Think Outside the Box
Your MSP business has many similarities to other organizations trying to obtain metrics, increase their service provision, and advance profitably. Consider Google reviews: they’ve become a key feature of algorithmic programming which displays what potential clients see when they conduct a search pertaining to your products or services. But getting reviews is difficult. It seems like it should be intuitive— you do a good job, someone who experiences the benefits of your work could, at the very least, say: “Hey, this guy did good!”… but they don’t.
Put yourself in their shoes. Say you’re on the road driving a pickup with dual tires on either side at the back. Say you run over something which manages to randomly break two of them at the same time. You call your insurance company, they send out a tow truck, and you’ve got to wait two hours. During that time, your stomach is in an uproar, you’re stressed, you’re tired, and you just want the ordeal to be over so you can return to the normal machinations of your daily life.
Finally, everything’s done and you get a phone call from the call center that processed your roadside assistance requisition. The agent asks you to fill out a survey— now, how likely are you to fill out that survey? Maybe you will; realistically, the flat tires probably made you late, and your entire apple cart has been upset. Even if you did appreciate the services, you’re probably still going to skip the survey just because you’ve got too much on your plate now.
Small Businesses May Be Overcoming Similar Situations
It’s the same when a small business requires MSP services in a variety of areas. The likelihood is, they very much appreciated and benefited from the MSP business provisions that your company made possible. But taking the time to fill out a survey, write a review, or give positive marks proactively— that’s something difficult for them. It’s not that they don’t like you or want to see you succeed, it’s that they’re busy with their own water-treading and are focused on keeping profitable air in their financial respiratory system against drowning in debt and bankruptcy.
So, give them rest. You know what they say: if you want something done right, do it yourself. Write a review saying what the client’s issue was and how you resolved it. Add in some human details, and don’t let the review get overcome with business-professional gloss. Write like a real human writing a real review. Just make sure that it doesn’t misrepresent the situation or make either you or the client look less than capable mentally. Once you’ve finished the review, show it to the client for approval, and obtain their permission to post that review to your site. This will increase your visibility via Google’s algorithm, save your clients the trouble of writing such reviews, and everybody wins.
As an MSP, you already function as a trusted adviser to your clients, so the likelihood is they’ll have no difficulties allowing such a thing.
Man And Machine
The only issue here is the authenticity of the review. Granted, you’re just trying to increase your ranking and visibility on Google. To that end, any old shenanigans occupying a text block will do— computer algorithms haven’t yet reached the level where they can read content for the content which lies beneath. When a computer system is developed, and reads between the lines— watch out! That’s straight-up HAL-9000 territory. But in the meantime, algorithms can’t really quantify the human element which underlies good content; otherwise, you’d have AI-spinners that actually write readable articles!
Yet, clients can “suss out” that content, and they do. Especially discerning clients whose IT scouts represent substantial interests. To that end, you must produce content which engages even these clients. So, when you write a review, ensure that said review:
- the human element
- Properly describes the situation and resolution
- Doesn’t undermine client or MSP even accidentally
- Has the appearance of authenticity, not a trick
- Doesn’t seem manufactured
When your MSP business takes hold of its own digital presence, you’re likely to see more clients and increased profit. You can help facilitate this via Google reviews.
