The challenge is that many MSPs sell based on that pothole. They dig into the tiny little problem and ignore the Grand Canyon-sized gap that is right in front of them. Many times, MSPs will walk away from a sales opportunity. They “uncovered the pain” having to do with that pothole, but the completely missed the Grand Canyon. That’s part of why I take exception to the whole concept of “discover the pain.” What if you actually helped the client discover the giant gap that they didn’t even know was there?

Another common challenge is to focus on the symptom, as opposed to the real problem. Let’s say that you go out of town to an IT event, and you get a headache. You’d walk to the sundries store at the hotel, and drop $5 for 2 Tylenol. It’s not ideal, but you need to get rid of the headache, so you can network, learn, and grow your business.

But if you have that same headache, and the doctor diagnoses you with a brain tumor. And the only cure is an experimental surgery (which insurance won’t cover) and it costs $50,000, you’d pay it. Not to get rid of the symptom (the headache) but to get rid of the underlying problem (and the implications of that problem on your life.)

It’s the same when selling cybersecurity. Don’t focus on the symptoms (lack of anti-virus, an unsupported firewall, etc.) Focus on the underlying problem and how the problem will impact the prospect. That’s how you show the value of cybersecurity.