December 17, 2020
2020 Wrap-up: Most Helpful Tools + Lessons Learned
Grab a seat by the virtual fire and join us for a look back at the people and tools that got us through a year like no other.
It's a special holiday MSP Live Chat! We're inviting some of our favorite guests from previous episodes back on to talk about their most important lessons learned and key recommendations for starting 2021 right. We'll also be subjecting them to feats of strength AND giving away some truly fantastic gifts, so be sure to join and make your Thursday merry and bright!
- Key 2020 takeaways from OIT's Ray Orsini, LifeCycle Insights' Alex Farling, and more
- The tools that MSPs were most grateful to have this year
- Virtual "Yankee Swap" with cool gifts going to lucky attendees
- Predictions and what to focus on to get a jump-start on 2021
December 3, 2020
Building a Client-Winning MSP Brand
with Matthew F. Fox, Creative Director at Valiant Technology
What sets you apart as an MSP? What makes you uniquely “you” – and why should clients choose that over the competition?
Watch the replay of one of our most active and popular Live Chats yet. We were joined by Matthew F. Fox, Creative Director at Valiant Technology, and learned in detail how his company has managed to differentiate itself in one of the most competitive markets in the country.
Don’t miss:
- How to define your positioning and core messaging + turn them into competitive advantages
- Concrete examples of how Matthew and Valiant have leveraged their brand to win deals and retain customers
- Live analysis and reviews of real MSP websites
Every MSP has a brand. The only question is who defined it. Find inspiration and get a jump-start on elevating your own winning brand by watching the replay!
Materials
- Chat Agenda (with links to websites we reviewed plus a TON of free design tools)
- Tearing Down the Best MSP Websites of 2019 (previous blog post mentioned during the chat)
November 18, 2020
What to (and NOT to) Give Away for Free
with Chris Wiser, CEO of The Wiser Agency
Are you leaving money on the table?
This year more than any other, MSPs are facing pressures to be flexible with clients and adjust to economic uncertainty. But the line between being customer friendly and doing yourself a disservice can get blurry in a hurry, and all too often MSPs find themselves giving away too much.
Join us and MSP growth expert Chris Wiser as we dive into the trends he's seen this year and the key things that have separated those MSPs that have been booming from those who aren't.
Here are just a few of the topics we'll be diving into:
- How are successful MSPs removing barriers to entry and lowering up-front costs to sign more clients?
- What's the consensus on free assessments?
- What are the biggest bad habits that MSPs need to break?
- When are specific costs actually okay to eat?
- How can you shift client focus away from cost and onto value and risk?
- And more...
Materials
November 4, 2020
Building Out Your 2021 Stack
with Ken Patterson, Director of Community at Pax8
What tools should absolutely be on your wishlist heading into next year?
In this Live Chat, we teamed up with Ken Patterson from Pax8 to discuss how MSPs should consider adjusting their stacks and (re)packaging their services to stay competitive in 2021. Watch the replay to see us debate the latest trends and biggest growth opportunities, with an emphasis on:
- Advice for keeping up with and managing increasingly complex stacks
- Factors that should go into your purchasing decisions
- What you actually need security-wise, and what you don't
- Tips for standardizing your offerings and improving your profitability
- And more...
October 21, 2020
MSP Process Horror Stories
with Allen Edwards, President of Eureka Process
Join us for a special Halloween edition MSP Live Chat... if you dare!
Watch Allen Edwards from Eureka Process and NinjaOne Channel Chief Advisor Tom Watson give each other frightening flashbacks recalling the very worst cases of disorganization and lack of processes they’ve ever seen.
Tune in for bottom-line-tingling tales of IT terror, featuring:
- Mysteriously missing documentation (gasp!)
- Monstrous micro-managing (cringe!)
- After-hours profitability massacres (blood-curdling scream!)
- And more...
The guys are also shared some amazing, practical tips to help your team exorcise any poor-documentation demons and crank up your service efficiency, so check out the replay!
Materials
October 8, 2020
Nailing Your MSP Sales Process
with Alex Farling, Founder of Lifecycle Insights
Do you feel like you’re missing out on deals you should be able to close?
Watch two former MSP owners break down the sales playbooks they used to grow, scale, and eventually sell their businesses.
No gimmicks. No theoretical fluff. Lifecycle Insights founder Alex Farling and NinjaOne Channel Chief Advisor Tom Watson share the early mistakes they made, how they overcame them, and the the actual sales frameworks that helped them:
- Win deals faster: By shortening deals to a 10-day sales cycle
- & more frequently: By achieving > 70% close rates
September 23, 2020
Cyber Insurance Demystified
with Justin Reinmuth, CEO of techrug
Do you and your clients have the right coverage to survive a security incident?
Watch Justin Reinmuth, CEO of techrug (Technology Risk Underwriting Group) take on all questions about cyber insurance, including the following:
- What are the different types of coverage and what actually applies to cyber attacks
- What questions should you ask your insurance provider (and what questions should you be prepared to answer)?
- What are things you can do to lower your premium?
- How should you talk with your clients about their own coverage (or lack thereof)?
With the costs of cyber attacks skyrocketing, few topics are more urgent, so check it out!
Materials
September 10, 2020
Pricing for Profitability, Part 2
with George Bardissi, CEO of bvoip
Our original session was such a hit, we hosted a sequel!
Back by popular demand, NinjaOne Channel Chief Advisor Tom Watson and bvoip CEO George Bardissi take the questions on MSP pricing and profitability we didn't get to last time, and dive deeper into:
- Per user and per device pricing
- How to determine your labor and technician costs
Updated MSP Cost Calculator: We updated Tom's Cost Calculator with a new tab to help you determine your technician cost per hour.
September 3, 2020
Pricing for Profitability, Part 1
with George Bardissi, CEO of bvoip
Are your managed services agreements as profitable as they should be?
Join us as we dive into everyone's favorite topic — pricing — and discuss the things you can do to ensure your deals are:
- Structured effectively
- Become steadily more profitable over time.
MSP Cost Calculator: NinjaOne Chief Channel Advisor Tom Watson shared the Managed Services Agreement Cost Calculator he used as an MSP owner to help grow and sell his business, and how to utilize it live.
August 20, 2020
Ask Me Anything About Co-Managed IT
with Bob Coppedge, author of The MSPs Survival Guide to Co-Managed IT
Lately, it seems like nearly everyone is talking about co-managed IT services (CoMITS). Interested in hearing the naked truth about it?
If you have a particular opportunity or current situation you want direct feedback on, we dove into a session with the man who literally wrote the books on the subject — Bob Coppedge. In addition to the Q&A, we covered the following and more:
- What are the most readily available co-managed opportunities now?
- How can small to medium-sized MSPs offer CoMITS successfully?
- What do you need to have nailed down before you even think about it?
- What are the most common ways CoMITS fails miserably?
- How do you market and sell CoMITS in a way that stands out?
Materials
RMM 
Patch Management 
Backup 
Ticketing 
Documentation 
Endpoint Security 
Remote Access 
