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Category Archives: Sales

Closing the Deal: How to Take Initial Contact to Closed Sale

15-Apr-13

1582961Smart sales reps at managed services providers (MSPs) know that closing a backup and disaster recovery (BDR) deal takes insight and finesse. How fast should you follow up  and how often? Disaster recovery (DR) and intelligent business continuity (IBC) solutions vendor Datto‘s sales expert Mike Hanauer (pictured) revealed his secrets on the best ways to follow up with potential customers after the initial BDR pitch on the company’s blog. Here’s what you need to know.

Continuum Managed Services: Behind the Scenes

12-Apr-13

behind-the-scenesContinuum Managed Services has inked a deeper partnership with CMIT Solutions, and has launched marketing and lead generation initiatives to help MSPs engage more customers. At first glance, the initiatives look similar to so offerings from MSP industry companies. But take a closer look and you’ll see that Continuum is using C-level meetings to build closer working relationships with its MSP community. Here’s how.

How to Identify Top Sales Reps By Their LinkedIn Profiles

05-Apr-13

linkedinCan you identify a great sales rep just by looking at the person’s LinkedIn profile? Some new research shows that top sales people tend to fit a certain profile in how they use this career and business social networking platform. Do your sales reps fit the profile?  What about your potential hires?  Here’s a deeper look into key tip offs to knowing you’ve found a great sales rep.

Zoho CRM Brings Relevant Email, Chat into Sales Dashboard

27-Mar-13

ZohoCloud-based business applications provider Zoho  (the company behind the enterprise IT platform ManageEngine) is rolling out an update to to Zoho CRM, the company’s online customer relationship management software, adding four major new features and a host of smaller ones that enhance a sales rep’s dashboard view of interactions with customers, including all emails and chats. Here are the details.

The Dark Side of Cloud Services and How MSPs Can Help

26-Mar-13

dark cloudsCloud services are being hailed as the bright spot in the IT industry of the future. Big IT vendors are buying cloud computing startups. Every few months there’s a rumor about a bigger company buying Rackspace (NYSE:RAX). Cloud computing is put forth as the answer to declining IT capital budgets, declining IT labor budgets, declining reseller sales margins and more. Why manage your own Exchange server when you can outsource it? Why keep that server room on-premise when you get all the same services in the cloud?

MSP Sales Training Part 2: CharTec Service Operations Academy

22-Mar-13

More than 130 aspiring and established managed services providers (MSPs) continue to absorb sales, marketing and business development training today at the CharTec Service Operations Academy in Bakersfield, Calif. Former MSP Tim Brewer, who now works closely with Heartland Technology Consultants, is on stage now describing how to scale an MSP business. Here’s a live blog, which will be updated throughout the day.

MSP Sales Training Live Blog: CharTec Service Operations Academy

21-Mar-13

Roughly 130 established and aspiring managed services providers (MSPs) are huddling today at CharTec Service Operations Academy in Bakersfield, Calif. CharTec CEO Alex Rogers described the competitive landscape for MSPs, plus business, sales and marketing strategies. His key takeaway: Simplify your service offerings to two levels — Platinum and Plastic. Next up, Tim Brewer described how to drive change in your business. Here’s a live blog. Check back often. We’ll be making updates throughout today.

Sales Cold Calls: Cutting Through the Noise

21-Mar-13

So many potential customers today live in a world of too much information. They are pitched to by snail mail, email, internet ads, newspaper ads, magazine ads, other ads wherever they look, cold calls, tweets, Facebook posts, LinkedIn invitations, and more. Unplugging is a term people use to talk about disconnecting from it all for some peace.  We live in an age of being overwhelmed by information and content. So how does your business cut through the noise to get your message to decision makers? Here are a few tips from masters of the cold call – entry level stars at commercial real estate brokerage firms.

Leaked images, training documents show Apple merchandise headed to Staples for late March

13-Mar-13

The Apple stuff you’ve been hankering for Staples to carry should be there by late March. Per Mac Rumors, a series of screenshots from training materials for Staples sales associates. The screens describe sales curricula for the iPhone 5, Apple TV, and Mac notebooks. Those materials showed that the training modules needed be completed by [...]

Intronis: Cloud Storage Provider Cuts Some Sales Staff

27-Feb-13

Intronis, which promotes cloud-based backup and storage to MSPs, has cut some sales staff to better manage costs and better align the company for growth with channel partners, the company says. Intronis’s channel and MSP commitments remain intact, the company adds. The big question: Has a new or permanent CEO arrived at Intronis? We’re still digging around on that potential story angle. In the meantime here’s some more background.