Twenty-one years ago, my father and I started I-M Technology in Connecticut. About a decade ago, the business had been flat for five years straight. At the time, we simply had a dialer but didn’t implement any real marketing.
I knew that in order to grow the business, I really needed to figure out how to get our message and brand out to our target market. So I bought the Technology Marketing Toolkit and was invited to join the Producers Club accountability group.
My Big Hairy Audacious Goal Of $10M In 5 Years
CEO & President I-M Technology
Far beyond helping businesses with their IT issues, I believe I was put on this Earth to help disadvantaged and abandoned people in North Africa. In order to achieve my purpose, I knew I would have to 5X my company and reach $10M in revenue in just five years.
A few years ago, I bought a car to get into racing. Rather than just focus on the engine and horsepower, I invested in tires, brakes and suspension. That way, this car could keep me out of trouble on the track. The same goes for business. It was critical we had the right MSP and cyber security platform to build on before upping the horsepower. We changed our RMM, moved our PSA to the cloud and rebuilt it, standardized our products and tools, and, lastly, overhauled our entire security stack. Next, I created an aggressive plan to better protect our clients while also protecting our profits.
Rightsizing Our Client Base Added $144,000 In New Annual Recurring Revenue!
My team and I spent nearly a year fine-tuning our offering and our cyber security stack. Last year, we locked in our entire new platform and rolled it out for our existing clients. Because I knew these improvements better protected my clients, we didn’t give them an option. Here are the steps we took to transform our business:
- First, we created a new agreement, terms of service, master service agreement and statement of work.
- Second, we sent out a three-step e-mail sequence to communicate to our clients that we are improving our offerings and cyber security.
- Third, we got out new contracts to EVERY SINGLE ONE of our clients.
- Fourth, whether they signed the new contract or not, they had 30 days before the new pricing went into effect.
To date, our aggressive pricing rollout has already added $144K in new annual recurring revenue – simply from recontracting! Plus, I expect to add another $16K in ARR when we have completely rolled out the new pricing.
By reassessing and renegotiating contracts, I-M Technology not only solidified its revenue streams but also aligned its service offerings more closely with client needs. This process allowed for a reevaluation of client relationships, ensuring that both parties were committed to a mutually beneficial partnership.
Our Journey To Streamline Internal Account Management
Parallel to our client-facing innovations, we dedicated effort to enhancing our internal account management processes. Recognizing the backbone of our client relationships rests on how efficiently and effectively we manage their accounts, we streamlined our workflows, adopted cutting-edge tools for better communication and project tracking, and committed to ongoing staff development in the latest IT and customer service practices. These improvements have been instrumental in increasing client satisfaction and retention, thereby supporting our business growth from within.
Our First Real Marketing Action Really Turned Around Our Finances
When I joined TMT about 10 years ago, I learned the value of creating drip marketing campaigns to keep our MSP top of mind. As a result, we created a unique way to make our drip marketing stand out. Not only did we start sending out printed newsletters every month, we also included a custom flyer in each one. Because adding that wrinkle to our monthly newsletters increased our revenue and really turned around our finances, TMT asked me to do a Golden Cone presentation about it.
Maximizing Impact Through Measured Implementation
It’s important to note that our marketing strategy was not a simultaneous deployment of all campaigns. Instead, we strategically implemented each initiative over time, ensuring we could fully engage with and measure the impact of each campaign before moving onto the next. This phased approach allowed us to adapt and refine our strategies, maximizing the effectiveness of our marketing efforts and ensuring each campaign received the attention and resources it deserved.
More Drip Marketing Scored A $21,060-A-Year Client
How do you stand out from other MSPs and continuously stay top of mind? For us, we consistently use TMT’s Prospect Hopper by combining their monthly postcards with their engaging social media posts. If you have an unconverted lead or an appointment that didn’t pull the trigger, you have to consistently stay in front of these people.
Four years ago, we had an FTA with a company, and they went with another MSP. Because we’ve consistently been connecting with them through our postcards and social media, they filled out our webform, and a phone call later they’re a new I-M Technology client. Thanks to the monthly drip postcard, we also gained a $21,060 annual recurring revenue client! You have to connect the dots between the collateral and the calls to action to see results.
Benefiting From A “Robinized” Website For A Decade
Since we first signed on with TMT a decade ago, we’ve had a “Robinized” website. Our website today is complete with a “Why I-M Technology” page, client testimonials page, free “4-Step System To Make Sure Your Business Technology Runs Like A Ferrari Instead Of A Fiat” report and credibility enhancers, such as “As seen on CNBC, ABC News, C-SPAN, MarketWatch.” Over the years, this website has brought in a steady stream of leads and opportunities.
Always looking to iterate and get better, I have big plans for a new website. This year, we are planning to have a StoryBrand website through Donald Miller’s company.
Canvassing Became An Effective Way To Clean Our List
We created an entire canvassing package that consists of a clear plastic sealable 9 x 12 bag with our most popular postcard with offer, a ransomware prevention checklist, a poker chip with a cyber assessment link, a custom QR code on the bag that takes them to the landing page, candy, a pen and a business card holder. In all, there are three distinct offers in the bag plus a testimonial booklet. Aside from a great marketing tactic to get your foot in the door and give potential clients a reason to choose I-M Technology, we quickly discovered canvassing offered a secondary benefit – an accurate way to clean our list.
Recently, we did a canvassing test run. What we discovered shocked us. Even though we diligently scrub our database, a full 50% of the companies we visited were NOT in our database. Perhaps they moved, downsized or went remote. Starting this spring, we will be hitting targeted industrial parks to better vet our list. That’s why getting out and canvassing is a good, reliable way to market your MSP. Killing two birds with one stone, you hand them engaging marketing collateral and also scrub your list!
Aspirin, Ducks, Godfather And Poker Chips: Getting The Most From Robin’s Direct Mail Campaigns
Today, we consistently mail Robin Robins’ Aspirin campaign featuring a packet of aspirin glued to the top of the letter. But since I’ve been in the TMT program, we’ve run just about every single one of her “lumpy direct mail” campaigns.
From the Godfather campaign, which offers a crisp dollar bill, to the Shredded Money campaign to the Poker Chip, Sitting Duck, and Bad Date campaigns, we’ve done them all.
We run each campaign for a minimum of six months. Over time, we get more efficient with the campaigns. Then we keep tweaking, such as changing the envelope color, until we see the results we want. And, of course, following up via phone and e-mails is essential.
From Poop To A Checklist, Our Own Direct Mail Campaigns Demand Attention
As well as Robin’s direct mail campaigns have worked for us over the years, we also enjoy riffing on those successful campaigns and tweaking for specific niches and topics. We’ve let our creative juices flow to make an impression with our target market. Among the more successful campaigns were:
- Our Poop Bag campaign to veterinarians – yes, we stapled a poop bag (don’t worry, it wasn’t loaded) to a letter that read, “Are You Tired Of Your Crappy IT?” That one certainly turned heads … and wagged tails.
- Our Cybersecurity Clipboard campaign, which repurposed a bunch of IT services from TMT, Datto and several other vendors.
The Broadest Marketing Plan We’ve Ever Implemented
Along with implementing drip marketing, a “Robinized” website, and a slew of direct mail campaigns, we’ve counted on many additional marketing tactics and strategies to build our trust, credibility, and authority. We’ve been doing TMT’s Trust-Based Marketing, including The Compliance Formula, a DFY bestseller book, appearing on the MSP Success magazine cover and our own quarterly DFY magazine, I-M Tech Insights.
And while books, magazines, and sales letters go far to establish your expertise, nothing beats face-to-face impressions. That’s why we fill our calendar with seminars, lunch and learns, speaking gigs, networking events, and industry expos.
Also, to positively affect our appointments-sat rate and closing rate, we have created I-M Technology–branded Shock-And-Awe boxes as well as a Shock-And-Awe online presentation that we deliver via e-mail.
Fire Yourself Today
I have a sign on my desk that reads, “Fire yourself today.” I’ve learned that when I get myself out of key chokepoints, the business always accelerates growth. And as I-M Technology grows, the point where I’m the bottleneck changes. The quicker I can have experts around me resolving these bottlenecks, the faster we start moving toward my B.H.A.G. of $10M in revenue.
One of my main jobs, as the leader of my MSP, is to spot possible bottlenecks before they impact our growth. To facilitate that, we implemented video training for handing off tasks. Rather than the painstaking chore of full documentation of a task, we simply record it in Microsoft Stream. Next, we hand off the video and template to the new task owner. It’s like that game of “Not It” in that the minute it’s handed off, the original task owner can’t touch it again. Using this streamlined approach, we get more work done, and we are racing toward that aggressive goal.
Important to note, we have to do what former President Ronald Reagan stated: “Trust but verify.” We hand it off, but then check to make sure it’s being done, and done correctly. Allow the new task owner to optimize the task, as in truth, we likely only care about the outcome. When they make changes, update the video using Stream.
Perfect Is The Enemy Of Done
Less talk, less thinking, more action. Take advice when Toby Keith sings, “A little less talk and a lot more action.” You must always be a student to learn how to perfect your sales and marketing, but then you must APPLY what you’ve learned and get out of your own way. Stop overthinking. Stop overplanning. Remember, perfect is the enemy of done. Your goal should be to iterate – get better and better and better.
For over a decade now, my team and I at I-M Technology have been implementing Technology Marketing Toolkit’s proven sales and marketing, accumulating over $10M in overall revenue from what we’ve learned and implemented. In addition, we rolled out an aggressive price increase to our clients in a unique way that has so far accounted for an additional $144,000 in annual recurring revenue! We’re coming for you, $10M…
To access all the campaign examples mentioned by this month’s Marketing Genius Of The Month, go to the Dashboard under the Marketing Strategy Brief resource and access them there.
