Corey Kirkendoll, president and CEO at Allen, Tex.-based 5K Technical Services, shares three suggestions he’d apply if he were launching an MSP from scratch today:

1. Pick the right target market – You cannot be everything to everybody and in the MSP business, your product is applicable to every type of business and size.

You have to choose your niche and market and be the best in that area.

Picking the right target market and the right client business size allows you to focus and provide a true differentiation to your clients.

So, I say spend the time and make the hard decision and pick your ideal customer base and stick to it.

Many MSP’s starting out want to be everything to everyone and they believe it is limiting for them to choose a target market.

In reality, this allows them to be focused and be the expert for that market.
I would look at the areas they are in and also if there are any clients they already have, and see why their clients chose them and leverage that to sell to this market.
 

2. Hire well – When you start out as a small MSP, sometimes we hire to fill an immediate need due to a surge in business.

I say, plan as best you can and do not hire just anyone.

Put together the right job descriptions, put in the proper interview process and hire with a well thought out and detailed plan.

Inevitably, you will hire the wrong employee, but it is how you recover and correct it that will make the difference.
 

3. Make MSP friends – Not all MSP’s are your competition.

You should always remember that because they can be your best allies and friends in time of need.

When you need a job done for a customer in another state or town, you need to have MSP friends that you trust that can help.

For example, I have a customer in Houston that I could not get to.

So, I called up another MSP and they helped me service my customer.

In the end, both of us benefited from the partnership.

My customer was elated because we were able to support them in a remote location and they did not have to find another MSP or person to do it for them.

This makes us even more valuable as their IT service provider because we are able to address their needs locally and nationally.

Many MSPs do not like to share.

They hold on to their lessons learned like it’s top secret.

Luckily, there are many that like to collaborate, and they can help change you and your business dramatically.

Partner with them and build as many MSP relationships as possible. 

I see these things as critical for any established and growing MSP to have in place.

I did not have them in place when I started but I have them now, and I continue to evolve them.

Editor’s note: Comments are edited to improve readability.

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