Field Transcript
Ring! Ring!
Me: GreyFalcon MSP, this is Daniel.
Caller: Hello. This is Terry with Acme Wealth Management. May I speak with the owner, please?
Me: Hello, Terry. I am Daniel Curry, the owner. How may I help you?
Terry: Uhm, yes. I’m reviewing the quote you shared with us.
Me: OK. I assume from your tone, you have questions beyond ‘where do I sign’?
Terry: That would be accurate. I understand you are a one man entity?
Me: Not 100% accurate. I have a college student who is working with me as a part-time intern.
Terry: Ah … so, still a one-man shop. But your quote is nearly the same per system as one of the largest MSP’s in Indianapolis. They have several people who would be available to support our business. You would have just … well, you.
Me: And you see that as a point of issue?
Terry: Well, yes. We do. But I’m more concerned about your charge rate than I am concerned with your quality of service, at the moment.
Me: I see. Well, the King’s part of that quote is software licensing to ensure standardization and meeting all of the security and compliance elements of your financial business. From our initial conversation, you were unable to identify which compliances your organization must meet. If you are just a financial institution, then the GLBA Safeguards and a Written Information Security Policy, or WISP, would be sufficient. But as we do not know, I quoted as to meet the requirements of dealer/brokers who are FINRA members. That requires not only CyberSecurity measures, but Continuity measures and the S-ID which is a written identify theft program for ‘covered accounts’. Additionally, there are other licenses needed. Simple office needs, such as e-mail, requires additional licensing for archival and storage of your e-mail. Every single message has to be archived for legal purposes.
Terry: That still does not explain why your quote is almost the same as your much larger competitor.
Me: To be honest with you, Terry, that large MSP is NOT my competitor. For an example, they rarely have the time of day for any client who is not 100 or more end points or users. To have gotten a quote from them for your 16 seat office is quite surprising. Yes, I’m a small MSP. And I will be growing. But that is a good thing for you and Acme. You will have a focused support staff. One who takes the time to understand what your organization needs and creates a beneficial, focused, and custom solution stack to meet your needs. We, or rather I, do not do the ‘cookie cutter’ support solutions for all clients. I find that type of situation to be too rigid and does not allow for my client to grow and QUICKLY respond to changes in market, legal, and compliance landscapes.
Terry: So you are saying these licenses for the tools would be the majority of our monthly bill, if we were to go with you?
Me: The majority? No. Labor is still the most expensive expenditure for my business. But I can also assure you that many of those licenses I can get at a discount through bulk purchasing.
Terry: And if we decide to part ways for some reason? How much of a struggle will it be?
Me: In the 15 plus years I have been running my MSP business, I have had only one client break away that had issues in getting their information from us. And that was because they had not paid their bills to us for two months, prior to their decision to change providers. That organization’s attorney contacted me and I made it clear, ALL of their data we had on them, such as passwords and configurations were already packaged and ready to be sent, just as soon as payment for the unpaid services and outstanding annual licenses were cleared. A week later, we had payment and the then former client acknowledged receipts of their data.
Terry: I find it hard to believe that in 16 years you have lost only one client.
Me: That is not what I meant to be understood. I’ve only had one client who had issues with receiving the information for a smooth transfer to a new MSP. I’ve lost other clients, over the years. A few because of dissatisfaction with services or mistakes I made. But I’ve lost more who did not like that I would not take financial responsibility for their compliance needs when they would not approve the new spending needed to meet new compliance requirements. But every single one of them received, or already had, the full documentation of what my business had done for them. The only thing I held back is my information, which could be considered proprietary.
Terry: Thank you for your time. I have what I need. I will be signing a contract with your competitor. You have impressed me with your knowledge. But I just do not believe you are the right fit for us, going forward.
Me: Thank you. And I fully understand. Hiring an MSP, for businesses your size must include an emotional element. If you do not mind, I would like to share one last item that may impact your decision. That competitor of mine is going to lock you into a 3 to 5 year long contract. My contracts are for one year, with scheduled renewals and increases negotiated during quarterly briefings, as costs of resold services or licenses increase.
Terry: That is good to know. Again, thank you for your time.
Me: And I thank you for yours. If things do not go as planned with that other MSP, feel free to contact me. Happy Holidays to you and yours.
Daniel Curry added a new photo.