Long before Mike Farlow and his sons, Hunter and Ethan, became leaders in the MSP industry, they learned that consistent effort and hard work were the keys to success. This philosophy has enabled the Farlows to build a thriving family-run MSP that saw an impressive 31% top-line growth to over $6.7 million in revenue and an astounding 161% increase in profits, pushing their EBITDA from $650K to $1.7 million in the past year. Here’s how they did it…
Letting Go Of The Vine: How Marketing And Delegation Fueled Our Growth
COMTech
While it’s easy to dismiss North Carolina MSP ComTech as a company that’s not relatable, as they will soon surpass the $7 million mark, the fact of the matter is that for the first 28 years ComTech struggled to break past the $2 million mark. It’s only been in the past six years that growth went from being incremental to exponential, and the turning point came when Mike, ComTech’s CEO, learned marketing and to delegate to his trusted team.
“We started doing actual marketing and started treating the business like something we wanted to grow,” Mike explains. “That made all the difference in the world.”
This shift in mindset led to exponential growth. Mike’s advice? “If you can hire a marketing manager, let them run marketing. Get an operations manager, let them fine-tune everything. Don’t try to micromanage the whole business, because all you’re doing is bottlenecking everything. That’s why we just grew at a snail’s pace for so long.”
From Envelope Stuffer To Marketing Director: Hunter’s Journey
Hunter Farlow’s path in the company is a testament to the power of hard work and persistence. Starting at 19, inspired by a car onstage at the IT Sales And Marketing Boot Camp, Hunter dove into the nitty-gritty of marketing.
“There have been a lot of late nights designing brochures, stuffing envelopes, doing all that,” Mike recounts. “Hunter’s definitely paid his dues, and he still works like mad.”
Now, as the Director of Marketing, Hunter has evolved from doing everything himself to creating scalable systems and leading a team. His focus on consistency and long-term thinking has been key to their marketing success.
Hunter emphasizes the importance of consistent effort in marketing: “Start sending e-mails to your clients as the start of your marketing, touching base once every week. Do it at the same time, on the same day, and do it consistently. Then add in the next piece and the next piece and the one after that. Start building a list and mailing 25 letters a week. Start with any campaign, like the Aspirin campaign, for example. Consistency is key with follow-up. It will be slow to start but then will snowball, and before you know it, you will have a real marketing engine producing leads.”
This approach has led to impressive results. The company now runs 170 different direct mail campaigns, a number that surprised even Hunter when he tallied it up: “In 2022, we quoted only $30,000 in new MRR. In 2023, we quoted over $150,000! That’s a five-times increase. Since my job in marketing is to bring the opportunities, I couldn’t be more thrilled.”
$40,000 Increase In MRR With Zero Costs
“But it’s not just about more campaigns and more revenue,” says Hunter. “As Robin always says, ‘Top line is for vanity, bottom line is for sanity.’ Once marketing was up and running and the campaigns were in place, we went back to Robin and asked, ‘What’s next?’
“She said the scariest thing of all and told us we needed to increase prices. This strikes terror in everybody’s hearts; I know it did mine! I just KNEW that if we increased prices, I was going to lose clients…so I went to Paul Cissel for a second opinion. We went through all the numbers and, sure enough, we needed to increase prices. We were WAY below market.
“So we increased prices,” says Hunter, “and how many clients did we end up losing? Not a single one. It was incredible. We added $40,000 in new MRR, and that goes straight to the bottom line, folks. That is game-changing money. So, for all of you who are fearful of raising prices, I was too, but it can be done. This alone increased our profits by 42% and put us over $1,000,000 in EBITDA…but we weren’t done there.”
Embracing AI: How We’re Revolutionizing Our Marketing Efforts
“We try to be on the cutting edge and have integrated AI into our marketing strategies, using ChatGPT to help us make our e-mails, blogs and webinar titles and descriptions,” explains Mike. We also use Ideogram.ai and Canva to make the images for our weekly social media posts and webinar graphics. We’re doing some really cool things, from creating graphics, to writing all of our e-mails, blogs, invitations to webinars and even outlines for presentations.
“We use AI to repurpose content efficiently, turning video transcripts into blog posts and then using e-mails to increase engagement, drive traffic and help with SEO,” says Mike. He likens AI to a power tool: “If you’ve been building houses with a handsaw and now you’ve been given a power saw, you still have to know how to use it. It still takes skill, and it still needs review, but it can speed up your work so much!”
From $650K To $1.7M: Profit Breakthrough
The Farlows’ strategic investments and focus on efficiency led to a remarkable financial turnaround. In 2022, their profits were around $650K. By the end of last year, they had broken through the $1 million mark, reaching $1.7 million – a 161% increase.
Mike attributes this success to careful planning and investment: “We ended up hiring additional staff, purchasing products like PIA and making bigger investments in our tools. We were really reinvesting in the company.”
This foundation allowed them to scale efficiently when growth accelerated in 2023, taking full advantage of their previous investments without significantly increasing expenses.
Standing Out From The Crowd: Our Unforgettable Car-Giveaway Campaign
One of the Farlows’ most memorable marketing strategies has been their car-giveaway campaign. In 2023, they gave away a 2023 Corvette convertible. While expensive, it proved to be a game-changer for their brand recognition.
Hunter explains, “The car giveaway in and of itself is maybe not so much of a lead generator – although it certainly helps – but it is super-memorable and helps you stand out from everyone.”
Mike adds that the campaign required meticulous planning: “Before you jump into something like that, especially if you’re giving away a Corvette, you want to make sure you’ve got every event for the year already planned out. You need to know where that car is going, how you’re gonna show it, what every blog is, what every e-mail blast is, promotional videos, everything.”
“This campaign cost us about $140,000 for the car and all the marketing and events, but it generated $20,000 in new MRR almost immediately with one new big client. From there, we added several other clients and have dozens of referrals and opportunities that we’re still working!”
Not Just A Family Business, We’re A Growth-Driven Team
“Fortunately, the whole family gets along. That’s a big plus. We’re not doing infighting, and we all are pushing toward the same goal,” says Mike, as he reflects on the family dynamics that drive their success. “The boys know I’m getting older, so I’m going to be stepping out at some point. We all have the same goal – to boost the business up as high as possible so these guys can take it over and keep it running for years more. I’m very blessed to be working with family where we all have the same mindset. We’re all growth-driven, and we know there’s no hidden agenda anywhere.”
Hunter adds, “Sunday dinners are essentially not normal. This past Sunday I was like, ‘What’s going on outside of work?’ and all I got was crickets. So, it’s work pretty much all the time. But it’s because we’re all pushing toward the same goal and we all contribute. We all get along and that makes working with family a lot of fun. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
The Farlows have turned potential family business challenges into strengths, creating a unified front that’s propelled their company forward.
The Road Ahead: Continuing Our Growth Journey
As the Farlows look to the future, they’re not resting on their laurels. They continue to focus on what sets them apart, emphasizing their commitment to rapid response times and personalized service.
Hunter sums up their approach: “We’re not necessarily better than any other MSP, because we all use similar tools. We’re just different. And let us show you how we’re different, because I think it makes sense for a lot of people.”
With their combination of family unity, consistent effort, embrace of new technologies and innovative marketing strategies, the Farlows are well-positioned for continued growth and success in the MSP industry.
