Often, the best way to be unique as an IT specialist is to narrow down your industry focus. Though it may sound like a daunting task, this article will show you how it can be quite simple.

"Model" Your Best Clients

Find more clients that are just like your current best clients. To do this, take your active client list and put it into a Microsoft Excel worksheet so it is in columns. In the first column, enter the client name. In the next column, have their revenue for the last 12 months. Then, divide by 12 to determine the monthly income and figure out who your most valuable customers are.

This exercise is important because you can evaluate:

o Customer service who should get THE best services?

o Retention who's REALLY worth holding onto?

o Profitability who's REALLY paying the bills?

Categorize Your Clients

Now, look among your best, most active clients and customers. Figure out who falls into that (a) micro category where they have fewer than 10 systems, (b) who falls into that sweet spot of anywhere from 10 to 50 PCs, and (c) then who's very large to the point that you may not be able to service them adequately without adding a lot of high-level technical staff.

From this exercise, you can find more clients that are just like those where you have the strongest expertise. Look at your list and see what makes your biggest and your best clients similar. Now you can become an IT specialist in that field. For example, are they accountants? Are they doctors? Maybe they're office managers; maybe they're controllers, lawyers, small manufacturers, or restaurants. Identify who they are and what they look like because you'll want to find more of them.

Narrow Your Industry Focus

Narrowing down your industry focus will immediately make you stand out as an industry expert. It doesn't really matter what the industry is. For example, if it's dental offices, that's fine. You can be an IT specialist focusing exclusively on dental offices or you could even expand it to other medical offices.

Evaluate Your Own Professional Background

Your own industry expertise could also be a really good springboard. That way, when you present your case to prospects, you will have the benefit of knowing about their field of business. That will be a huge reassurance for prospects. These small businesses are much more likely to pick your firm over someone who is direct mailing a generalized piece with no industry specialization.

The Bottom Line on Being an IT Specialist

Narrow down what industry your current clients fall into and where your own professional background comes from to form your niche as an IT specialist. It will make your marketing and sales efforts easier.

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