Nothing Happens by Itself
Copyright © 2022 Karl W. Palachuk
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Greetings!
January was busy around here. February brings three big things to my personal agenda:
ONE: The big all-member meeting of the National Society of IT Service Providers All-Member Meeting. As of this writing, we have over 260 people registered. The agenda is posted: Got to www.nsitsp.org and click on "News" at the top.
February 9th
9:00 AM Pacific / Noon Eastern
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Two: Next week I kick of an all-new course at IT Service Provider University on Customer Service for IT Providers.
I take a unique, wholistic approach. AND, this course fulfills one of the core requirements of any of the five pathways to certification.
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Three: I am headed down to Mexico for a vacation with my daughter and her wife. I did some "remote" work back in October, and it went well. This will be about 90% vacation and 10% work.
(I find myself humming a tune about Border Radio. "50,000 watts out of Mexico. . .")
It will be warm and tropical and beachy. So that's good enough for me.
Just have to stay isolated enough to not test positive in the week leading up to my flight. It would suck to be the one who doesn't get on the airplane.
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NSITSP All-Member Meeting - February 9th
Please Join Us!
We have a very active Board of Directors and five very active committees. In this meeting we will give an update on our progress.
A major highlight will be the presentation of the organization's Mission, Vision, and Values. The Board met in special session every other week for two months to settle on these simple but powerful statements.
As always, the NSITSP is committed to transparency. We want to present what the Board has come up with and get your feedback/discussion. It is our belief that these statements will help people who are "on the fence" to commit to our group and join as Professional members.
Join us - and give us your feedback.
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Board of Directors Opening
There is an open seat on the Board of Directors. We are re-opening the application process for this.
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Don't Fear Inflation
If you follow these things, you've heard people say that inflation is the highest it's been in forty years. Well . . . Sort of. Remember that's extrapolated out a year based on one data point. And inflation has been around zero to one percent for a long time.
In fact, inflation has been too low for a long time. Some inflation is a good thing.
I believe inflation can be very good for your business. Lots of good things are tied to inflation (increased revenue and increased wages for example). And they basically force you to raise your rates. That's a very good thing.
It includes an important truth: You best customers are not price sensitive. And you already know that your worst customers are very price sensitive. So what happens when you raise rates? Three important things.
1) You make more money.
2) You might lose clients who don't see enough value in what they get for their money.
3) You might attract new clients who are more interested in service than price.
Price sensitive clients are hard to convert to being less sensitive. It's possible but unlikely. And, generally speaking, these folks are more "needy" as well. Why? Very simply, they are trying to get as much value as they can. They perceive an imbalance between what they pay and what they get.
Clients who are not price sensitive are generally focused on service. They tend to buy more expensive things (cars, houses, clothes, etc.). As a result, these folks will never leave over a price increase.
In fact, you best client are most likely to leave you when someone else is more expensive because they perceive higher value. As Robin Robins likes to say, before a prospect becomes a client, all they about a company is its marketing. So, whether or not they actually provide better service, they sell on the promise of higher service.
With all that in mind, inflation can be a very good thing your for company. It almost forces you to raise your rates. When you do that, you might shed some customers you never should have signed in the first place. And you might gain new clients who are less price sensitive.
Rinse and repeat. Get in the habit of raising your rates and your business will continually evolve to shed "needy" clients and gain service-focused clients who are not price sensitive.
:-)
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I mentioned last time that I've started writing a new book. That's going well. Luckily for me, I write a lot when I travel. Stay tuned.
The economy is filled with volatility these days. Luckily, technology consultants are headed for another good year. Here's hoping your February is excellent!
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Quick Note: CompTIA's Communities and Counsels Forum is coming in March. Join us live in Chicago! AND I will be bringing a couple of employees (who I haven't seen in two years). So join us and meet some of the SBT crew!
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Have a great week.
- Karl P.
:-)
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All-New Course for 2022!
Starts Feb. 15th
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All New Class!
Customer Service for IT Service Providers
Taught By: Karl W. Palachuk, Author and Coach
- Five Tuesdays - February 15 - March 15, 2022
- All classes start a 9:00 AM Pacific
Features
- What is Customer Service and Who Delivers It?
- People: Clients and Employees
- Consistent, Scalable, Reproducible, Amazing C.S.
As I always remind people: Customers just call it service. Among other things, that means "customer service" cannot be bolted on to your business after the fact. It also means you can't assign it to one specific person or department.
Customer service should be built into every piece of you business, from marketing and sales all the way through service delivery and invoicing. We'll walk through this wholistic approach to great service an show you how to build - or rebuild - your business with customer service as the ultimate profit center for your company.
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Great customer service doesn’t just happen. It’s built from the bottom up with great processes, people, and programs. In this course, you’ll learn how to build a system that provides excellent customer service while keeping your company profitable. Most companies don’t design a customer-focused service delivery with intention. We’ll show you how to attract new clients based on your service delivery.
We use a framework that focuses on people, processes, and programs. “People” includes your employees, your clients, and your vendors. And that makes clear why you need to build a customer service system that’s totally consistent with your brand.
We’ll show you how to create a never-ending loop of brand-building, employee management, and customer management. And we’ll do all this with in a way that maximizes profitability.
And of course, all of this is presented in the context of an IT consulting business.
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Delivered by Karl W. Palachuk, author and coach. Karl has built and sold two successful managed service businesses in Sacramento, CA. He is the founder and president of the Sacramento SMB IT Professionals Group, and author of more than twenty books, including Managed Services in a Month.
This course Includes five weeks of Zoom webinar classes with related handouts, assignments, and "office hours" with the instructor.
This course is intended for business owners and managers, but is very useful for every single employee in your IT business. This course has an associated professional certification exam and may be applied to specialist certifications in Management, Sales & Marketing, Service Manager, Technician, or Front Office.
Class Content
Unit 1: What is Customer Service and Who Delivers It?
Unit 2: People: Clients and Employees
Unit 3: Processes for Success
Unit 4: Customer Service programs and automation
Unit 5: Consistent, Scalable, Reproducible, Amazing Customer Service
Note: * Members of the Small Biz Thoughts Technology Community attend at no additional charge. See details in the Community
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All the Resources That Are Fit to Print |
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Recent Blog Posts, Podcasts, and Videos |
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Small Biz Thoughts Blog:
SMB Community Podcast - New episodes drop every Thursday
The Killing IT Podcast - New episodes drop every Tuesday
National Society of IT Service Providers News Blog
Relax Focus Succeed:
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SBT Technology Community News - February |
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Selected Recent Videos and Webinars:
A quick guide to my Playlists:
- Total: Almost 800 videos on the Small Biz Thoughts channel
- 335+ SOP videos
- 250+ Relax Focus Success videos
Plus . . .
- Training, Courses, Seminars on Managed Services
- Product Reviews
- and more
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Community News
SmallBizThoughts.org
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Remember: All SBT Technology Community members can take ALL of the courses at ITSPU at no additional charge. Many people consider this our greatest member benefit.
Now, we are offering certifications for the courses at ITSPU. Members can take these certification exams for only $99 each.
That means you can take the courses for free, study the quiz materials for free, and pay only $99 for a professional certification in managed service. Check it out today! Discount codes in the Community.
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Join our meeting - every Thursday at 9:00 AM Pacific on Zoom.
First and third Thursdays are special programs. Every other Thursday is open forum. See the link on your dashboard.
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Our February Roundtable with Don Crawley was excellent. It was recorded and is not available to all members free of charge. This is an exclusive members-only recording.
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Please join us March 3rd for the next great Members-Only event! Microsoft MVP, Influencer, and community builder Dave Seibert will join us on the SBT Roundtable..
Join Us:
March 3, 2022 - 9:00 AM Pacific / Noon Eastern
The link is always at the top of your dashboard.
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Thank you!
:-)
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Not going to follow too close here
A great balancing act. Applause all around. But I'll be back here if you need me.
:-)
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What's Here?
This calendar lists two kinds of things: LIVE in-person events from any organization that focuses on the SMB consulting community; and MY events, whether live, webinar, etc.
If you have live events on your calendar that may be useful to others in the SMB Community, please let us know. We'd be happy to list them.
Of course: Everything here is subject to change based on Covid. Click the links for the latest details. Please send updates so we can post them.
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February
Cisco Live
Feb. 7-11
Amsterdam
Cannatech Expo
Feb. 8-11, 2022
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
ASCII Success Summit
February 16-17
Houston, TX
Acronis #Cyberfit Summit
February 17 - 18, 2022
Singapore, Singapore
NerdioCON
February 21-23
Cancun, Mexico
Xchange+
February 27 - March 1, 2022
Dallas, TX
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March
Cloud Expo Europe
March 2-3, 2022
London, UK
ChannelPro SMB Summit
New Jersey
March 9th
Comptia Communities and Councils Forum
March 14-16
Chicago, IL
Join me Live!
ASCII Success Summit
March 23-24
Kansan City, MO
Cybersecurity Expo, IoT Security Services Association
March 30-31, 2022
Austin, TX
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April
Channel Partners Conference & Expo
April 11-14, 2022
Las Vegas
SMB Techfest
April 14
Anaheim, CA
KB4-Con
April 20-22, 2022
Orlando, FL
ASCII Success Summit
April 20-21
Chicago, IL
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ACES Conference
Online - Karl is the Keynote Speaker
May 5th
Join Me Live Online!
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ChannelPro SMB Summit
Chicago
May 5th
Ingram Micro Cloud Summit
May 17-19
Miami Beach, FL
ASCII Success Summit
May 24-25
Boston, MA
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June
RSA
June 6-9
San Francisco, CA
ChannelPro SMB Summit
Texas
June 7th
Women in Tech Global Conference
June 7-9
Location TBD
Cisco Live
June 12-16
Las Vegas
Channel Evolution Europe
June 14-15
London
ASCII Success Summit
June 15-16
Long Beach, CA
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July
SMB Techfest
July 21
Anaheim, CA
ASCII Success Summit
July 27-28
Toronto, ON
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August
CompTIA ChannelCon 2022
August 1-3, 2022
Houston, TX
More Info: Coming after ChennelCon 2021 ;-)
ChannelPro SMB Summit
Charlotte NC
Aug 9
Channel Company xChange
August 21-23
Denver, CO
ASCII Success Summit
August 23-24
Miami, FL
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September
Channel Futures’ MSP Summit
Sept. 12-15, Orlando
ChannelPro SMB Summit
Baltimore
Sept 13th
IOTSSA Cybersecurity Expo
Sept. 14-15 --> was January 18 - 20, 2022
Phoenix
ASCII Success Summit
September 28-29
Parsippany, NJ
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October
ASCII Success Summit
October 4-5
Dallas, TX
SMB Techfest
October 20
Anaheim, CA
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November
ChannelPro SMB Summit
So Calif
Nov 3rd
IT Nation Connect 2022
November 9 - 11
More Info: https://www.connectwise.com/theitnation/connect-na
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Note: If you know of any in-person event for SMB Consultants, please send info to karlp@greatlittlebook.com. |
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Small Biz Thoughts is a subsidiary of Great Little Book Publishing Co., Inc. |
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