[Mystic]

Hey guys.

I am having a hard time getting companies on contracts. I have a few on contracts, but these were companies that knew they needed some type of maintenance contract.

I have a few other companies interested, but they hum and har about, I need to give them that extra push, but i'm not sure how to do it without looking like i'm just after their money. I am in a sense, but more after protecting their business.

So I was wondering if anyone can lend me some advice on selling maintenance and service contracts to small businesses (1-10 computers).

I basically deal with win2k3 servers SBS etc.

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leroys1000

You could give them an introductory offer for a lower price,say for
three months to see if they like your services.
Throw in something for free.
Everybody likes free.

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Tumbleweed36

Hi,

Leroys1000 has the right idea, people do like freebies.

Another wrinkle of his idea is if you have a service call to someplace that is not on a contract, give them a free servicel (don't charge for the call and service) if they sign up for the service contract of a length enough to make it worth your while. Tell them something like "this call and service will cost you $ 75.00, but If you would like to sign up for my one year contract at X dollars per month, then this call would be free. " Once you get them on contract, they will probably see that as necessary. just a thought.

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Skie

The suggestions so far are good ones. Another thing is to make it worth it for them to enter the contract with you. i.e. If you have to charge them for something extra that's not covered under the contract, give them a discount. Or charge more for that same service to those that aren't under contract. Also, if you charge $50/hour (just an example) to those that are not under contract, charge $25/hour to those that are (if it's something not covered).

If they see that in the long run, things will be cheaper for them, they'll be more willing to sign that contract. Even if it's just $10/month cheaper, it may help.

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[Mystic]

Great answeres, thanks.

My callout rate is $75NZD + TAX. My contracts cover remote support and unlimited telephone support. All contract holders get a discounted rate of service fees if I have to be called out.

My main goal here is to sell support contracts that involoves remote support. Basically i'm trying to sell the idea that we don't have to come to you to fix problems, just login remotely, saving time etc.

I was wondering if anyone has examples of contracts and what they cover? I don't really have much experience in this area and I have not found much on google related to this.

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Chevy

What do you provide on a maintenance contract? This determines a lot.

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“My philosophy, like color television, is all there in black and white”
-M. Python

[Mystic]

I keep their system up-to-date with the latest service packs etc. IE: When SP1 for SBS Server 2003 came out I went to their site and installed it for free. So it's basic maintenance of their system to ensure it does not go down.

Service contracts are basically when they buy some time off me per month in advance at a discounted rate, this also includes telephone support.

I have a package I offer which includes maintenance support and telephone support, this is the package i'm trying to get everyone on.

Suggestions?

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Skie

If you haven't already, outline everything that's included on paper. In an easy to read format. So far, everything you've said looks good. It's really just a matter of convincing them to sign up. That's more selling then anything else. Also, make sure they understand how many hours you're willing to be on site doing upgrades/etc. You don't want them using up 30 hours of your time each week for things that are covered. Offer different price points, with the more expensive plans offering more admin hours per month. Just an idea if you think you'll need it.

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Chevy

Yeah .. this is the typical type of contract. They pay, and you hope the never call .. ...

I use a twist:

For $x per month, I visit the site once a month and lay hands on every system - checking for things like signs of hardware failures, quick check event logs, ensure all updates are done, make sure AV and antispyware scans are running as scheduled, etc.

I provide them with a system by system report with recommendations. I also offer hardware and maintenance rate discounts if they are paying for PM.

The nice thing is that they see you every month, and the results will be downtime that is manageble (parts die, there's no stopping it, but this type of PM has a great chance of catching the signs early).

Just a thought.

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“My philosophy, like color television, is all there in black and white”
-M. Python

[Mystic]

Great advice, thanks.

Chevy, what were you charging to visit them onsite once a month? Does it matter how many computers they have etc?

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Chevy

PC's (and peripherals like printers)

$60 for the first

$40 for each additional

$40 for a peer-to-peer network up to 10 clients, $5 for each additional

Client/Server networks are case-by-case

Month-to-Month is ok, contract for 6 (payment due upon signing) and get 5% break, for a year and get 10% break.

All field service above what the maintenance contract covers is at $65/hr (instead of $85)

As a sweetener (if needed) I would offer 10% off all hardware purchased, and/or flat $40 to install hardware (specific list, vid cards, modems, power supplies, etc.) if bought from us.

You can play around with the numbers ... Really, you want to break even on the contract itself, and make the money on additional maintenance/parts/new systems.

Be sure to have as part of it a non-disclosure statement (don't want them shopping your rates out), an agreement not to use any other tech service on systems covered by the contract (unless you agree), an early buy-out clause (optional), a reschedule fee (and procedure, say they can reschedule a planned visit with at least XX hours notification, other than that they pay a % surcharge), a payment schedule (all payments due by the X day of the month or upon completion of the planned visit whichever is first), a minimum time between visits (makes no sense to have one on the last day of the month, and the next just a few days later).

HTH

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“My philosophy, like color television, is all there in black and white”
-M. Python

[Mystic]

This was very, very helpful, thanks.

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Double-A

Great Info!