What separates the best from the average? With all the new MSP and cloud providers coming onto the scene lately, I thought it would be helpful to keep an ongoing list of the characteristics of successful MSPs so others would be able to benefit from their collective wisdom.
I'd like this article to be a collaborative effort, so if you would like to add to it, either comment or email me and I'll include your suggestions. Here goes (in no particular order of importance):
Know your customer! The best MSPs I've seen have an uncanny knowledge of the customers they service. It is not just a knowledge of who they are but an intimacy of existing customers and overall expertise in the category or categories to which those customers belong. The MSPs often know more about the IT problems those clients face than the clients.
Focus. Deliver only those services that can be delivered expertly! This trait comes from knowing your customers. If you really know your customers, you will have a very good idea of the types of services they need. Having a well defined catalogue of managed offerings will keep your MSP practice sane and your customers happy.
Be passionate about your profession! I think this characteristic comes from being expert in your field, but I've noticed that those MSPs who have a really successful practice have a deep rooted passion throughout the organization about servicing the needs of the customer. Managed services is, after all, a service industry.
Documentation. This one may be boring, and some of you may discount the importance of it being on this list, but the best MSPs have everything written down. Everything! From the greatest to the least detail, successful MSPs have a fervor about documenting their policies and procedures. It is the only way they become second nature in a MSP organization.
Tools. specifically, the right tools for the job. The best MSPs don't spend their time forcing a bunch of enabling software to match their business model. Instead, excellent MSPs seek out and qualify only those tools that directly support their business model. This practice helps keep them focused and reduces wasted time.
Efficient Sales and Marketing. The best MSPs I've witnessed have an uncanny knack for finding and talking to their prospective customers. This is likely due to the fact that they have profiled their perfect customer so well that knowing where to look for them becomes almost second nature.
What would you add to this list?
