How Can Managed Service Providers Stand Out in a Crowded Marketplace?
With businesses throughout the world adopting cloud-based file sharing services at break-neck speed, the technology is pegged to become the largest data storage facilitator ever. That being the case, there is sure to be much competition amongst managed service providers (MSPs) looking to grab a share of the market. With so much competition, what can MSPs do to stand out in a crowded marketplace?
A lucrative marketplace invites more sellers – in other words, more competition. Surely you must have felt the pinch of finding it harder to secure more contracts with each passing year, not to mention competitors trying to woo your clients with a new spin on an existing technology guaranteed to make their lives easier?
If this is sounds like you, then fear not – every business has had to go through the same rite of passage at some point in their timeline. There is intense competition in every field of business, and if one thing is an abject certainty, you cannot expect to win over your fair share by marketing the same way every other MSP out there is doing so. Here are a few simple, yet time-tested strategies you can use to stand out from the pack:
Go after one niche at a time
Conventional marketing wisdom dictates that targeting a greater number of prospects at a time can help you secure more clients. As counter-intuitive as this will sound, the exact opposite is true for the same reason that you will not visit a general physician if you have a spinal problem and know that only an orthopedic surgeon can help you out.
In much the same way, you can go after one particular industry and tailor your services to its requirements. The biggest advantage here is you will have to deal with far lesser competition. For instance, the number of cloud providers specializing in the healthcare industry is far less than those that are offering a general cloud service. By becoming a specialist in one niche, you can become the go-to MSP in it.
Focus on becoming an authority
Once you have chosen an industry, direct your energies to being recognized as an expert in it. This will mean getting yourself properly audited against the regulations that are present in the industry, and going the extra mile to provide a class of service that general providers simply cannot do. Try to gain in-depth knowledge about your clients, their environment, and their expectations to create a service which adds value to theirs. Not only will this help you become a better service provider, but it will also set you light-years ahead of your competition.
Engage with your clients diligently
Merely becoming an authority will not suffice if you really want to dominate a niche. Your prospects are already forgetting you the moment they are finished interacting with you, so the only way to ensure they remember is to continuously engage with them. Use social media, email, blog posts, whitepapers and videos to stay in touch with them, offering them well-timed, high-quality content in return for their viewership.
Of course this does not mean you should just stick to one niche. Once you have gained prominence in an industry, you can use the capital earned from it to rinse and repeat this process in another.
