One of the best books I got my hands on last year was Gap Selling by Keenan. If you're an MSP sales person, you gotta read it.

My favorite chapter was about getting the first "yes!"

Getting the first "yes" is a simple concept that most of us overlook.

What is the first "yes"?

Below are the cliff notes...

What is the first "yes" anyway?

Prospects are more willing to meet with us if it's in their best interest to do so.

And so our job is to be very good at being a problem finder, not a problem solver.

Let's remember that buyers are insanely busy. People always want something from them. Every day their inbox is flooded with 50 emails asking for 5 minutes of their time...Microsoft Teams messages dinging non-stop. etc., etc.

And so, when we're targeting busy people, we have to stack the odds in our favor.

We need to come with an offer that is better than any other one they'll hear. We need to show that we hold the keys to help them fix a massive problem.

Therefore, the first "yes" is coming with an offer that's of value to them.

Begin by Breaking the Pattern

Think about your own buying experience for a second. When was the last time you even read a cold email in your inbox?

Hard to think of a good one, right?

That's because most cold messages suck at breaking the pattern.

The best ones stand out and compel you to action.

Information overload is real and so we've gotten good at identifying things that stand out.

For example, while driving, do we notice the good driver cars who stay in their lanes and follow the speed limit? Nope. They blend in.

But what if someone is going super fast in a Lambo, are they breaking the pattern? Yes.

So if we want to get the first yes, we have to be break the pattern.

The Offer Compels you to take Action

MSPs have been sending the same boring offer for years.

Hey Prospect, do you want a network assessment, man?

Is your cybersecurity any good, dude?

In 2024, those offers (even if they are high value) fail to trigger an "Oh Shit" circuit.

The "Oh Shit" circuit is tripped when we get surprised, are presented with a mystery or if we feel pain in the form of anticipation.

Prove you know something about their business that they don't know.

Offer obscure information that could positively affect them.

Ask questions you know they can't answer.

Create pain in the form of curiosity.

The offer is good if they'll only close the loop by talking to you.

The offer is good if the value they would get in 15 minutes is greater than the cost of that time spent doing something else.