Let’s explore the different ways that you can approach training topics at your MSP. As I mentioned in one of my past blogs, you probably noticed MSPs offering events and then considered doing so yourself. Perhaps you’ve run a cybersecurity awareness training session or offered something on one of the many Microsoft 365 cloud tools.
There are at least three different paths that you can go down when deciding on the type of training or events that your MSP hosts.
- End-user training
- Thought leadership educational-based training
- Project-related training
End-user training is one of the most common types of professional training offered today. When it comes to topics in this realm — the world is your oyster. At PoplarMSP, we offer end-user training on cybersecurity awareness, Microsoft applications (Excel, Word, Outlook etc.) and Microsoft Teams. Within each of these areas, you can offer different levels of training or categories. For instance, you could offer an entire session on password management as a subset of cybersecurity awareness training.
You can expand upon these foundations by doing some market research within your client base. Do you work with any key verticals, like law or accounting firms where there would be high demand for training on a specific standard line of business software? Now is the time to find out what your clients need. Understanding their needs will give you insight into what will attract your prospects.
A second path you can pursue is one aligned with your brand positioning. You can position your MSP as a thought leader by offering educational-based training on topics relevant to trends and challenges within the small business community or the broader MSP industry. Topics could include: cybersecurity, IT management or remote productivity from a C-level perspective.
A third approach that can help guide the type of training that you offer is one that relates directly to new projects. Many small to medium-sized businesses have moved or are moving to the cloud and are operating in a hybrid environment. With this shift, you have an opportunity to train your clients and their employees on Microsoft cloud tools, like Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive and so on. This isn’t a need that is going away anytime soon and new employees will always require training. By offering training as part of a project roll-out, you will add value to your MSP and this will help differentiate you from your competitors.