5 Mistakes that are Holding Your I.T/MSP Business from Growing
5 mistakes that are holding your I.T. business back from growing.
And how to overcome each bottleneck to see consistent growth.
These are findings from speaking with 100's of I.T. business owners.
So, here's the first one:
1. Your Offer
Your offer might be stunting your business growth.
Here are a few scenarios:
Low pricing: You should be pricing higher. That prevents you from scaling up your business. That often happens when you copy the offer of another business. You look at what they offer and how they price everything up. Then, you price below them. When many people do this practice, it drives prices down. It becomes a race to the bottom, with businesses pricing less and less. It becomes harder to make decent profits, as a result.
Not solving a big problem - Your offer may not solve a significant pain for your clients that justifies a high price. It can result in minimal uptake and few clients buying, also.
One-off pricing: Your offer is on one-time project fees. That means that you only get paid when a project is complete. So there is no recurring pricing element in your offer. That means you have to chase new business, always. But, unfortunately, it prevents you from seeing consistent, month-over-month growth, too.
If you double the price of your offer, you've doubled revenue in your business. All things being equal. That's how powerful improving your offer can be.
So, it's essential to get on point.
When I work with a new business, I analyze everything, from sales to lead generation. And the easiest place to increase revenue is their offer.
Many times it's a confidence thing.
You don't believe in yourself to charge higher rates.
(If you need help packaging up and pricing a solid offer, here's a link to training that can help you. If you want to work with me to help you with your offer, click the link and apply for a 1-on-1 call with me.)
2. Outdated Marketing Strategies
“There is nothing permanent except change.” -Heraclitus
If there's one guarantee in this life, it's change.
And, nowhere do we see more change than in marketing. What used to work one time no longer works today.
For example, there was a time when Facebook ads was a gold mine. Then, CPMs were only $10, targeting was on-point, and leads were less cold and skeptical.
But, with iOS 14 updates, competitors, and increasing cost per acquisition. People are more skeptical of Facebook marketers and funnels, also. That leads to a better conversion rate.
But Facebook advertising is not what it was. Instead, it went from a blue ocean opportunity to a saturated one, occurring in 5 years. That example demonstrates that what used to work one day no longer works as well today.
If you're not running campaigns every week, it isn't easy to figure out what works. Not to mention understand the right strategies for you to use in your business.
So, what's the best way to learn? It's from someone 'in the know' who has already gotten results for clients in your niche.
3. Mindset
I have a popular business group on Facebook with about 1,200 members.
So, many people reach out to me to look for help trying to grow their businesses.
I am also friends with those people and their posts show us in my timeline.
So, these people want to grow a business.
But, from seeing their posts on my timeline, I know how busy and chaotic those people's lives are. And how counterintuitive their lifestyles are to growing a thriving business.
They go to events, travel, meet friends for dinner, and have crazy fitness routines. It's a lot of stuff they have going on!
But that's counterintuitive to growing a successful business.
Businesses need almost all their time to grow.
It takes monk-like discipline. That means focusing every hour of every day, day after day, for weeks, months, and years.
So, it's that discipline mindset shift that one needs to adopt.
4. Unhappy Clients
If your clients have an average experience with your business. Or, even worse, they are unhappy with your services. That will hamper your I.T. business's growth.
You'll lose out on one of the most powerful growth drivers in business: word of mouth.
Word-of-mouth results in your customers telling others of your fantastic service.
And then those people tell others of your service, also.
You can go from one customer to dozens very fast.
But, if you have unhappy clients, that growth driver you will miss out on.
So, it's essential to deliver a fantastic experience for your clients.
5. Lack Of Support Structures
If you look at any professional athlete, they have an extensive support team.
That's to help them perform at the top of their game.
They've got:
Physios, nutritionists, chefs, and doctors keep their bodies performing at their best.
Sports psychologists to make sure they are mentally right.
Coaches give them valuable feedback to improve every aspect of their game
Financial planners, assistants, and CPAs handle all their day-to-day admin work.
So, they have stacked their team full of the best people.
And yet, when you lot at the average business owner, they operate like a lone wolf.
It's a mistake I made for years, thinking I could take on the world myself. But it's a mistake.
These days, I ask myself:
"what could I have done to get where I am quicker?"
The answer I always get is:
"I wish I knew that [strategy/process/approach] sooner,"
or,
"I wish I had met [a certain person] earlier".
You need someone to help you overcome roadblocks, give you mentorship, and show you a path forward.
That's applicable where you are starting out or running a $10 million per year operation.
Your business will throw you up new challenges every.
So, you need an advisor to help you overcome those challenges.