SMB Community Podcast

Host Amy Babinchak interviews Josh Barker from TechRug (the Technology Risk Underwriting Group). Their topic is: The Insurance Landscape for MSP's.

Amy starts out with the big question: What's up with the big price increases? Is it all ransomware?

And just so we don't put all the blame on the "bad guys," Amy and Josh also discuss the promises made by MSPs that get them into trouble. If your web site embellishes your promises, you are setting expectations that could cause problems - for you!

Josh Barker is the Senior Account Executive and Advisor at techrug (The Technology Risk Underwriting Group). Prior to joining techrug in 2014, Josh owned a consulting firm providing loss assessment and adjustment services to numerous national and international insurance carriers. Josh has 15 years of experience in the insurance industry and is currently in the process of securing his designation as a Certified Risk Manager (CRM).

The insurance market for MSP's is changing rapidly.

Links:

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-barker-7a852832
• https://techrug.com/

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I caught up with Paul Green again, from Paul Green's MSP Marketing.

One of the first things Pauls says is that you can't really speed up sales most of the time because you don't have the power place your prospects in a position of "needing" your services. Your goal is to be there when they realize they have a need. But you can't create the need.

In this interview, Paul talks about the power of physical marketing (e.g., postal mailings). Unlike twenty years ago, printed material demands attention today. Paul gives some great tips on using postal mailings to remain top-of-mind when clients realize they need help.

Another technique he digs into is to create reactive web sites. In this context, that means to send information to people who visit your web site. This requires some setup since you have to have a way to track visitors at a serious level. This is way beyond popups.

Pauls covers lots of other great tips for MSPs who are looking for new clients. He even talks about how to get non-salespeople to help build relationships with clients on your behalf.

As always, a great interview. Check it out.

Related sites:

https://www.paulgreensmspmarketing.com/

https://www.paulgreensmspmarketing.com/resources/#webinar

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Sponsor note:

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I caught up with Amy as she's running around (virtually) getting ready for the big Acronis Summit 2020. More information at https://summit.acronis.events.

The Acronis Summit is . . . October 19-20-21

Registration is free at https://summit.acronis.events

Amy is a long-time friend of the Channel and is now the Channel Chief Evangelist at Acronis. She is organizing a number of the sessions for the Summit, including all of the workshops.

I'm doing a workshop on selling security (Stop Selling New Stuff the Old Way). Other workshops will be delivered by Amy Babinchak, Erick Simpson, and Rayanne Buchianico. Another great session will be delivered by Larry Walsh on how to attract the right clients.

As you can tell, this conference is not focused on "how to use Acronis Cyber Protect." Day One (October 19th) is jam-packed with that training. The next two days are all about the business side of you business.

Check out the agenda at https://summit.acronis.events - I think you'll be impressed at the variety of business, marketing, and sales topics designed to help you be more successful. I printed it out and found myself highlighting pretty much every session.

Amy gives us lots of good information here on the keynotes and other highlights of the conference. One of those highlights for me will be Dave Sobel's commentaries. And, running throughout, Acronis will have a news coverage channel going on for viewers, with cameo appearances by various speakers and presenters (myself included).

This will be a great event - even thought it's free!

Check it out and sign up today!

Registration is free at https://summit.acronis.events

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I caught up with Michael Slater, Director of Corporate Sales at Sherweb.

Sherweb has promised that the 2020 Accelerate conference will be focused on MBA for MSPs. Accelerate is always focused on education, and 2020 will continue that approach.

Historically, Accelerate has been held in Montreal. So, they decided to move to Florida this year. Well . . . then 2020 happened. Now, the conference is 100% virtual, but still packed with lots of information across two days.

More information at:

Sherweb Accelerate accelerate.sherweb.com October 21-22, 2020 Register Free!

In this interview, Michael walks us through some of the conference highlights. And after the conference is over, "Stage Two" and "Stage Three" will continue engaging partners for the rest of this year and into 2021.

Michael makes a point of focusing on Sherweb's commitment to a long-term partner relationship. We discuss a few examples of how Sherweb has lived that commitment in 2020.

Lots of great details here.

Listen now - and register for the conference!

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Sponsor note:

The MSP event of the year is back. This time, it's virtual and free to attend!

Sherweb's Accelerate 2020 offers a comprehensive online program to help you gear up for the future of managed services. Industry experts will deliver thought leadership sessions and hands-on workshops on sales, marketing, financials, strategic business planning and customer engagement. Also available will be 1:1 meetings and fun virtual networking.

Want to stay relevant in a disrupted world? Join us from anywhere on October 21st and 22nd. Registration is open at accelerate.sherweb.com.

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Today's guest is Todd Snapp from Stridepoint, the developer of Relay Managed Security Awareness.

We do a deep dive into "Security Awareness" services. And, of course, my big question was about the managed piece of this.

Several companies will now send out test phishing email to catch client users opening things they shouldn't. Relay Managed Security Awareness goes way beyond this, including preventive micro education. We also answer the question, "What is security micro education?"

Official bio:

Todd is the President of Stridepoint LLC. Todd and his team have led the charge against Social Engineering and developed key programs and systems to help organizations defend themselves. Todd was instrumental in performing ethical social engineering attacks on some of the largest companies in the US, including government and Fortune 500 organizations. The attacks yielded unprecedented access to the organizations' sensitive and highly secured data using only the telephone, email, and facility visits.

With over 20 years of experience educating contact centers and managing large global networks, he has insight into the marriage between technical and non-technical security. A self-proclaimed "ethical con man," Todd has made it his career goal to enlighten the corporate and government worlds to the serious threat posed by low-tech hackers.

Related Blog: https://stridepoint.com/blogs/

Web sites: https://stridepoint.com/security-awareness/resources/

www.relayaware.com

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Today's sponsor is Sherweb:

The MSP event of the year is back. This time, it's virtual and free to attend!

Sherweb's Accelerate 2020 offers a comprehensive online program to help you gear up for the future of managed services. Industry experts will deliver thought leadership sessions and hands-on workshops on sales, marketing, financials, strategic business planning and customer engagement. Also available will be 1:1 meetings and fun virtual networking.

Want to stay relevant in a disrupted world? Join us from anywhere on October 21st and 22nd. Registration is open at http://accelerate.sherweb.com.

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Today's guest is Victor Raessen, founder of MSP Navigator.

What are the first three questions every new MSP asks?

1) How do I get clients?

2) What are you using for RMM?

3) What are you using for PSA?

Victor won't help you for #1, but MSP Navigator is designed to help you with #2, #3, and all the other "What are you using for" questions.

Victor has worked in the IT Managed Services space for more than 20 years and has experience from both the MSP and the vendor side of the business. Victor is the founder of MSP Navigator, an online platform that helps IT managed service providers keep track of their technology stack and discover new services.

MSP Navigator was founded in 2019 to provide the most comprehensive and curated overview of available technology solutions in order to help organisations in their digital transformation journey.

Built for MSP looking to manage and optimize their Technology Stack, It offers a free and curated overview of almost 900 products from 450 vendors in 77 different categories.

Both MSPs and vendors can self onboard and self manage their profiles. MSP Navigator has had attention from IT Channel Pro, TechTarget and ChannelE2E.

The platform allows you to perform an audit on your current tech landscape by telling the platform about the products you are using today. It presents you with an overview of the products and services in your tech landscape, visualized with smart product cards across different categories. The product cards contain links to the vendors web pages, support and social networks.

Product cards can be used to keep track of information such as notes, the internal product champion, product status. You can indicate your relationship with the product (reseller, integrator, developer) so other users can contact you through your public profile if they need help. The platform can suggest products and services in underrepresented categories, for example based on the NIST cybersecurity framework.

Soon, the platform will let you keep track of your product spend, get notifications on upcoming renewal dates and view feedback from peers that have been using products you're interested in.

Link:

https://msp-navigator.com/msp

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Our guest this week is JB Fowler, CPO of Domotz. Domotz is a fast growing provider of a remote network monitoring and management system for all connected devices and IoT systems. The system is super affordable and enables MSPs to offer new IoT and security services for all connected devices - from cameras to VoIP systems.

JB has spent over 20 years in the networking industry where he has led product strategy for a number of players in the commercial integration, residential integration and MSP sectors. As CPO at Domotz, JB is focused on understanding the pain points MSPs face with managing and securing IoT devices so Domotz can continue improving it\'s software for managed services.

Additional Relevant Information Today's business networks have a lot more on them than just computers and routers. There are all kinds of connected things on a network: Commercial Appliances, routers, firewalls, switches, VoIP phones, Point of Sale systems, Digital Signage, AV Equipment and Security Cameras. Who should be managing all this new technology? MSPs of course.

Web site: https://www.domotz.com

Follow this link for a 21 day free trial.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/domotz Twitter: https://twitter.com/domotz LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/domotz/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/domotz/

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I sat down (virtually) with Harry Brelsford, the true found of the SMB IT consulting community worldwide. For more than twenty years, Harry has been the prime mover and shaker at SMB Nation, and is the author of more than twenty books, primarily focused on technology and consulting in the SMB space.

Many years ago, Harry wrote one of my favorite books on how to be a technology consultant - SMB Consulting Best Practices. For years I had hoped that Harry would update that book for the twenty-first century. Now he has!

Today Harry is releasing The Pocket MBA - Instant Entrepreneur. This is a great new book. It is good for any audience - IT or not - and is a great resource for anyone who is looking to start their own consulting business, for any industry.

In this interview, Harry explains the "Finder Minder Grinder" model he uses to organize the book. You can check it own now at www.pocket.mba/ (check out that URL).

Chapters include:

• So You Want to Be an Entrepreneur?!?!?
• Entrepreneur Business Plan
• Foundation for Entrepreneurial Success
• Discovering Opportunity
• Planting Seeds and Growing an Entrepreneur Practice
• Entrepreneur Marketing
• PIVOT Marketing and Analytics System
• Entrepreneurial Sales
• Be the Rainmaker
• Client Relationship Management
• Business Management
• Financial Management
• Use Case: Consulting Methodologies
• New Ideas!

This interview has some very interesting observations about entrepreneurs, starting a business, and consulting in general. Check it out.

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Brian Doyle meets up with host James Kernan to discuss customer engagement. Most MSPs have rock-solid service delivery process. But - the simple things, like checking in outside of assisting customers when not in duress, get lost. Listen in for some tips on improving your connections and how it can improve your business.

Brian spent nearly 20 years in the MSP industry owning his own shop, as a partner in a Regional Managed Data Center, and as a hired gun for a Mid-Market MSP.

Today Brian runs vCIOToolbox, a Strategic Client Management Platform that helps MSP's with client retention, technical alignment, and budgeting through better business reviews.

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Links: vCIOToolbox.com (SaaS) MSPBusinessSchool.com (podcast)

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Karl Palachuck connects with Dortha Hise to talk about virtual assistants and what they can do for you . . . even if you're a "Type-A" business owner.

Check out a few resources from Dortha to get started:

VA Prep Checklist & Worksheets - if you're ready to hire a VA, this checklist and worksheets will provide you with questions to ask, a place to track your logins, make notes for budget, must-haves, etc. - https://prettysmartva.lpages.co/va-prep/

Make Delegation a Habit - a 10-day challenge designed to support you in identifying what to delegate and how to work with a team; includes downloadable worksheets with actionable guidance to implement faster - https://prettysmartva.lpages.co/delegation-challenge/

Website: http://prettysmartvaservices.com/

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Dortha Hise is the Chief Overwhelm Eliminator at Pretty Smart Virtual Services. She and her team of amazing virtual assistants specialize in untangling tech for their overwhelmed clients.

Clients from wide-sweeping industries rave about Dortha Hise, Chief Overwhelm Eliminator. They are freed up to do the things they love in their business, have reconnected with their joy, and are living a life free of overwhelm.

Dortha is passionate about helping entrepreneurs identify the tasks that cause them overwhelm and limit their profits, shows them how to delegate those tasks, and thus frees up their time. Dortha is compassionate, positive, dependable, and trustworthy. She knows a lot about overwhelm, having been a litigation paralegal for ten years prior to starting her own business in 2004. Dortha has learned she has a gift for supporting others who want to proactively use nature to heal.

Dortha currently lives with her husband Jason, in Folsom, California. They are avid backpackers and have a goal of hiking the Sierra Nevada Mountain stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail. They also have two feather babies, cockatiels and their names are Chuck and Nunchuck.

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