Selling Managed Services - Is It All About Niche Marketing?

Actually, it really is. When it comes to selling managed services, your niche can be the services you provide rather than the industry you service. Either of those is fine as long as you clearly identify the niche. Let’s look at why.

Identify Your Customers

You have to focus on an effective marketing campaign. Identifying who your customers are is key. If you don't know who they are, then you won't know what package of services you should be providing and at what price.

You'll also be unaware of their pain points, so your marketing and sales efforts will be ineffective. Not all industries have the same needs, and people looking for certain sets of services are looking for very specific features and benefits. You have to understand what these are up-front to maximize your ability to sell managed services.

Know the Niche

Knowing the niche that you’re selling managed services to or that you are in will also help you to work out where your potential audience is, both online and offline.

For instance, if you're focusing on the financial services sector, it is highly unlikely that you would manage to sell to them via Facebook. They’re simply not there; if they are there, it's unlikely they will frequent Facebook for business purposes.

You'd be more likely to find them on LinkedIn, on industry forums, responding to industry articles, and at industry events. They're also less price sensitive than, say, targeting SMB startups. You need to be able to identify these things to sell managed services effectively. 

Tailor Your Offerings

Tailoring your products, services, and packages is the most important part of positioning your business in the marketplace. It also helps you make sure that your business model is viable. You might have an excellent service, but if you’re reaching the wrong audience at the wrong price and with the wrong features, you're unlikely to succeed.  

It's not complicated research to carry out, and it’s vital to your business, yet many strangely overlook it. Take some time over the next week or two to sit down, ask yourself exactly who your ideal customer is, and work out what they are looking for. Once you've done that, you'll have a much easier time selling managed services.  

Have you defined the niche that you’re in and/or the niche that you're servicing? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section. We'd love to hear about your experiences.