If you remember back when you were a kid at an amusement park, the challenge that might stop you from riding a rollercoaster was the sign, “Are you tall enough to ride this ride?” Many MSP businesses face this same question when a prospect ask them if they have enough employees to manage their account. Essentially, this question is tantamount to asking if an MSP is big enough to ride their network. The question is how can an IT company overcome this objection?
Project an Image of a Large Company
One of the best ways to deal with the objection that your MSP business is too small is to avoid having the question come up at all. The best way to do this is to use every opportunity where you will interact with prospects. One inspired way to project the impression that your IT company has enough staff to manage larger prospects is to bring more people to sales meetings. Next, make sure have a professional slideshow and bring your own state-of-the-art projection. Set up sales meetings during lunch time and bring a delicious meal from a fancy restaurant. When you take steps to make your company look bigger, that can impress executives to the extent that they assume you’re big enough to ride their network and forget to even ask the question.
Face the Music Head On
If all your efforts to plant the idea that your MSP business is plenty big enough to manage their IT systems, then inevitably the question will come up, “How many employees does your company have?” This can be a tough question to answer if your IT company is small- to medium-sized, and if you give a head count it would reveal how small your business really is. The key is to dodge the question about your specific headcount but face the music head-on by admitting that you have a small IT company. Then flip the script and ask the prospect if they really want a large IT provider or a well-managed MSP? You can explain that with today’s technology, a small MSP can use tools to automate, document, outsource, etc. A well-managed, small IT company can deliver the same response time onsite and via helpdesk. You will have the same access to state-of-the-art technology solutions like disaster recovery and ransomware protection.
Your Closing Statement
There are differences between a small- to medium-sized MSP business and a large IT company. You can get personalized attention from a small tech company and you will always know your tech when you deal with them over the phone or in person. This is something that large MSPs have a hard time accomplishing and we find is important to businesses. However, the truth is that smaller MSPs are going to provide more economical solutions, as large tech companies typically charge higher fees.
The Bottom Line
Riding a scary roller coaster might have been a problem when you were a kid because you weren’t tall enough to ride. However, having the opportunity to ride a larger business’ IT network shouldn’t be a problem for a small MSP business if they remember to put on a show to look like a larger IT company during the sales process. This way, savvy IT providers can avoid being asked about the size of their company altogether. When this strategy fails, and a prospect asks about the size of your company, then remember to face the music and flip the script so that you don’t plant doubt in the prospect’s mind. If you focus on selling your deliverables and SLA, then you will find success and be able to ride any large scary IT network, no matter how tall or big your IT company is.
