When a computer business owner has decided to save money on IT sales leads by bringing inside sales in-house, the other big issue that needs to be consider is who’s going to coach and managed the inside marketing agents?  Once you have hired someone to make outbound calls for you then they will need to be coached and managed.  If the correct training is in place then someone in your company will have to coach your telemarketers to success.  Some important questions you might want to ask before moving forward would be, who is going to be the coach and what type of coaching will be required.  More importantly before you decide to in-source IT services marketing take a minute to consider what sort of time investment will be required. (more…)

One of the most common reason that are cited by couples that lead to a break up of their marriage, is the lack of communication.  While this can be the kiss of death to a healthy marriage, it can also be one of the factors that could destroy a partnership between a telemarketing firm and an it services provider.  When one partner is in the dark about what the other one is doing or thinking, then it can lead to confusion and blunders.  Lets look at a few examples of situations that have lead to minor problems and others that have had disastrous consequences for computer business marketing owners.

Communication is key!

One of the first issues that can arise with regard to communication between an it call center and a managed services provider can happen right at the start of the relationship.  If the liaison from the telesales company fails to do an introductory interview to find out exactly what their client is offering in clear terms, then this could lead to a disconnect in the marketing efforts.  Vice versus, if the computer consultant fails to clearly state what their model is or level of services to be offered; then this could setup the wrong expectations in the prospects minds. (more…)

This blog is about one of my favorite stories from Aesop titled “The Bees And Wasp, And The Hornet”.  I have always found the wisdom in this story profound and will try to show how this applies to technology sales leads.  I have reprinted the story below for your enjoyment and will discuss it’s ramifications to the IT industry afterward.

AESOP’S FABLE THE BEES AND WASP, AND THE HORNET

One day some worker bees made a honeycomb in the hollow trunk of an oak. They settled nearby to rest. Then, the drones from their hive flew by. The drones said, “We made that honeycomb. It belongs to us.” (more…)

I feel like a mad scientist  whose creation has just come alive after ages of preparation and tireless effort!  Like Dr. Frankenstein, when the electric bolts shot through his creation, bringing it to life!  I have been telemarketing for managed services for over 10 years, but only in the last 5 years have I been able to expand and recruit a suitable team of  telesales reps.

Just as we have said to anyone trying to bring IT telemarketing in-house, there is a huge learning curve!   However, I’ve paid my dues and we now have the perfect IT lead generation machine and “It’s Alive!”

The Birth

I will tell you about the struggles that I faced, as well as how I faced these obstacles and overcame them.  The first problem is staffing; finding talented and skilled people. (more…)

It’s often said in the sales industry that a ‘no’ gets you closer to a ‘yes’, but what about a maybe?  Well if you’re doing follow up for the computer business industry, then getting  a ‘maybe’ is a double benefit.

This is because you didn’t get a no and your still have gotten one prospect off your sales radar and can focus your marketing on another IT prospect.  However, the worst thing that can happen is that you never get a yes, no or even a maybe!  This commonly happens with marketing with in the IT services industry.

Computer consultants are so busy trying to keep on top of their current customers and the new sales leads coming in that following up with hard to reach prospects after their first appointment becomes very difficult for most technology professionals.  However, not following up on a prospect after your first appointment is the one biggest factor that destroys most companies’ chances of getting their ROI from any marketing investment. (more…)

If you’re considering contracting an IT call center for  lead generation, then you’re probably starting to realize that all of their proposals are turning into a blur, looking the same.  Or on the other hand the proposals might be so different from other types (pay for performance, pay by the hour) that you can’t make heads or tails of them.

Let’s go over a few basic points that can guide a computer business in a search for a good marketing team.  Some of the things we suggest looking for are as follows: Are they using offshore callers? How well do they understand the managed services market? How persuasive are they on the phone?  You might be surprised that there wasn’t consideration given to technical issues like recording calls, contact management programs etc… why? (more…)

MSP Telemarketing is Proud to announce sponsorship of the CompTIA Breakaway 2010 Channel Event.  We ran into some of the CompTIA employees at the MSPU Boot camp in Dallas, TX. After reviewing what CompTIA offers their members and the breakdown of who attends their Breakaway meetings, we couldn’t resist attending and sponsoring this event.

According to their stats 38% of the attendees will be the President, Owner or Partner of their firm.  So if you’re a vendor or are trying to get some good networking opportunities, then this will be a great event .  Also if you’re looking to get info on the latest IT services offerings then keep in mind that most of the Top IT vendors will be there. (more…)

Recently several of our computer consultants clients have question the benefit of HAAS with CharTec after adding up the cost of the financing.  Below are my thoughts about why HAAS is critical to your marketing success as a computer business owner

How much will the average person pay for a car or home after the financing is added to the cost?

If every one cringed about the financing cost then our society’s spending would shrink and so would the economy.  Like in Mexico where pretty much every one pays for homes and cars with cash and really only rich people buy anything.

Perhaps there could be an argument that that might be a better arrangement, it would also mean there would be less millionaires because there would be less cash blowing around for entrepreneurs to grab.
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In our last Blog we went over the numbers and showed why a computer business could afford to pay more for marketing calls to generate more IT appointments.  However, the big Question is why in the world would they want to pay more for it services marketing if they didn’t have to?

We were recently approached by a computer consultant who was using another telemarketing firm that was generating leads for a lower cost than what msp telemarketing was proposing.  My question to this technology services provider was, “ if you already getting sales leads  from the other firm at a lower cost, then why would you be contacting us?”

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“We can’t afford you” this is the most common objection we hear from computer business owners about spending money on an it call center.  As we have discussed before, many decide telemarketing is not an option for them or try a lower priced or cheaper solution.   Many times they get what they pay for, which is no results at all.  Some times a few come back to us; but most end in the telemarketing graveyard.

We believe that many computer consultants are looking at IT Lead Generation cost upside down!

The first thing we want to point out in regards to an IT consultant judging their marketing budget is not to be short sighted.   The reality is that most of our clients and probably the entire industry is that you will retain most of your msp clients for a long time.  One client told us that they had a 99% retention of their msp clients they got from our telemarketing efforts. (more…)