Looking back on the Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business over the last fifteen years . . .
The Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business: #5: Zenith Infotech and RMM tools generally.
The Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business: #4: Autotask and PSA systems generally.
The Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business: #3: Aligning My Business With Microsoft.
Now for the second best decision I've made.
This one is interesting for several reasons. First, I mentioned in the first post that the order of these decisions is not really exact. But #2 is clearly ahead of #3. And to be honest, #1 is clearly ahead of #2. So maybe the order does matter. :-0
Second, my relationship here is probably different from most folks in the I.T. business. But, as you'll see, the image of Robin is not the real Robin.
#2 Best Decision I've Made In My Business: Robin Robins and the Technology Marketing Toolkit
For newbies, here's a link. 5 Profit-Boosting Strategies For Struggling MSPs from Robin Robins
(See, Robin would drive 3,000 miles and choke me if I didn't put in a link there.)
- - - - -
I first met Robin at the Third-Ever SMB Nation Fall conference in Redmond, WA. She gave a presentation and then proceeded to sell her Technology Marketing Toolkit from the back of the room. I hemmed and hawed and wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Then I looked up and saw a line of 70 consultants lined up to hand over their money. And I concluded This woman has something to teach me about sales. So I bought.
Then I signed up for the monthly program. I am SOOOOOO glad I did that. I think it's been five years of call-ins, audio CDs, newsletters, ideas, inspiration, and great stuff.
When Robin started her Managed Services Program I was in on the Beta. I have been in that ever since. Great stuff. GREAT stuff. You want step-by-step information? This is it. I recently helped her kick off the latest version of that as well.
So . . . you can see that I'm a raving fan.
Why? In this case, it's 60% bottom line and 40% inspirational. The bottom line part is that we make money with Robin's strategies and we save money with Robin's excellent information. The inspirational part is surprising to people who have never looked closely at what Robin does.
I've said it before, but I believe Robin mis-markets herself as a marketing specialist. She is an amazing coach. She is extremely inspirational. She brings massive amounts of great information and new opportunities to her membership every month. She holds contests to see which of her members can make the most money - and she gives them prizes when they succeed.
YES Robin provides amazing and great marketing materials that are totally focused on our niche - SMB Consulting and managed services. But she also provides very practical advice, great new opportunities, and much more.
Objections
It is almost laughable after so many years when someone says "Oh my clients wouldn't go for that" or "I don't want my company to look like that" regarding Robins' materials. Thousands of companies have now made many, many millions of dollars using Robin's materials. They just work (if you do the work). There is no debate.
Questioning whether Robin Robins' approach works is like questioning whether the Internet is a fad.
The jury has been in on this for years. In fact, the jury packed up, went home and is getting on with their lives.
"The look" of Robin's campaigns is a classic sales look that just plain works every day.
But it's critically important that you get beyond the basic marketing materials. Robin Robins is about so much more! The Technology Marketing Toolkit is an amazing resource that you will get great value out of - even if you only use a small percentage of it. But more important than that is the constant encouragement, examples (good and bad), analysis, education, and inspiration you get.
A couple years ago I was raving about Robin and the Technology Marketing Toolkit to some folks and a well-place Microsoft manager was listening. He said "Man, I wish I could get someone to talk about the Microsoft programs with that kind of passion." See my last post in this series. I'm a huge fan of Microsoft. But as I told him, Robin Robins has made my company more money than Microsoft has.
My Microsoft relationship takes an indirect route to improving my bottom line. My Robin Robins relationship takes a very direct route to improving my top line revenue and therefore a pretty direct route to improving the bottom line.
Coach, Trainer, Motivator, Yoda
Okay, let's be honest. Robin is way cuter than Yoda. But she plays the role of Jedi Master of Marketing to the consulting community.
There are a few people in and around our community who have raving fans and detractors. Robin is one of these. You cannot go to an event with more than 100 people and avoid the conversation of . . .
- "Blah blah . . . Robin Robins"
- "Who is Robin Robins?"
- "Oh my Gawd. She's the greatest . . . " etc.
- "My clients would never go for that kind of thing . . ."
- "You HAVE to try it . . ."
On and on. This conversation has taken place 1,000 times that I am personally aware of since the day I asked "Who is Robin Robins?"
Now I realize that I play a slightly different role than many people in our community. But the raving Robin fans all seem to have several things in common. We focus a fair amount on the training, motivation, and marketing side of our business. We have decided that being a great technician won't get us where we need to go. We can hire great technicians. And we want to make more money.
Robin's program costs money. It costs serious money. But how many new clients do you have to get to pay for it? One. One new client and you are WAY ahead for the money. In fact, depending on what you sell, you might need 1/4 of a client.
Or you might need to sell one extra item to each of your existing clients.
And after that you'll have this amazing resource available forever.
Personal Bonus
I really like the people I've met at Autotask, Zenith, and Microsoft. But in the end, all of those relationships are KPEnterprises and technology-business-related relationships. In other words, they're all professional. (Don't get me wrong. I've made good friends and I have personal relationships with some of them.)
But the reason Robin Robins rises above all of these is that my relationship with Robin has affected ME personally and professionally. I am forever a better person because of the training, inspiration, and motivation from Robin Robins. She has profoundly affected my success over the years. And no matter what business I'm in, I will have these skills and attitudes to take with me.
- - - - -
Conclusions:
Robin Robins is a great marketer. She's a better coach. Her programs dramatically improved my business and continue to provide me and my staff with inspiration and ideas as well as great tools.
As with Autotask, Zenith Infotech, and Microsoft, we make money and save money because of the Technology Marketing Toolkit.
I have other coaches. Josh Peterson from Taylor Business Group is an amazing person and a super business coach. Jenifer Landers is my super-great life coach. I have a local mastermind group filled with inspiring geniuses. But Robin plays a special role for marketing and motivation. I'm grateful that I stumbled onto her materials when I had a mind open to trying new things.
Comments welcome.
:-)
The Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business: #5: Zenith Infotech and RMM tools generally.
The Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business: #4: Autotask and PSA systems generally.
The Five Best Decisions I've Made In My Business: #3: Aligning My Business With Microsoft.
Now for the second best decision I've made.
This one is interesting for several reasons. First, I mentioned in the first post that the order of these decisions is not really exact. But #2 is clearly ahead of #3. And to be honest, #1 is clearly ahead of #2. So maybe the order does matter. :-0
Second, my relationship here is probably different from most folks in the I.T. business. But, as you'll see, the image of Robin is not the real Robin.
#2 Best Decision I've Made In My Business: Robin Robins and the Technology Marketing Toolkit
For newbies, here's a link. 5 Profit-Boosting Strategies For Struggling MSPs from Robin Robins
(See, Robin would drive 3,000 miles and choke me if I didn't put in a link there.)
- - - - -
I first met Robin at the Third-Ever SMB Nation Fall conference in Redmond, WA. She gave a presentation and then proceeded to sell her Technology Marketing Toolkit from the back of the room. I hemmed and hawed and wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Then I looked up and saw a line of 70 consultants lined up to hand over their money. And I concluded This woman has something to teach me about sales. So I bought.
Then I signed up for the monthly program. I am SOOOOOO glad I did that. I think it's been five years of call-ins, audio CDs, newsletters, ideas, inspiration, and great stuff.
When Robin started her Managed Services Program I was in on the Beta. I have been in that ever since. Great stuff. GREAT stuff. You want step-by-step information? This is it. I recently helped her kick off the latest version of that as well.
So . . . you can see that I'm a raving fan.
Why? In this case, it's 60% bottom line and 40% inspirational. The bottom line part is that we make money with Robin's strategies and we save money with Robin's excellent information. The inspirational part is surprising to people who have never looked closely at what Robin does.
I've said it before, but I believe Robin mis-markets herself as a marketing specialist. She is an amazing coach. She is extremely inspirational. She brings massive amounts of great information and new opportunities to her membership every month. She holds contests to see which of her members can make the most money - and she gives them prizes when they succeed.
YES Robin provides amazing and great marketing materials that are totally focused on our niche - SMB Consulting and managed services. But she also provides very practical advice, great new opportunities, and much more.
Objections
It is almost laughable after so many years when someone says "Oh my clients wouldn't go for that" or "I don't want my company to look like that" regarding Robins' materials. Thousands of companies have now made many, many millions of dollars using Robin's materials. They just work (if you do the work). There is no debate.
Questioning whether Robin Robins' approach works is like questioning whether the Internet is a fad.
The jury has been in on this for years. In fact, the jury packed up, went home and is getting on with their lives.
"The look" of Robin's campaigns is a classic sales look that just plain works every day.
But it's critically important that you get beyond the basic marketing materials. Robin Robins is about so much more! The Technology Marketing Toolkit is an amazing resource that you will get great value out of - even if you only use a small percentage of it. But more important than that is the constant encouragement, examples (good and bad), analysis, education, and inspiration you get.
A couple years ago I was raving about Robin and the Technology Marketing Toolkit to some folks and a well-place Microsoft manager was listening. He said "Man, I wish I could get someone to talk about the Microsoft programs with that kind of passion." See my last post in this series. I'm a huge fan of Microsoft. But as I told him, Robin Robins has made my company more money than Microsoft has.
My Microsoft relationship takes an indirect route to improving my bottom line. My Robin Robins relationship takes a very direct route to improving my top line revenue and therefore a pretty direct route to improving the bottom line.
Coach, Trainer, Motivator, Yoda
Okay, let's be honest. Robin is way cuter than Yoda. But she plays the role of Jedi Master of Marketing to the consulting community.
There are a few people in and around our community who have raving fans and detractors. Robin is one of these. You cannot go to an event with more than 100 people and avoid the conversation of . . .
- "Blah blah . . . Robin Robins"
- "Who is Robin Robins?"
- "Oh my Gawd. She's the greatest . . . " etc.
- "My clients would never go for that kind of thing . . ."
- "You HAVE to try it . . ."
On and on. This conversation has taken place 1,000 times that I am personally aware of since the day I asked "Who is Robin Robins?"
Now I realize that I play a slightly different role than many people in our community. But the raving Robin fans all seem to have several things in common. We focus a fair amount on the training, motivation, and marketing side of our business. We have decided that being a great technician won't get us where we need to go. We can hire great technicians. And we want to make more money.
Robin's program costs money. It costs serious money. But how many new clients do you have to get to pay for it? One. One new client and you are WAY ahead for the money. In fact, depending on what you sell, you might need 1/4 of a client.
Or you might need to sell one extra item to each of your existing clients.
And after that you'll have this amazing resource available forever.
Personal Bonus
I really like the people I've met at Autotask, Zenith, and Microsoft. But in the end, all of those relationships are KPEnterprises and technology-business-related relationships. In other words, they're all professional. (Don't get me wrong. I've made good friends and I have personal relationships with some of them.)
But the reason Robin Robins rises above all of these is that my relationship with Robin has affected ME personally and professionally. I am forever a better person because of the training, inspiration, and motivation from Robin Robins. She has profoundly affected my success over the years. And no matter what business I'm in, I will have these skills and attitudes to take with me.
- - - - -
Conclusions:
Robin Robins is a great marketer. She's a better coach. Her programs dramatically improved my business and continue to provide me and my staff with inspiration and ideas as well as great tools.
As with Autotask, Zenith Infotech, and Microsoft, we make money and save money because of the Technology Marketing Toolkit.
I have other coaches. Josh Peterson from Taylor Business Group is an amazing person and a super business coach. Jenifer Landers is my super-great life coach. I have a local mastermind group filled with inspiring geniuses. But Robin plays a special role for marketing and motivation. I'm grateful that I stumbled onto her materials when I had a mind open to trying new things.
Comments welcome.
:-)
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteKarl, I couldn't agree with you more. Not only has RR helped our business tremendously, but she is, as you say, amazingly inspirational. My life has been profoundly affected in positive ways. And she re-produces amazing inspirational people (count yourself in, Karl) and I aspire to be among those "Geniuses" that she likes to showcase.
ReplyDelete