Since the beginning of the pandemic, it feels like time has sped up. Most people I speak to feel the same way. Life is just moving faster.
Looking ahead to 2024, I’m setting a goal to slow things down a bit. Admittedly, with Schnizzfest coming up at the end of the month, it’s not the easiest start. I’m committed to making it the best Schnizzfest ever. However, there are a few things I’m considering for 2024.
I plan to protect my schedule and time more carefully, both in business and personal aspects. For me, this involves declining more offers. It also means scheduling workouts, reading, dog walking, and lunch breaks.
I want to be more disciplined in communicating with others and how they communicate with me. It’s about encouraging people to maintain a ‘Gary list’ and to arrange a 10-minute meeting with me when it accumulates instead of calling me multiple times a day as issues arise. I plan to adopt a similar approach to those I interact with regularly.
Next, I will be more intentional about spending quality time with family and friends. This means having gatherings that aren’t necessarily centered around an event or activity. Growing up, my parents frequently took me to visit my aunts and uncles, and they visited us, too. We would gather around the kitchen table, enjoying coffee and dessert while chatting. So, in 2024, I’m looking forward to visiting some family and friends.
I’m also starting to spend more time away from my devices. I often find myself with a phone, an iPad, or a computer, maybe even more than necessary.
I’m not saying that everyone should do exactly as I do; we’re all in different stages of our lives. But, I’ve found that taking steps to decelerate the pace of our lives and becoming more present can be beneficial.
The beginning of the new year is an excellent time to shift your focus from the daily grind to overall business strategy. This time of year often prompts us to reflect on our achievements, plan for what’s next, and hit the ground running with goals and tasks.
Getting better at the “business game” is a surefire way to success. If we manage our business effectively, we can increase our monthly recurring revenue (MRR) at a decent price in 2024. It all starts with a solid grasp of business fundamentals and being open to thinking differently.
Consider exploring these seven TruMethods blog posts to empower your business mind in 2024.
Aiming for perfection might sound great, but it’s a tricky target that can end up causing more disappointment and slowing things down. It’s all about being flawless, which leaves little room for trying new things or slipping up. But there’s a silver lining — if you accept that things won’t always be perfect, you’re setting yourself up for more flexibility, bouncing back stronger, and growing your business in the long run.
In the MSP industry, the phrase “operational maturity” is often used to describe the level of sophistication in an MSP’s operations. However, my approach to evaluating an MSP begins with examining its “customer base maturity” rather than just focusing on operational aspects.
The introduction of new technology frequently leads us to make comparisons with existing or past innovations. This is evident with the launch of Apple’s Vision Pro, which has sparked comparisons to Google Glass, a product that debuted a decade ago. While many focus on the technical aspects and distinctions between the two devices, an intriguing dialogue about the concept of opportunity cost has emerged, capturing my interest.
In the book “Great by Choice,” Jim Collins introduces the concept of return on luck (ROL). After comparing good and bad luck events at numerous companies, he found that, on average, the high-performing companies, or as he called them, the 10X companies, had the same number of luck events as their counterparts. What sets them apart? Their superior returns on luck.
Champions do what others can’t or won’t do daily, making it look easy. This idea has several layers to it. Developing the discipline necessary to reach your full potential requires effort. It begins with identifying the essential elements of the role, task, or skill and then focuses on mastering the basics.
Earlier at Schnizzfest, my talk centered on self-awareness, its challenging nature, and its profound impact on our lives. This concept is evident in our relationships, and I’ve observed it among TruMethods members, especially regarding what prevents them from achieving their fullest potential.
At Schnizzfest, I highlighted the fall of the once-dominant ice industry, underscoring the perils of failing to adapt. This fate echoes in companies like Nortel and Blockbuster. A recent Wall Street Journal piece about Intel’s complacency, which led to Nvidia’s rise in graphics chips and now AI processing, further illustrates the crucial need for continual innovation.
Understanding and evaluating your metrics is essential for providing superior customer service and generating more monthly recurring revenue (MRR) at the right price. You create a foundation for improvement and growth by gaining insight into your current performance.
In the new year, dedicating yourself to a deeper comprehension of business metrics is critical to advancing your goals. This progress is achievable through thoughtful reflection and a commitment to learning about your strengths and areas for development in your business practices.
Explore these TruMethods blog posts to elevate your understanding of metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) in 2024.
Metrics play a pivotal role in driving the success of any business, encompassing various functions and roles within the organization. For those familiar with TruMethods, you’ll recognize my deep-seated enthusiasm for data and accountability. My experience has consistently shown that focusing on metrics — ensuring visibility and accountability — can significantly impact performance. I often refer to this approach as “instrumenting the business,” a strategy emphasizing the importance of measurement and data-driven decision-making at every level.
A concerning trend observed across MSPs, regardless of their size and scale, is a decline in a crucial metric: the number of tickets closed per support technician. This poses a significant issue. In a scenario where all other factors remain constant, a decrease in the daily ticket closure rate per team member leads to an increase in support costs. It’s key to monitor and address this trend to maintain operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
A key performance indicator for MSPs is average MRR. This metric influences several crucial aspects of business operations, including scalability, profitability, sales efficiency, and the cost of acquiring new customers. Additionally, it plays a vital role in determining the overall value of your business. To positively influence the average MRR, you must first establish a minimum MRR threshold. By doing this, you can have an immediate and beneficial impact on the metric, helping to steer your business toward greater financial health and stability.
As we enter 2024, cybersecurity continues to be a significant issue for MSPs and their customers. Navigating the ever-evolving landscape of IT threats is crucial in distinguishing yourself from competitors. Without a well-defined strategy, a solid security platform, and an adaptive mindset for the upcoming year, there’s a heightened risk of leaving your customers vulnerable to cybersecurity incidents.
Need help figuring out how to kick off the year effectively? Explore the four carefully curated blog posts from TruMethods below, each designed to transform your approach to cybersecurity.
These resources will provide strategies to better protect your customers in 2024.
In this blog, I provide a no-cost security assessment using only two key questions. The first is about your average seat price. The second focuses on whether your service delivery team includes at least one member dedicated exclusively to proactive tasks without engaging in billing for professional services or addressing support tickets. These two queries allow me to gauge your security readiness effectively. Interestingly, my assessment doesn’t delve into certifications, tools, or specific services — an intentional and strategic choice.
Daily interactions with MSPs give me a window into their customers’ hesitations about investing in security. Common remarks I encounter include, “My customers don’t understand the crucial need for security,” or, “My customers think they don’t have anything attractive to cybercriminals.” However, a compelling point to consider is that your customers hold something precious to these cyber criminals — money.
Service providers frequently face financial difficulties, even amidst business growth, due to the complexities in attaining and sustaining profitability. To counter this, many MSPs have succeeded by incorporating security services into their portfolio. Nonetheless, the varying security requirements across different customer accounts, some more intricate than others, can add to the complexity. This variability often impacts the ability to effectively manage and maintain profitability.
In February, I had the opportunity to participate in the Right of Boom conference, an event focused on cybersecurity for MSPs. A significant number of attendees came from the Weekly CyberCall community. My involvement included delivering closing remarks and moderating a panel discussion on packaging, pricing, and security go-to-market strategies. Reflecting on my experience, I share some insights in this blog.
Owning and operating an MSP will be more challenging in the new year. Still, I think that’s good for many of our TruPeer members practicing self-accountability — and here’s why.
Self-accountability is crucial to the success of MSPs, especially in generating new monthly recurring revenue (MRR) at optimal pricing. Adopting this approach helps you understand your customer base, seize the right opportunities, and streamline processes for your team and customers. Following these critical aspects gives you a significant competitive advantage over your competitors.
Consider exploring these six TruMethods blog posts to fully embrace self-accountability as an MSP owner in 2024.
I reviewed the results of the Schnizzfest 2023 event surveys with my team, and I’m pleased to share that our members rated the event highly in all aspects. During the review, my team inquired about my focus when evaluating feedback. My response, which might surprise them and you, was that my primary goal isn’t to achieve the highest ratings.
In the MSP industry, the phrase “operational maturity” is often used to describe the level of sophistication in an MSP’s operations. However, my approach to evaluating an MSP begins with examining its “customer base maturity” rather than just focusing on operational aspects.
A key indicator of success for an MSP is the average MRR. This metric influences various aspects of the business, including scalability, profitability, sales strategy, financial calculations, and customer acquisition costs (CAC). It also plays a vital role in determining your business’s overall value. Therefore, a straightforward action that can positively affect your average MRR is establishing a minimum MRR threshold.
The introduction of new technology frequently leads us to make comparisons with existing or past innovations. This is evident with the launch of Apple’s Vision Pro, which has sparked comparisons to Google Glass, a product that debuted a decade ago. While many focus on the technical aspects and distinctions between the two devices, an intriguing dialogue about the concept of opportunity cost has emerged, capturing my interest.
Earlier in the year, I hired a team to paint the trim of my house, which is situated at a considerable height, necessitating using a bucket lift for access. Initially, the process began without any issues, but as time progressed, unexpected complications emerged.
The measure of personal productivity plays a crucial role in determining an individual’s or an organization’s success. The efficiency of your productivity, rather than the intensity of your efforts, significantly influence outcomes. However, many business leaders often undervalue this aspect and seldom address it in interviews or incorporate it into their training programs or performance evaluation criteria.
If you have yet to experience Schnizzfest, now is the perfect time to make that change! Our annual event for managed service providers (MSPs) offers tailored, specialized content to help them enhance customer service and equip them with growth-driven sales and marketing strategies.
Why should you consider adding Schnizzfest to your calendar for next year?
Customize Your Schnizzfest 2024 Experience to Maximize Value
Whether you’re a CEO, sales manager, or engineer, we designed the sessions specifically for you. You can even personalize your schedule, ensuring you get the most value from the discussions you attend, whether on the main stage or during the breakout sessions. Schnizzfest’s content will leave you feeling confident in enhancing your customer service and strengthening your sales and marketing strategies.
More Than 10 Hours of Networking: Connect with Members
Schnizzfest 2024 offers more than ten hours of dedicated networking time with fellow TruMethods members, allowing you to connect with like-minded professionals and learn from one another’s experiences. I suggest taking this time to discuss common challenges, industry trends, and best practices. By the end of the event, you’ll walk away feeling more connected and empowered within the TruMethods community!
Unlocking Potential with Motivational Speaker Kevin Brown
We’re thrilled to host motivational speaker and bestselling author Kevin Brown at Schnizzfest this year! He’ll take the main stage to expand your vision and help you develop your potential as a business leader and a person. His keynote will be a source of inspiration that will drive you towards achieving your goals. Whether attending Schnizzfest as a team or as an individual, Kevin’s words will help you improve your results.
Tackling Challenges and Gaining Insight
Say goodbye to organizational challenges with sessions on business success principles, building your technology success practice, service delivery, and sales. Schnizzfest 2024 will help you address common challenges and gain new insights. Whether you’re a seasoned MSP or new to the industry, there’s something for everyone!
Schnizzfest 2024: Where Work Meets Play
What’s a Schnizzfest without a bit of fun? The event will include drinks, fantastic entertainment, and more! You’ll have plenty of opportunities to let loose and celebrate with your peers.
If you’re ready to engage in insightful sessions, make new connections, and enjoy the fun as the new year starts, join us at Schnizzfest 2024!
While many things in life are out of your control, your mindset isn’t one of them. You and only you determine how to respond when “life happens.” You typically have two options: Sit and sulk or adapt and overcome. The choice is yours.
But what’s often not so simple is changing your mindset. This takes time, discipline, and a lot of falling and getting back up. With the right strategy, you can shift your perspective to lead a more fulfilling life.
Browse these six handpicked blog posts from TruMethods, each crafted to reshape your mindset and guide you toward success in 2024.
The concept that we are influenced by the five people closest to us suggests the importance of choosing positive associations while being cautious of well-intentioned individuals who may unintentionally limit our growth. Awareness and self-protection of our attitude and potential are crucial. Sometimes, distancing ourselves from those who hold us back is necessary for achieving our true potential.
Perfectionism, while tempting, is an unrealistic ideal that can lead to frustration and impede progress. Embracing imperfection fosters adaptability and growth. It’s better to start with a basic framework and seek real-world feedback rather than over-plan and risk paralysis by analysis. In the fast-evolving MSP business, simplicity is vital. Simplifying processes, standardizing workflows, and seeking straightforward solutions can enhance productivity and success. Avoiding perfectionism and prioritizing simplicity allows for clearer communication and more effective teamwork.
Reflecting on a financial decision unveils deep emotional ties to long-held beliefs about money. This realization prompts reevaluating perspectives on life aspects like career and relationships. The process emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and personal growth, highlighting journaling as a tool for gaining insight and fostering wisdom.
Self-awareness, encompassing understanding personal emotions, thoughts, and social perceptions, is rare, with studies suggesting only 10-15 percent of people truly possess it. Overestimating abilities often lead to a false sense of self-awareness. Developing true self-awareness hinges on introspective reflection, identifying and accepting strengths and weaknesses, and gaining insight into what triggers certain emotions. Journaling about emotions and reading widely on human behavior and self-improvement are critical practices recommended for developing this quality.
How one views life and business plays a significant role in determining success. This concept is exemplified through a tale of two bricklayers, where one perceives his job as mere bricklaying, while the other sees himself as building a cathedral, showcasing the impact of perspective on work. Success is primarily driven by attitude, self-image, and self-discipline rather than just knowledge. It’s essential to evaluate oneself regularly, instill a positive mindset within oneself and among team members, and strive toward a meaningful purpose. Setting personal and business goals through introspection is essential. The key takeaway is that positivity, a vital element for success, starts with the individual and has the power to spread.
Champions stand out by consistently doing what others can’t or won’t, making it seem effortless. Mastering in any field, including business, requires dedication to the proper practices. It’s not just about the hours spent but how they are utilized. In business, mastering fundamentals like command, planning, execution, and accountability is essential for reaching one’s full potential. Success and quality of life are not mutually exclusive; effective leadership can enable team members to realize their untapped potential. For instance, TruMethods members are encouraged to consistently engage in crucial activities like attending meetings, understanding metrics, preparing quality business updates, and participating in accountability calls. This approach, focusing on core practices, can be applied across various roles and tasks to build a foundation for success.
In the book “Great by Choice,” Jim Collins introduces the concept of return on luck (ROL). After comparing good and bad luck events at numerous companies, he found that, on average, the high-performing companies, or as he called them, the 10X companies, had the same number of luck events as their counterparts. What set them apart? Their superior returns on luck.
Consider this recent example. New Balance signed tennis star Coco Gauff when she was 15, around the time she turned pro. For a while, the investment wasn’t paying huge returns for the company — until she won the US Open. Now, sponsoring someone who goes on to win the US Open is a great luck event for New Balance, but their response was noteworthy.
The company released a t-shirt in stark white with bold black text. Initially reading “Call me Coco,” the word “Coco” was strikethrough and substituted with “Champion,” rendering it “Call me Champion.” New Balance had already conceived this design and even had a few in circulation for prior tournaments. Yet, they significantly increased their inventory for the US Open, staking millions in the process. Imagine the atmosphere in that decision-making room.
Following her victory, they swiftly distributed these shirts to her family in the locker room, ensuring they were worn, not merely draped over shoulders. During her post-victory speech, as she mentioned her father, the camera spotlighted him donning the shirt, surrounded by similarly attired relatives. This led to a staggering 500 percent surge in traffic for New Balance, resulting in massive sales of both the shirts and their sneakers. This was an exemplary execution of maximizing return on luck.
As MSPs, we’re in the middle of a massive good luck event. We’re navigating a historically booming market. The luck event is uniform for all of us. The question remains: Who will achieve the highest return on luck?
In the fast-paced world of managed services, providing clients with reliable and efficient IT solutions is only part of the equation. Equally important is your ability to clearly demonstrate the value you provide and deliver your services in a way that your clients can easily understand. Enter the world of consolidated reporting, a game-changer for MSPs. In this blog post, we will explore how consolidated reporting can transform your client presentations, save you time and ultimately, drive client satisfaction and business growth.
Holistic reporting for streamlined client presentations
For MSPs, collecting, organizing and analyzing data from various sources can be a daunting task. From network performance to security incidents and ticket resolution times, the data landscape is complex. The challenge lies not only in gathering this data but also in presenting it in a way that resonates with clients who may not be well-versed in technical jargon.
Consolidated reporting simplifies this process. It allows you to integrate executive summary dashboards from multiple tools into one, eliminating the need to manually copy and paste data from different sources. This streamlined approach ensures that your clients receive a consistent and comprehensible view of their IT environment.
Automating the consolidation of reports not only saves time but also frees up resources. This newfound efficiency allows you to focus on critical tasks such as proactive monitoring and problem-solving, ultimately enhancing the quality of your services.
Moreover, a consolidated reporting system provides a holistic view of your client’s IT environment. It enables you to uncover correlations and insights that might have gone unnoticed when data is scattered across multiple tools. As your IT needs evolve and grow, this system can scale to accommodate additional tools and data sources, ensuring your reporting remains effective and relevant.
Data from your core tools directly in myITprocess
Gone are the days of spending hours summarizing key metrics for client presentations. With consolidated reporting, you can achieve this with a few clicks, creating a unified and professional look and feel. This consolidated reporting system is intuitive and easy with myITprocess.
MyITprocess currently integrates with several solutions for consolidating executive summaries, such as Network Detective Pro, Datto RMM and Autotask. We are continually expanding our IT Complete solutions, so expect more integrations to be added in the future.
Our new integration with Network Detective Pro simplifies the data gathering process by allowing you to select risk metrics and data breach sources directly within myITprocess (MITP). This integration eliminates the need to search for these details manually. It enables you to communicate risk information to your clients, including software, hardware and password-related risks, as well as data breach details like the source, potential liability and sensitive data count.
Additionally, myITprocess allows you to effortlessly add reports from your everyday tools, such as PSA and RMM. For instance, you can include metrics like completed ticket counts, SLA response times and ticket types from Autotask. From Datto RMM, you can include services offered and their respective scores, complete with clear definitions.
Help clients make informed buying decisions with comprehensive reporting
Unified reporting isn’t just about streamlining your presentation process; it’s about helping clients make informed decisions. As an IT expert, your clients rely on you not only for top-quality services but also for ensuring business continuity, compliance and user satisfaction.
Explaining the complexities of network performance, security, compliance and help desk support metrics to non-technical clients can be challenging. Consolidated reporting simplifies this for both you and your clients, making it easier for clients to embrace new IT projects and initiatives.
Optimized services lead to better IT operations, higher client satisfaction and increased loyalty. Happy clients are more likely to renew contracts and refer new business. In essence, unified reporting can be a game-changer for your bottom line and the longevity of your business.
Visit our Knowledge Base for more details and step-by-step instructions.
I’ll conduct a free security audit for you by asking just two questions.
One, what is your average seat price? Two, do you have at least one person in your service delivery organization who’s 100 percent proactive? In other words, they don’t bill professional services, and they don’t do any support tickets. They’re purely proactive.
Based on your answers to these two questions, I have a pretty good idea of your security posture. Did you notice that I didn’t ask about certifications, tools, or services? There’s a reason for that.
Security is about process and discipline. If you don’t charge enough and don’t have dedicated roles, process, and accountability, your customers are not as secure as they should be. They would be more secure if they had a truly proactive MSP at the right price.
Once you understand this, you will not only mature your business and your security posture, but you’ll be able to right-size your current agreements and win new customers at the right price. You will have learned how to weaponize your competitor’s low price. When you achieve this, you’re ready to fulfill your true potential. This logic applies as you speak to every new potential client.
I recently listened to a podcast where the MSP featured performs a full security audit they charge for as the first step of their sales process. If this is your process, and you’re having unbelievable success, stick to it. But I think you can ask eight to ten questions of a decision maker and have a great idea of their IT and security posture — at least enough to talk through pain, money, and decision. In some cases, you may end up doing some type of audit, but they’ll be fully qualified first, and most deals, in my experience, get closed without having to do that.
Here are the two takeaways. First, your business and security posture can be measured greatly by the two questions I asked. Next, you can use the same logic with every prospect you talk with to close more deals at a higher price.
