Showing posts with label Erick Simpson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Erick Simpson. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
MSPU Boot Camp Coming to Atlanta
Our friends at MSPU are hosting a bootcamp in Atlanta April 14-16. They are increasing the content for this event by including an EMR/EHR breakout session. Hot topics - great information. I can't do it justice - there is so much going on. Check out the details here and get registered.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Another SWOT in the HTG Books
This week I was in Rice Lake Wisconsin with DCS Netlink, a great company led by Dane Deutsch. On the SWOT team with me were Lyf Wildenberg (HTG2) and Mike Haworth (HTG15). We had a fabulous time as we dug deep into the business and worked to identify some tweaks and changes that will help the team there continue their growth. As is the case for most small businesses, there are a number of plateau’s and blockers that come up along the path to growth. That is the case at DCS, and so we worked to help solidify what the team already knew – they need to grow into a sales organization. This is definitely the most common problem that HTG companies are wrestling with. It happens to many about the same time. You grow pretty well without an official sales plan until you hit 1M – 1.5M or so in revenue. And then you hit the wall. No matter what you try, it just seems like you are stuck right there. Since a lot of us are entrepreneurs that came up through the technical side, we have a dislike for the whole sales process anyway. We can’t figure out why we can’t turn some screwdriver or find some new technical solution that will fix this problem.
The reality is that any business that wants to grow has to become a sales organization. Nothing happens until a sale gets made. It took me a long time to admit that fact. We can engineer the greatest solutions in the world, but if we never sell them, or don't get paid appropriately for them, we will go out of business. It is a pretty simple truth that many never figure out. So sales is not optional – it is essential and needs to come off the list of things you have to hold your nose about. Get over the fact that you think sales people are all like the used car types and embrace the reality that you need to find some good ones if you want to grow your company. But then what? Once you know you need to change from being an invincible engineering company to a sales company – what next? Well you actually have to hire someone to sell. And that becomes a challenge because a good sales person thinks very differently than your typical MCSE. They don’t necessarily understand every detail, or even care for that matter. I personally think it is better to hire someone who can sell before worrying about whether they understand technology or not. Sales is all about relationships, not how much you know about the latest gidgets and gadgets. But that is my opinion and certainly no one looks to me as the expert on this topic. There are some good resources out there in our channel that can help. HTG currently has some classes going on with Kendra Lee around hiring a sales person. Erick Simpson and MSPU has some fantastic resources. If you are struggling - get some help. Don't flounder around here - you need to find a salesperson and get started.
Of course, hiring is probably the easy part even though it does seem overwhelming. Once you have a person on your team, then you have to manage them. There are few things more dangerous to a business than an unmanaged sales person. ConnectWise has great tools to assist in sales management. Again - there are lots of solid resources available to help teach you how to manage sales people. One of the best though is to talk to peers who are successful doing it. There are a number of HTG companies with sales organizations that are making it happen every day because of great sales management. Find them and figure out how to put their practices into your business.
Nothing happens til somebody sells it. Get off the fence and find a salesperson and begin the process of becoming a sales organization. Vision without execution is hallucination - and I see more companies that are hallucinating in the area of sales than anywhere. Sales is not rocket science. It may feel that way, but it really isn't. And without it, you can plan to plateau and be stuck for as long as you allow it to happen to you. You can't grow without becoming a sales organization. Get over it and get on with it!
Thanks to Dane and the team at DCS for a great experience in rural Wisconsin. I learned much and look forward to watching you go through this challenge and on to the next one!
The reality is that any business that wants to grow has to become a sales organization. Nothing happens until a sale gets made. It took me a long time to admit that fact. We can engineer the greatest solutions in the world, but if we never sell them, or don't get paid appropriately for them, we will go out of business. It is a pretty simple truth that many never figure out. So sales is not optional – it is essential and needs to come off the list of things you have to hold your nose about. Get over the fact that you think sales people are all like the used car types and embrace the reality that you need to find some good ones if you want to grow your company. But then what? Once you know you need to change from being an invincible engineering company to a sales company – what next? Well you actually have to hire someone to sell. And that becomes a challenge because a good sales person thinks very differently than your typical MCSE. They don’t necessarily understand every detail, or even care for that matter. I personally think it is better to hire someone who can sell before worrying about whether they understand technology or not. Sales is all about relationships, not how much you know about the latest gidgets and gadgets. But that is my opinion and certainly no one looks to me as the expert on this topic. There are some good resources out there in our channel that can help. HTG currently has some classes going on with Kendra Lee around hiring a sales person. Erick Simpson and MSPU has some fantastic resources. If you are struggling - get some help. Don't flounder around here - you need to find a salesperson and get started.
Of course, hiring is probably the easy part even though it does seem overwhelming. Once you have a person on your team, then you have to manage them. There are few things more dangerous to a business than an unmanaged sales person. ConnectWise has great tools to assist in sales management. Again - there are lots of solid resources available to help teach you how to manage sales people. One of the best though is to talk to peers who are successful doing it. There are a number of HTG companies with sales organizations that are making it happen every day because of great sales management. Find them and figure out how to put their practices into your business.
Nothing happens til somebody sells it. Get off the fence and find a salesperson and begin the process of becoming a sales organization. Vision without execution is hallucination - and I see more companies that are hallucinating in the area of sales than anywhere. Sales is not rocket science. It may feel that way, but it really isn't. And without it, you can plan to plateau and be stuck for as long as you allow it to happen to you. You can't grow without becoming a sales organization. Get over it and get on with it!
Thanks to Dane and the team at DCS for a great experience in rural Wisconsin. I learned much and look forward to watching you go through this challenge and on to the next one!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
A Coming Resource
Erick Simpson has announced his new book - "The Best NOC and Service Desk Operations Book Ever" which is now available for pre-order.
http://blog.mspu.us/2009/09/preorder-mspus-new-book-the-best-noc-and-service-desk-operations-book-ever-today.html
Erick and the team at MSPU have done a fantastic job of educating the channel around sales and service and all things MSP. And I am confident this new release will be another in their series of must have resources for your bookshelf. Take advantage of the early order discount, and get ready to incorporate some valuable thoughts and ideas into your organization as you learn and leverage this book to help produce growth and success.
http://blog.mspu.us/2009/09/preorder-mspus-new-book-the-best-noc-and-service-desk-operations-book-ever-today.html
Erick and the team at MSPU have done a fantastic job of educating the channel around sales and service and all things MSP. And I am confident this new release will be another in their series of must have resources for your bookshelf. Take advantage of the early order discount, and get ready to incorporate some valuable thoughts and ideas into your organization as you learn and leverage this book to help produce growth and success.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Looking for an Opportunity to Prospect
Have you heard of the Microsoft LET team. LET stands for Local Engagement Team and their mission in life is to help SMB partners connect with small businesses. To that end, they are rolling out a great program that just may be of interest to you.
How Microsoft can help Jump Start Your Prospecting
Are you a Microsoft Partner? If you are, Microsoft will agree to sponsor up to 5 local Chamber of Commerce events at any Chamber of Commerce you choose to work with by furnishing up to 5 copies of a Microsoft Software Package (Microsoft Office, MSFT Streets And Trips, SBA, etc) to you to be used as raffle prizes at these Chamber Events.
This is a tremendous way for you to generate leads for your products and services as you collect business cards or registration forms for these raffles!
Erick Simpson of MSP University is hosting a webinar with special guest Michael "MJ" Murphy, Business Development Manager, Microsoft. Together they'll discuss how to take advantage of this tremendous opportunity from Microsoft.
To register go to this link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/243535459
All you need to do as a Microsoft Registered, Certified or Gold Partner to receive this benefit is agree to attend each Chamber Event and conduct the raffle of the Office Prize. This gets you in front of local business, demonstrates your relationship with Microsoft and builds your credibility in your local markets - YOU WIN!
When marketed with your local Chamber of Commerce, this acts as a hook, creating fresh buzz around the Chamber events and driving attendance - THE CHAMBER WINS!
The Chamber helps get the word out about Microsoft software and its sponsorship of the event - MICROSOFT WINS!
Wow, I've heard of win-wins before, but this is a 3-way win!
I have worked with the LET team and they are a great group that is committed to help ussucceed. They have other ideas too, so reach out and get involved with your local rep. Now more than ever it is networking with people that helps us win business. Take a listen to this webcast, get involved and make things happen!
How Microsoft can help Jump Start Your Prospecting
Are you a Microsoft Partner? If you are, Microsoft will agree to sponsor up to 5 local Chamber of Commerce events at any Chamber of Commerce you choose to work with by furnishing up to 5 copies of a Microsoft Software Package (Microsoft Office, MSFT Streets And Trips, SBA, etc) to you to be used as raffle prizes at these Chamber Events.
This is a tremendous way for you to generate leads for your products and services as you collect business cards or registration forms for these raffles!
Erick Simpson of MSP University is hosting a webinar with special guest Michael "MJ" Murphy, Business Development Manager, Microsoft. Together they'll discuss how to take advantage of this tremendous opportunity from Microsoft.
To register go to this link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/243535459
All you need to do as a Microsoft Registered, Certified or Gold Partner to receive this benefit is agree to attend each Chamber Event and conduct the raffle of the Office Prize. This gets you in front of local business, demonstrates your relationship with Microsoft and builds your credibility in your local markets - YOU WIN!
When marketed with your local Chamber of Commerce, this acts as a hook, creating fresh buzz around the Chamber events and driving attendance - THE CHAMBER WINS!
The Chamber helps get the word out about Microsoft software and its sponsorship of the event - MICROSOFT WINS!
Wow, I've heard of win-wins before, but this is a 3-way win!
I have worked with the LET team and they are a great group that is committed to help ussucceed. They have other ideas too, so reach out and get involved with your local rep. Now more than ever it is networking with people that helps us win business. Take a listen to this webcast, get involved and make things happen!
Friday, December 5, 2008
A couple great webcast opportunities
During these tough economic times, it is more important than ever to leverage the resources available to us to keep business flowing. Erick Simpson from MSPU has a couple webinars next week with Microsoft that you should consider attending. Check out the details here:
First, join me on Tuesday, December 9, 2008 at 9:00am PST for our December State of the Industry live Webinar titled: "Leveraging the Microsoft Events Engine to Increase Your Sales Opportunities"...
REGISTER HERE
My special guest for this valuable session is our good friend Michael "MJ" Murphy, Microsoft Business Development Manager and Local Engagement Team member. If you haven't kept up with my blog on the LET team and their initiatives and goals, you're in for an extra special treat. MJ will walk us through all of the ways we can leverage Microsoft's resources and reveal how we can maximize our partnering relationship to receive the benefits that the LET initiative can provide. This will be a Webinar you won't want to miss! About Michael J. Murphy: MJ Murphy brings over 20 years of technology and entrepreneurial experience to Microsoft's Local Engagement Team. In his role as Business Development Manager he actively engages Microsoft partners who want to grow their businesses through deeper engagement with Microsoft. So join us on Tuesday, December 9th and learn how to leverage Microsoft's events marketing engine to drive new prospects into your business!
Next, join me on Friday, December 12th at 9am PST for a very special Microsoft 5W/50 Webinar titled: Maximizing Service Delivery Profits During Economic Downturns
2009 looks to be another year of belt-tightening for businesses, with the recession now a reality as markets decline and stock indexes hover near their lowest levels since the 1980's. How will our economic outlook affect Service Providers, and what can we do to weather the next 12 months to grow our businesses and become more profitable than we were in 2008? Learn how to reduce costs, increase revenue and leverage existing client relationships in order to sell more solutions as a Trusted Advisor during times of economic uncertainty.
During this timely Webcast I will discuss how the recession will affect your customers and prospects, and what you can do to weather the next 12 months to grow your business and become more profitable than in 2008. This discussion will include 10 key takeaways that will help you increase your profits in 2009 and beyond.
REGISTER HERE
This has been the most requested keynote and breakout conference presentation I have been asked to deliver this year, and you will be able to see it live on Friday, December 12th at 9am PST!
First, join me on Tuesday, December 9, 2008 at 9:00am PST for our December State of the Industry live Webinar titled: "Leveraging the Microsoft Events Engine to Increase Your Sales Opportunities"...
REGISTER HERE
My special guest for this valuable session is our good friend Michael "MJ" Murphy, Microsoft Business Development Manager and Local Engagement Team member. If you haven't kept up with my blog on the LET team and their initiatives and goals, you're in for an extra special treat. MJ will walk us through all of the ways we can leverage Microsoft's resources and reveal how we can maximize our partnering relationship to receive the benefits that the LET initiative can provide. This will be a Webinar you won't want to miss! About Michael J. Murphy: MJ Murphy brings over 20 years of technology and entrepreneurial experience to Microsoft's Local Engagement Team. In his role as Business Development Manager he actively engages Microsoft partners who want to grow their businesses through deeper engagement with Microsoft. So join us on Tuesday, December 9th and learn how to leverage Microsoft's events marketing engine to drive new prospects into your business!
Next, join me on Friday, December 12th at 9am PST for a very special Microsoft 5W/50 Webinar titled: Maximizing Service Delivery Profits During Economic Downturns
2009 looks to be another year of belt-tightening for businesses, with the recession now a reality as markets decline and stock indexes hover near their lowest levels since the 1980's. How will our economic outlook affect Service Providers, and what can we do to weather the next 12 months to grow our businesses and become more profitable than we were in 2008? Learn how to reduce costs, increase revenue and leverage existing client relationships in order to sell more solutions as a Trusted Advisor during times of economic uncertainty.
During this timely Webcast I will discuss how the recession will affect your customers and prospects, and what you can do to weather the next 12 months to grow your business and become more profitable than in 2008. This discussion will include 10 key takeaways that will help you increase your profits in 2009 and beyond.
REGISTER HERE
This has been the most requested keynote and breakout conference presentation I have been asked to deliver this year, and you will be able to see it live on Friday, December 12th at 9am PST!
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Here comes another one
Our good friend Erick Simpson from HTG1 has announced the next in the best-selling series of books by I.T. Service Providers for I.T. Service Providers! It is called the Best I.T. Service Delivery Book Ever. Erick and the folks at IEnterprise have been helping solution providers make the jump to managed services in a lot of ways. I hear a lot of rave reviews about the books they have produced, and our HTS team has participated in some of the training they provide for helping companies sell managed services. Now they have done it again with a book on how to deliver those services once sold.
Click here http://www.mspu.us/en/publications/the-best-it-service-delivery-book-ever.htm to check out the website with more information and to get access to the pre-order discount where you can save some money and get a good book. Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.
Click here http://www.mspu.us/en/publications/the-best-it-service-delivery-book-ever.htm to check out the website with more information and to get access to the pre-order discount where you can save some money and get a good book. Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Check out the Radio Show
I was privileged to talk with Stuart Crawford today on his SMB radio show which can be downloaded at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/smb. With me on the call was Karl Palachuk, Erick Simpson, Dana Epp and Brad Schow. We talked all things SMB Summit. Not only are all these guys rock stars in the IT industry, they are all speakers for the upcoming Summit. Most have books that are featured on the www.smbsummit.com website as well. Karl is doing a pre-conference event with Matt Makowicz which you want to consider. Make sure to hear Dana's presentation on security at the Summit, and if you haven't checked out Auth Anvil lately, it is time to take a look. More and more security is becoming a problem for all companies, and Dana is a security MVP that understands the business side of the equation. Check out his offerings online. Erick Simpson is the guru of managed services and will have his wisdom in a session on that topic. Brad Schow is speaking a couple of times and his experience around M&A will be a highlight of the show. Make sure to ask lots of questions before making all the mistakes yourself. Of course Stuart will be sharing some on work life balance with Karl in their session, and will be there doing other things along the way as well. BTW - Happy Birthday Stuart. We are down to our last 60 spots for registration so it is time if you have been waiting. Mike Iem has done a marvelous job orchestrating the event, and the guys from SMBTN are all over the registration and logistics stuff. It has taken an army to pull this thing together, so I hope you join us. Check out the recording today to get more details. See you in Dallas.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Upcoming Conference Call - Jan 16th
Author, Speaker, and All-Around MSP Guru on FREE CALL
Erick Simpson is the author of two awesome books on managed services: The Guide to a Successful Managed Services Practice and The Best I.T. Sales & Marketing BOOK EVER!, and is the VP of Intelligent Enterprise and Managed Services Provider University (MSP University).
Erick has been a featured speaker at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference, SMB Nation, and many other venues.
Erick's second book is part of the Super Success Bundle that was launched at SMB Nation.
Erick is also a member of the very first Heartland Technology Peer Group, and co-authored their first book Peer Power - Powerful Ideas for Partners from Peers.
Erick was instrumental in helping Intelligent Enterprise (MSP University's parent organization) achieve sales of over $2MM worth of Managed Services Agreements in 18 months, and his previous background includes building enterprise-level Call Centers and Service Desks for Fortune 1000 organizations. So, the bottom line is: We can talk about ANYTHING with this guy and it will be worth your while.
Mark Your Calendar Today!
Conference Bridge Instructions
To join the conference call:
- Dial (319) 279-1000 (U.S. phone number)
- Your participant passcode is 1024518.
- This call is limited to the first 100 attendees.
Jan 16th at 9:00 AM Pacific Time Zone
More information is at http://www.greatlittlebook.com/Seminars/conference_call.htm.
Erick Simpson is the author of two awesome books on managed services: The Guide to a Successful Managed Services Practice and The Best I.T. Sales & Marketing BOOK EVER!, and is the VP of Intelligent Enterprise and Managed Services Provider University (MSP University).
Erick has been a featured speaker at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference, SMB Nation, and many other venues.
Erick's second book is part of the Super Success Bundle that was launched at SMB Nation.
Erick is also a member of the very first Heartland Technology Peer Group, and co-authored their first book Peer Power - Powerful Ideas for Partners from Peers.
Erick was instrumental in helping Intelligent Enterprise (MSP University's parent organization) achieve sales of over $2MM worth of Managed Services Agreements in 18 months, and his previous background includes building enterprise-level Call Centers and Service Desks for Fortune 1000 organizations. So, the bottom line is: We can talk about ANYTHING with this guy and it will be worth your while.
Mark Your Calendar Today!
Conference Bridge Instructions
To join the conference call:
- Dial (319) 279-1000 (U.S. phone number)
- Your participant passcode is 1024518.
- This call is limited to the first 100 attendees.
Jan 16th at 9:00 AM Pacific Time Zone
More information is at http://www.greatlittlebook.com/Seminars/conference_call.htm.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Great new licensing offering annouced
Eric Ligman announced the new Microsoft Open Value Subscription licensing option on his blog today. This is a great new offering for us in the SMB space. Check out details at http://blogs.msdn.com/mssmallbiz/archive/2008/01/01/6933535.aspx.
2008 will be filled with opportunity to generate solid revenue from licensing sales with the new wave of products coming from Microsoft. Make sure you understand the tools we have to sell these solutions as they lead to significant services opportunities.
I also encourage you to check out Erick Simpson's blog on managed services. His comments that what many call managed services may just be a part of your services portfolio is dead on. Many of us thought that for success we would only deliver some form of managed services. That certainly has not been the case for us nor many others. It is a vital part of service delivery health, but there are many forms of service delivery that are profitable and meet customer needs and requirements. Erick says it much better than I so read it on his blog!
2008 will be filled with opportunity to generate solid revenue from licensing sales with the new wave of products coming from Microsoft. Make sure you understand the tools we have to sell these solutions as they lead to significant services opportunities.
I also encourage you to check out Erick Simpson's blog on managed services. His comments that what many call managed services may just be a part of your services portfolio is dead on. Many of us thought that for success we would only deliver some form of managed services. That certainly has not been the case for us nor many others. It is a vital part of service delivery health, but there are many forms of service delivery that are profitable and meet customer needs and requirements. Erick says it much better than I so read it on his blog!
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