Earning new customers can be a challenge, everyone knows that. The pressure to win clients and keep them is really heating up, and the market is absolutely saturated with MSPs all competing to win valuable clientage.

The problem is that there really isn’t a secret formula for streamlining the process. If there was, this could easily be one of those “quick tips to succeed at all the things” guides or a “get results fast by following these easy steps” tutorial.

But it’s not.

The concept of  winning a new customer in 24 hours is, unfortunately, a bit far-fetched. The simple fact is, it’s just not that simple. Few things in life are, and earning customers is no exception.

So no, this is not an article about how to fast-track the process — sorry guys. But it does shine a light on the fact that this is all too often the sort of thing you hear… a simple solution to sidestep a particular MSP hurdle. We’re here to tell you, when it comes to snagging a new client, there is no Easy Street.

Carrie Simpson, founder and CEO of Managed Sales Pros, says that the focus shouldn’t be on how you “close a deal” in a short time frame, but on the setup.

Managed Sales Pros’ Carrie Simpson

“No decision or deal is made within 24 hours,” says Simpson. “Even if you had the best brand, the perfect sales rep and an enviable client roster, you’re still going to have to wait until the timing is exactly right for the potential customer to make that move. Responsible business owners don’t change providers unless there’s a reason to, and it has to be done at a time that’s minimally disruptive to their business practices.”

Ok, so closing a deal/winning a customer in a 24-hour time frame may not be realistic, but that doesn’t mean speed doesn’t play an important role.

Michael Schmidtmann, peer group facilitator and business coach at Trans4mers, says that one of the strongest motivators for companies is to stop a loss.

Trans4mers’ Mike Schmidtmann

“Picture things from the customer perspective,” encourages Schmidtmann. “If you’re an MSP and you want to get folks to act on you quickly, your number one tactic should be to get them to understand that they’re losing money. The fear of loss and the business being put at risk is twice as motivating as an expectation of gain, so you have to get the customer to look at it as a stopping of a loss and not an expectation of a gain.”

Schmidtmann goes on to say that there is a risk of not taking quick action, which is why speed and knowing when and how to strike are key.

A word of caution, though. It is possible to be…

… too fast — this is where quality and speed walk that fine line. Schmidtmann warns against becoming a “quote jockey” and firing off proposals without having “earned the right.”

“Say someone asks for a managed services quote,” says Schmidtmann. “Sales reps will snap to attention and, to prove their responsiveness, fire one off without first establishing that foundation with the potential client. The problem with this approach is that the customer won’t know them from a hole in the wall after the quote is sent because they haven’t built any sort of relationship, no rapport.”

Schmidtmann says that the best salespeople won’t just accept an order as is. They must ask deep questions to understand the customer’s needs. What are they trying to accomplish? Are there better ways to accomplish this objective? Is this really what they need after all?

Everybody appreciates fast responsiveness, but taking that deeper dive is vital.

So, it’s not about winning a customer in 24 hours. It’s a question of how to engage them and how to do it quickly and effectively. Carrie Simpson says that the conversation then becomes “how you can impress and reel in a client/prospect in 24 hours?”

In other words, don’t just focus on the win; you have to woo a little first.

“You can, and should, encourage the potential customer to start considering making a change in that amount of time,” says Simpson. “Most people, most reasonable people that is, aren’t making snap judgements on how to change their IT environments. But, you can engage them and get that vital conversation started.”

Within this vital time frame, it’s important to do a few things:

“You can’t push people into buying,” says Schmidtmann. If you do, as soon as you’re out of sight, the deal will unravel. My objective is to get people to want what I have. It’s not a matter of arm-wrestling them into signing a contract. They need this, and I want them to take quick action because it’s the best thing for their business.”