What does your Service Level Agreement look like?
-
One thing, I think that is most excellent for an ITSP / MSP is to provide a face to the clients. Make sure you work out in the agreement whether or not you need to come on-site once a week or once a month or something like that.
-
@dafyre said:
One thing, I think that is most excellent for an ITSP / MSP is to provide a face to the clients. Make sure you work out in the agreement whether or not you need to come on-site once a week or once a month or something like that.
That's a tough one. It makes a lot of sense but it also increases the cost. It makes it easier for another MSP to undercut by not offering that. It's always tricky in a space where so many customers look at dollars and not results. Not that that is good or that you want those kinds of customers, but it only takes one weak moment of someone seeing cost cutting to jump ship and the relationship is lost. It is a careful balancing act between raising cost to babysit customer's emotional needs versus simply providing the services that they need.
-
@scottalanmiller said:
@dafyre said:
One thing, I think that is most excellent for an ITSP / MSP is to provide a face to the clients. Make sure you work out in the agreement whether or not you need to come on-site once a week or once a month or something like that.
That's a tough one. It makes a lot of sense but it also increases the cost. It makes it easier for another MSP to undercut by not offering that. It's always tricky in a space where so many customers look at dollars and not results. Not that that is good or that you want those kinds of customers, but it only takes one weak moment of someone seeing cost cutting to jump ship and the relationship is lost. It is a careful balancing act between raising cost to babysit customer's emotional needs versus simply providing the services that they need.
It also depends on your relationship with the customer. Do they automatically jump ship to the new guys, or do they say "Hey New Guy is offering to do this for me for 50% less than you. What can we do?"
"Well, we can stop coming on site once a week and then we can match that," Says the ITSP.
With switching to a new ITSP, they are moving to an unknown -- this guy is CHEAP... but is he worth his salt?... Giving their current ITSP (assuming a good relationship) a chance to match it would be more beneficial to the customer, I'd think.
-
@dafyre said:
With switching to a new ITSP, they are moving to an unknown -- this guy is CHEAP... but is he worth his salt?... Giving their current ITSP (assuming a good relationship) a chance to match it would be more beneficial to the customer, I'd think.
If you deal with enterprise customers, there is no problem here. The problem is in dealing with the SMB market which, as I often say, remains SMB for a reason mostly. So making illogical and non-business sound decisions is sadly a hallmark of the market and as an ITSP in that market you have to account for the fact that with the majority of customers, logic, good service, protecting them are not things that will often be taken into account.
