they rank MSPs worldwide. Honored to be ranked #5 in 2020, we knew the truth: we had achieved our success through referrals and client growth – NOT marketing. So, while half of the SymTec team were at the rewards ceremony, Trevor had bigger fish to fry: attending Robin Robins’ IT Marketing Roadshow!
Two weeks later, all three of us partners were heading to Robin’s Rapid Implementation Workshop. Our first evening in Nashville, we ended up at the go-kart track. That speed set the pace that continued throughout the workshop and the changes we were about to experience!
Being “AGGRESSIVE And ANNOYING” Helped To Bring Us $16,350 In New MRR And $93,831 In Projects!
Our team had been doing technology business reviews (TBRs) for a few years. However, we would simply cherry-pick the clients who screamed the loudest. Of course, they were in no mood to spend more. Since learning Robin Robins’ approach to TBRs, it’s hands-down been the best marketing initiative we’ve ever run!
Through 45 TBRs with clients, we increased revenue and profitability with EVERY SINGLE ONE! That important exercise increased our customer goodwill and our MRR by $16,350! Plus, through onboarding and one-time projects, we added $93,831 in revenue! By providing more value to our clients, we increased our MRR per computer over 35% and MRR per server over 60%.
In addition to providing TBRs for EVERY client, we significantly improved our TBR process, as well by utilizing ConnectWise and BrightGauge. As a metrics platform, BrightGauge pulls all the important client information from ConnectWise. Before each meeting, we run an updated report that shows all past projects, status and even a pie chart of ticket-type requests. Using this knowledge that’s customized to each client, we can show them where they are bleeding on production. It makes for a seamless upsell, and many THANK US for looking out for their needs!
Signing 15 NEW CLIENTS From A Blockbuster Joint Venture Opportunity!
Datto recently asked us to be their partner for the Western US. As a result, they are sending us an average of five very qualified leads each week. While we are benefiting from selling Datto products, the real win comes with turning these product sales into MSP clients. Using Robin’s marketing automation platform and CRM program (Keap), we simply put these Datto customers into our drip marketing campaigns. And it WORKED! We have signed 15 NEW CLIENTS worth $ 3671.34 in new MRR!
A Creative Shock-And-Awe Box And Customized “Giftology” Turns Prospects Into Clients
After a discovery call, we send our best prospects our Shock-And-Awe box. Prospects really appreciate receiving our box, especially with all of the thought we put into every component. We give them a logo mousepad, a SymTec T-shirt, testimonials from our target markets of CPAs and dentists, a handwritten thank-you note, as well as a book that has meant something to us.
The real prize is our SymTec-logoed “Easy Button”. When the prospect pushes this button, it identifies the troubled computer, records the last 30 clicks to diagnose the problem and automatically creates a ticket. Yes, it actually WORKS! We know our Shock-And-Awe box and customized Easy Button helped land our fourth-largest client worth $15,285 in MRR!
Through Robin’s presentations, we also learned that the art of “giftology” goes far to win over potential clients. In our discovery calls, we think of ways we can help solve problems through gifting. Recently, I noticed a prospect having issues with her cheap headset. So I immediately ordered a quality Plantronics headset for her. She was floored when she got her surprise gift and personal note the NEXT DAY! It’s about having a heart and genuinely caring about every customer.
Securing $2,500 In MRR And Adding An Additional $4,100, Thanks To Our New Cyber Security Offering
Providing effective cyber security for a small business can cost far more than they can afford. That’s why Blackpoint Cyber has been a game changer for us. By offering this less costly approach to security, we were able to better protect an important client’s data. Not only did it save about $2,500 a month in recurring revenue, we added $4,100 additional in MRR!
With A Proven Process, We WILL Make The Aspirin Campaign Work!
Since January, we have been targeting CPA firms with Robin’s Aspirin campaign. We have sent out about 220 of the letters and have followed up with calls for each. While we have had great conversations with accountants who may consider us in the near future, they are simply too busy because it’s tax season. Lesson learned! However, we do expect to ramp up to mailing out and calling 100 prospects a week. We have learned the process and expect it to be an easy transition to other target markets, such as dentists.
Using LinkedIn To Target Past Employees Of Clients
As part of our list-building campaign, we targeted past employees of current clients. We think this is a great opportunity for new clients since many know us and like us. They can become ambassadors to introduce us to their new companies. We run a LinkedIn campaign to initially connect. Next, we add them to our drip campaigns using MAP CRM Keap. No results yet, but we think it has promise.
More Marketing Than We’ve EVER Done!
It wasn’t too long ago that we completely shut down marketing. Today, we are juggling so many marketing campaigns and initiatives that both clients and prospects are taking notice. Some of the marketing we have implemented includes:
- New and improved “Robinized” website – Converts to more form fills and phone calls.
- 9-Word E-mail campaign – This campaign has turned cold leads into viable prospects and new clients.
- TechTips drip marketing – Many of our clients tell us they LOVE these. They’ve even asked to have their entire company receive them. We also repurpose these to post on LinkedIn.
- Answering our phone live – We have removed our auto-attendant and prioritized answering calls, and have had major improvements to our process and attitude.
- Handwritten letters – Using a craft machine and standard gel pen, we can turn any handwriting into a font. We often send these handwritten notes and a $10 Starbucks gift card to managing partners of CPAs.
Make Processes Your Priority
Everyone wants leads, sales and new clients. However, you need seamless processes in place to ATTRACT those new clients and then to SUPPORT those new clients. If you do ramp up your client base and MRR but neglect building the processes first, you’re doomed to lose those valuable clients. Make sure all your clients have the touch, the communication and the ongoing technology business reviews they expect.
Sure, it’s easy to NOT make the calls and NOT send the sales letters. The Technology Marketing Toolkit program provides many of the tools and resources you’ll need. But I also highly recommend taking advantage of their MAP CRM program Keap because many of the processes are AUTOMATIC and built-in!
By Finally Getting Marketing Right, Where Will We Rank In This Year’s MSP 501 List?
It’s hard to believe that a few short years ago, we were IGNORING marketing and struggling to bring in $500K revenue. Now that we’ve EMBRACED marketing, we have grown to $2.6M annually! Since adding Robin Robins to our team 5 months ago, we have seen 17 new clients and a total increase of $40,704 MRR!! Because of our recent growth, we have hired an administrative assistant and will soon hire a marketing assistant to increase our marketing efforts. An appointment setter is next on the list and then perhaps growing the sales team.
Our sales pipeline is growing and our confidence is high! With such strong growth this year, we are experiencing a few growing pains. But we are excited about the recommendations and processes to improve the operations we’ve begun, thanks to rubbing shoulders with the great TMT team, coaches and other MSP owners we’ve met through Robin Robins. Thanks for the community of sharing and the success each of you have contributed to SymTec!
