Yesterday, we took our one-year-old daughter for a day out to a local fruit farm and tried to go to their play complex.  I asked ‘how much to take our kid in’?  ‘We charge £4.25 per adult’ said the attendant, I said, ‘Sorry, did you say £4.25 per adult’, making a quick calculation that it […]

I work in marketing (I think? Or I did and nobody has told me otherwise) for a Software Company. They provide software to help run IT Companies, or as they seem to be known (in some cases) Managed Service Providers! Previously, however, I was an IT Guy and formed one of these IT Companies and […]

I recall being at a networking meeting once with a woman who was reputed to be very good at marketing, and, I’m sure she was – her track record supported her reputation.  In any event, she was explaining how, if she had to say one thing (and one thing only) to a customer then this is […]

Running any business during these turbulent times is stressful. Operating an IT Support Business which deals with those businesses most affected by the recession – smaller companies — is especially nerve-wracking. We think tthat the best way to reduce stress is to start implementing services that generate recurring, predictable revenue streams – often called Managed […]

and failure!  In my experience there are a few to think about.  See below. I’m assuming that most small and medium sized IT companies are run by Technical people who’ve grown into the CEO/Managing Director role, much as I did myself. Technical skills are a given then!  So, in order to be successful at the […]

Some years ago, I read Covey’s book ‘Seven Habits of Highly Succesful People’.  The message above all others that I took away from it was that the most succesful people ‘invested’ in building and maintaining RELATIONSHIPS. You’re probably wondering how this fits into the world of the IT Company/Managed Service Provider, but bear with me. […]

Cycling to work this morning for this first time since last month’s accident, I was wondering what I’d write about this morning.  As it happened I was cycling through Dundee Centre past the main offices in town. I remembered that most of the big business had been customers of the IT Company I used to […]

In sales, understanding your clients’ needs plays an instrumental role in determining what it is that you’re going to sell them. It also sets the stage for how you’re going to then position those services. One way to simplify this process would be to create and then research a “target list” of prospects. This will […]

A random thought popped into my (mostly empty) head this morning.  During the last few years that I was running my IT company, I changed from being very nervous when asking for money to being much more comfortable.  I think the turning point was a book I read – ‘The Undercover Economist’.  Fast forward a year after reading that book … for […]

Just an throwaway marketing thought… It’s a scientifically proven fact that people tend to adopt a ‘herding instinct’ in times of uncertainty. I think the decision process goes something like this: ‘Jeezo – I’m worried. The quickest way I can arrive at a decision is to check what everybody else in the same situation is […]