Odd that you find your SMB customers take that stance. Anecdotally, I have found small business owners more often than not like to pass around information on good suppliers/service providers. I would guess the line would be drawn at sharing information between competitors, so perhaps having a lot of customers in a similar field is the reason for your experience.
Posts made by Robin5170
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
Thanks @Minion-Queen . No doubt you'll be getting a call from little old me when this gets going! Lots of good info here.
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
@scottalanmiller Forgive my ignorance - Meta MSP?
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RE: What Are You Doing Right Now
AAAAAArrrh rats! We have the odd mouse once in a blue moon but not an attic full of rats. shudder
Currently I'm looking at the clock as I leave for the day in 15 and can't start anything I can finish in that time, ergo cannot work.
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
Very true and good advice @scottalanmiller , thanks
@Reid-Cooper thanks for the prompt. Lets see if @networknerd has any info to share! -
RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
@Carnival-Boy Using anecdotal experience, there is often an area of divide between office and factory/shop floor support. An office PC goes down and there are clearly defined SLAs, processes and procedures to cover it. This is less well defined on kit/systems on the shop floor. Due to the individual nature of manufacturer environments there is less one size fits all process diagrams to lay on top of the infrastructure, and what could be seen to be a minor issue to an IT tech could be costing the customer big money. If not identified early, then the delay is money down the drain for your customer, however if these are already defined by detailed analysis of your customer's setup and real-world impact on a number of scenarios across the business, priorities can be determined by the customer rather than by IT. This seems obvious, but simply due to the lack of experience outside from the office environment I think some MSPs struggle (I'm not by any stretch saying this is across the board).
At the end of the day, the name of the game is avoiding under the gun learning curves, by already planning DR type strategies as is already the norm with everyday IT infrastructure. Due to the many thousands of systems/vendors involved manufacturing, a lot of the time this will be simply vendor relationship and escalation management. Again, it's obvious, but is mis-managed frequently (I have found).
@scottalanmiller Initially not but something I would look at down the line if applicable. Depending on the industry I would assume (naughty) there is a spectrum of specific software designed with a type of manufacturer with their different requirement in mind eg food vs parts vs complete products etc. In this instance I wouldn't want to box myself in, but it's not something I have enough exposure to make a decision on yet. -
RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
@Minion-Queen said:
Actually most people go there and are surprised at all we do as they were heading there looking for one thing. So it is helpful just not our main draw of customers.
What would you say is your main draw of customers? Word of mouth? Or through the forums? It sounds like you get (or used to) a lot of work through building relationships on SW which I enjoy frequenting.
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
Thanks @Minion-Queen Really good advice, I'll definitely take that approach.
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
Do you guys find you get much work through your site or is that more of a formality than anything else?
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
@Hubtech I like the concept of your provisional month of hourly billing to get to know a client. This sounds a great idea to prevent under quoting for time-hungry customers!
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
Essentially I am a glorified server/network administrator as I look after everything (internally). My job title is Systems Administrator but I wouldn't consider myself in that bracket. Previous to this, I became the backbone for a one-man-band IT company and Cloud Service provider who decided after hiring me he didn't need to do anything. So I ran his show for 2 years making him a shed load of cash while I did the graft. A lot of pain, but a lot of experience, so alls well that ends well.
I am only keen to farm out work while I am still in employment, to curb the necessity for borrowing. If I can keep employment while bringing in clients that are supported elsewhere it gives a small user base to get things right before jumping ship.@scottalanmiller You've certainly peaked my interest with the outsourcing option. I'd definitely be interested in discussing that further. Do you have UK based technical specialists available should I need it for technologies out of my personal portfolio?
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
@scottalanmiller Yes I intend to outsource as much as I can through a white label IT company here in the UK. Initially it wont be the most profitable as they take a large chunk of the rates but it means I can start getting my client base up while still employed until I have enough cash flow to sustain a wage.
@Hubtech I was thinking of doing similar ie taking a loan to get things moving. I've been looking at this as an option for a few months but the time restraints with a young family on top of work commitments mean there's not enough hours in the day to make meaningful progress. Before 'taking the leap' I presume you already had some clients lined up waiting for you to start or did you use that month to find them?If you guys don't mind divulging.. There are so many business models for pricing I think I am just going with the norm ie X per PC, X per server, then on-site day rates or higher monthlies for no-cost on-site visits. Is this really the best way to go or is there a better way of doing things? I've found I could have a company of 30 users who call once a week with a printing issue, or a company with 15 users who constantly need assistance. The cash-to-work ratio just doesn't seem to add up sometimes.
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RE: MSP Sector Specialist Startup
Thanks for the responses guys, see below.
@Dashrender - Being UK Based I will be setting up a Limited company to cover me so I am not personally liable.
- Currently no clients but without investing in a front end ie website, branded company materials, and limited company status, no manufacturer would take a second look.
- Sales-wise I used to hold a purely commission based sales role with success before deciding IT was the way for me!
- Yes I met with an accountant on Friday to discuss the venture
- Only anecdotal experience, in that there is a need for MSPs in the Manufacturing Industry that have the know-how to manage IT outside of just the office environment.
The biggest thing I have noticed current general MSPs providing manufacturers is that they are not aware or do not understand the impact and therefore priority of different areas of a factory/site. One of my key USPs would be the management of this and how much emphasis is given to escalation and vendor relationship management. To top this, I searched an have yet to find a MSP specifically targeting the Manufacturing Industry, meaning we could specialise in a 'niche', but the niche would be so big there would be a massive scope for expansion.
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MSP Sector Specialist Startup
SO, MSP Startups.. I have worked in IT in the manufacturing industry for a few years and have always seen glaring holes in how things have been done by companies before.. but the more I read from MSP pro's (such as you fine people) the more reservations I have around setting up a MSP at all due to the tiny success rate. Is it worth it? Initially I would be a one man band living on savings and a business loan, with a consultant at hand and an outsourced white-label 1st and 2nd Tier company taking care of most of the daily tickets. Recipe for disaster or worthwhile venture?