TubbTalk: The Podcast for Managed Service Providers

If sales is important to your business, but you still find sales an uncomfortable or difficult process - then you will find my conversation with experienced IT sales professional Paul Lloyd of interest.

In my chat with Paul, we discuss why so many MSP’s waste time chasing business they were never likely to win, how you can qualify business at each stage of the sales cycle, and we explore Paul’s system for minimising wasted time and maximising closed business.

In this episode, I speak to Claire Jenks and Pascal Fintoni about content marketing for MSPs. Claire helps tech businesses, consultants and memberships reach their potential and make the biggest impact through design, content and business management.

Pascal Fintoni is a digital marketeer, video marketing expert, speaker, trainer and webinar host who helps businesses build their online reputation.

They talk about what content marketing is and why it’s so important; why MSPs should embrace it and how to get started. Plus, Claire shares the best type of content for MSPs.

Pascal explains the three key phrases that all MSPs should know to leverage content successfully, how to upgrade and repurpose content, how to avoid overwhelm and when to outsource.

Mentioned in This Episode

• Claire Jenks Graphic Design
• Pascal Fintoni Digital Marketing

In this episode, Richard speaks to Michelle Ragusa-McBain, Global Lead and Channel Community Evangelist for MSP and XaaS at Cisco. And, Michelle is a former chair of CompTIA's Advancing Women in Technology community and a driving force in the industry.

They talk about Cisco’s security stack, and their popular tools Meraki, Duo and Umbrella. Michelle explains how the company has evolved to be an MSP partner, and how they’re working to develop stronger relationships.

She also explains how their offerings are suited to businesses around the world, and what Cisco partners sometimes overlook.

Plus, Michelle explains what XaaS is and why it’s good for customers and businesses, what’s changed in the IT industry and how the changes have led to opportunities for MSPs.

Richard asks Michelle about her experiences as a woman in tech, how we can get more women and girls interested in STEM, and what employers can do to mentor and inspire female employees.

Mentioned in This Episode

• Find your SSI score
• MSP marketing expert Robin Robins
• TruMethods framework for MSPs
• CompTIA
• CompTIA Advancing Women in Technology

In this bonus episode of TubbTalk, Richard speaks to Arvind Parthiban, co-founder and chief technology officer at Superops.ai. Arvind talks about their funding news, the new features they’re introducing and AI-based implicit alerting function.

Plus, Arvind tells Richard about what SuperOps offers and how they’re different from a traditional RMM or PSA tool, how they built rapidly and with automation at the forefront of everything they do.

They talk about the platform’s implicit alerting function and how it makes life easier for MSPs, what the newly-secured funding means for the company and their customers, future plans, and how SuperOps will maintain a user-friendly ethos.  

Mentioned in This Episode

• SuperOps.ai
• Addition Capital
• Tanglin Venture Partners

In this episode, Richard talks to Amanda Stewart. Amanda is the managing director of Edinburgh-based MSP Illuminate, which supports local businesses and charities. And the business has a very strong focus on putting customer service as their number one priority. 

She started the business when her daughter was six months old to give herself the flexibility her employer wouldn’t. Amanda says it’s been a lifestyle business so she can be available for her kids whenever they need her. 

Amanda tells Richard about the kind of businesses she works with, and how she spots people who won’t be a great fit. Customer service and relationships with clients are vital for Illuminate, and she explains how she prioritises that. 

Amanda and Richard also discuss Illuminate’s MSP stack, how to talk about cybersecurity with clients and the challenges of being a business owner. Plus, Amanda explains why she decided to become a GDPR consultant and how that’s helped her clients. 

She also reveals why she still works in the technical side of the business, her thoughts on the labels ‘techy’ and ‘geek’. And she and Richard discuss being a woman in a male-dominated industry and how schools and those in the MSP industry can encourage young people into the sector. 

Mentioned in This Episode

• usecure
• Business for Good
• CompTIA
• The Tech Tribe
• ConnectWise Evolve
• Federation of Small Businesses
• British Chambers of Commerce

In this episode, Richard talks to Nancy Sabino, the VP of Sales and Marketing for Synetek Solutions. They’re an integrated, outsourced IT department in Texas. Previously, Nancy was CEO of SabinoCompTech. 

She tells Richard how the merger came about and how she and her business partner (also her husband) built the business with selling it in mind. She also talks about the tools she used in SabinoCompTech and why it’s a good idea to use a stack from one provider if possible. 

They discuss why Nancy uses the term ‘outsourced IT department’ and why niching is a good thing. Plus, she explains why their business decided to focus on providing compliance strategy support to local medical and care companies. 

Nancy talks openly about the best and worst bits of running an MSP and what it’s like running a business with her husband. She talks about her early experiences in the tech space and how to encourage more young women to consider STEM careers. 

Richard and Nancy also talk about branding, the business benefits Nancy’s podcast and videos have brought, and how she got the confidence to get started. And, she explains what she gets out of being part of peer communities.                                                                                   

Mentioned in This Episode

• Kaseya
• The Tech Tribe
• Jim Collins: Good to Great
• ASCII
• Channel Futures
• Podcast: IT4Whiskey
• ChannelPro Network
• Nerdy Girl Success
• SabinoCompTech on YouTube

In this episode, Richard is joined by Diana Giles. Diana is the president and owner of Skyline IT Management. She’s also the founder of sensible cyber parenting, a free resource website to help parents protect their children online.

She talks about her journey from teacher to owner of an IT company, the challenges of being a one-man-band and how she spots clients who won’t be a good fit.

Diana tells Richard about the tools she uses in her business and why having an RMM, a PSA and an outsourced helpdesk make things run smoothly. She also talks about her relationship with Microsoft as an MSP.

She talks openly about the challenges of running an MSP and being a mother and a business owner. Plus, she explains how her experiences of keeping her kids safe online led to her founding the Sensible Cyber Parenting website.

Diana also shares what it’s like being a woman in a male-dominated industry and her advice for women wanting to join it, the importance of authenticity, and how those in the MSP industry can encourage more young people into tech.

Mentioned in This Episode

• Skyline IT Management
• To Do
• The IT Business Owner's Survival Guide
• CompTIA
• The Tech Tribe
• Pax8
• Sensible Cyber Parenting

In this episode, Richard is joined by Maggie Philbin, OBE. She has worked in radio and television for over 30 years on a wide range of science, medical and technology programmes from Tomorrow's World to Bang Goes the Theory.  

In 2008, she co-founded TeenTech, an award-winning organisation which works across the UK getting young people innovating, creating building skills and preparing for a fast-changing future.

Richard and Maggie talk about what the government can do to encourage more young people into STEM subjects, how young people view the IT and tech sectors, and how businesses can encourage more women into the industry. 

And, Maggie shares what she finds exciting about the tech space right now, how she started in TV and why she was attracted to a career in tech. Plus, she answers a series of quick-fire questions submitted by listeners of the show. 

Maggie also talks extensively about her time on Tomorrow’s World, the inventors she enjoyed meeting and the challenges of doing live TV. She explains why she set up the TeenTech initiative and how it helps young people find real opportunities for their futures. 

Mentioned in This Episode

• TeenTech
• The TeenTech Live Newcastle
• Tomorrow’s World
• Computer Weekly Most Influential Women in Tech list
• Northern Power Women

In this episode, Richard speaks to Jennifer Bleam of MSP Sales Revolution. She works with a small number of MSPs to scale the cybersecurity mountain. She helps them with pricing, packaging and a go-to market strategy. This includes sales and marketing, time management and financials.

Jennifer and Richard talk about why you should use a compliance framework from NCSC or NIST to talk about cybersecurity with your clients, the one tool you should have in your stack, and assumptions that MSPs make about their clients.

They also discuss how Jennifer helps her clients to close sales, her tips for successfulMSP marketing, and why you should consider using both video and webinars. 

Plus, they talk about cybersecurity insurance for your MSP clients, how to sell cybersecurity to clients who don’t see the risk and how you can help all your employees successfully sell your business. 

Mentioned in This Episode

• Essential Eight
• CIS controls
• NIST
• NCSC
• Cyber Essentials
• Dan Sullivan: Who Not How: The Formula to Achieve Bigger Goals Through Accelerating Teamwork
• Keenan: Gap Selling

In this episode, Richard talks to Vera Tucci. Vera is the co-founder and CEO of T-Consulting, an MSP and COMIT. They provide co-managed IT support to SMBs without an internal IT department and larger companies looking to improve their teams. 

She tells Richard how someone without a tech background ended up CEO of a tech company, what it’s like working with your husband, and why she kept the fact they were a couple a secret at first. 

They also talk about what a COMIT actually is, how an internal challenge led to the founding of a side company and how a separate, failed business attempt for Vera led to an inspirational TEDx talk. 

And, Vera shares her thoughts on how MSPs can keep their clients safe, what they need to stop doing when it comes to cybersecurity, the tools you should use and the tools to avoid, and why constant education is key. 

Mentioned in This Episode

• T-Consulting
• Globaldash
• Vera's TEDx Talk: Tears and Tequila