How to Maintain Strong RMR
ConnectWise suggests developing a solid service plan and following through with it to the end to keep RMR on track.
It’s all about the follow-through. As it is with anything in life, you can have the best of intentions, but if you fail to follow through with your objectives, those intentions mean nothing. It’s the same with recurring monthly revenue (RMR).
It’s the holy grail of a good business plan, but if you fail to stay on par with the policies and procedures you’ve set forth, that well intentioned RMR will undoubtedly suffer.
A big part of preserving your RMR is developing a service level agreement (SLA) for your customers. This identifies what you intend to provide your clients, how you plan to do it, and when you plan to do it. It’s an important step, but now, you’ve got to deliver. Can you do it? Will you succeed? How can you identify areas of success and failure?
ConnectWise suggests conscientious tracking of each step identified in the customer contract as a means to successful RMR. If you deliver on your promises to the customer, everyone benefits: They get the great service they expected, you maintain a great relationship and reputation with your customer, and your company enjoys a nice steady stream of revenue.
Here are steps you can take to strengthen your SLAs and RMRs offered by ConnectWise.
Develop a “Story”
Outlining your plan is a lot like telling a story. There are characters (you and your clients), a plot (the procedures you follow to complete a project), and an ending (RMR). When your clients feel like they are part of this “story” they are more likely to engage and feel comfortable with how things unfold.
For our employees, being a part of the story will help them take ownership and pride in the project. Creating a story through your contract develops a framework for everyone to follow — from the characters involved in the story, the problem within the plot to be solved (by you) and a happy ending where you and your company make good on every promise.
Create Clarity of What’s Covered in the Contract:
Make sure everyone on your team and your customers understand EXACTLY what’s covered in the contract and what’s not. There’s nothing worse than a dispute over billing to leave a client with a bad taste in his or her mouth. Even worse, it will eat into your revenues.
According to a Commissioned Total Economic Impact Study conducted by Forrester on behalf of ConnectWise, technology solution providers lose 75% of the revenue they should have captured when a bill is disputed.
Track Against the Agreement
Here’s the tricky part: confirming that you have followed through on each element of the contract. This requires conscientious tracking of the job from the beginning of the story to the very end. Here’s where a business management platform, like ConnectWise Manage, can help.
It allows you to see all work performed against the SLA, helps you decide how to prioritize your projects, automates reminders to the appropriate resources, and helps you proactively renew expiring contracts. It also gives you a clearer understanding of profitability — per customer and overall — so you can define parts of the process that need improvement.
The Story Continues
When you are able to follow through on customer contracts, you develop a stellar reputation that not only keeps your current clientele happy but helps foster relationships with new customers. It’s also good for company morale, as your employees feel good about and take pride in the work they’ve performed.
From the plan to the procedures to a positive end result, a trackable SLA equates to great RMR, consistent money in the bank, profitability and company growth.
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