Pitch IT | Daniel Ellis PC Powersave

[00:00:10] Hi everybody, welcome to the latest installment of MSP Business School. As always, I'm Brian Doyle, and I'm sure you're seeing at least one other familiar face joining me today. Sean, you're becoming like a semi-regular on this show, man.

[00:00:23] You know, I like to spend quality family time with you, Brian.

[00:00:27] You know, I appreciate that.

[00:00:29] I feel like right there.

[00:00:31] Deep heart, deep heart, lots of love.

[00:00:34] And with us is a new face, though, somebody that has not been on the show yet, and that is Daniel Ellis, who is one of the finalists in Pitch IT.

[00:00:42] And today is the continuing saga of our, you know, Pitch IT prep, our run-up into IT Nation, and making sure that we're giving all the Pitch IT finalists who work so hard to get there some time to share their stories with you, the listeners, with us.

[00:00:58] And in doing that, we're going to turn the tables a little bit today, too.

[00:01:02] I am actually Daniel's coach as one of last year's finalists.

[00:01:06] I get the privilege of working with one of this year's finalists to see how we can make a run.

[00:01:11] And, you know, it's very important to me that we beat Bobby Jacobs, by the way, Daniel.

[00:01:16] Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:01:17] You know, he gets way too much credit out there, and we've got to make sure we knock him down a little bit.

[00:01:23] But I'm going to turn the reins to Sean today, and he's really going to drive much of this interview, which, you know, really isn't saying much, right?

[00:01:30] We're just conversing here.

[00:01:33] You know what?

[00:01:35] Thank you for the low expectations.

[00:01:37] Now I can only go up from here.

[00:01:38] I appreciate that.

[00:01:39] I was hoping you were going to keep on that cowboy hat because I liked it.

[00:01:42] Oh, hold up.

[00:01:44] All right.

[00:01:44] So now that we are.

[00:01:46] Now we can begin.

[00:01:47] There we go.

[00:01:48] It actually suits you, man.

[00:01:50] I've never had a cowboy hat.

[00:01:51] It takes a special person to pull off the cowboy hat.

[00:01:54] Well, thank you.

[00:01:55] I really appreciate that.

[00:01:56] And I figure it only is appropriate considering Daniel's from the other side of the pond.

[00:02:00] I'm sure he really loves cowboys.

[00:02:06] Fine.

[00:02:07] Anyway.

[00:02:08] All right.

[00:02:08] So let's start.

[00:02:08] Daniel, how are you doing, man?

[00:02:10] Fantastic.

[00:02:11] Thank you very much.

[00:02:12] It's nice to see you again.

[00:02:13] The pleasure is all mine, as always.

[00:02:15] And so real quick, though, you were supposed to record this a week ago and you were sick

[00:02:19] because you had the Italian flu.

[00:02:22] Yeah, I went on holiday, had a lovely, lovely time, but I came back with another exciting

[00:02:28] edition of coronavirus.

[00:02:30] Nice.

[00:02:30] Congratulations.

[00:02:31] Thank you.

[00:02:32] Thank you so much.

[00:02:32] You're welcome.

[00:02:33] You know, those are not the kind of souvenirs you're supposed to be taking home, Daniel.

[00:02:37] No, I.

[00:02:37] Yeah.

[00:02:38] I got a postcard, too.

[00:02:39] See, look at the difference in two of us.

[00:02:41] I went to Texas.

[00:02:41] I bought a hat.

[00:02:43] You went to Italy and product Z.

[00:02:45] It's amazing.

[00:02:46] So you're like always one up at me anyway.

[00:02:49] So typically, you know, we like to get into explaining what Pitch It is.

[00:02:53] I'm going to have Brian, if you don't mind, explain to me what is Pitch It?

[00:02:57] Sure.

[00:02:57] So I'll give you my take on Pitch It.

[00:02:59] So Pitch It is run by ConnectWise and it's really an incubator and accelerator for a lot

[00:03:04] of the up and coming vendors that are providing services to the MSP community.

[00:03:10] It's a great opportunity for the vendor to showcase themselves, especially at a time where

[00:03:14] they're probably bootstrapping and don't really have the ability to be at every show.

[00:03:18] So it gives a lot of additional visibility to it.

[00:03:21] There's a learning component.

[00:03:23] Sean and his team bring together a bunch of great speakers that give us different things,

[00:03:28] different takes on different areas that we can improve upon in our business.

[00:03:32] And then I don't want to shortcut this, but it builds community, too.

[00:03:36] We get to work with the others in the cohort, figuring out strategies and ways that we can

[00:03:40] put our products together and potentially make them better by working together, whether

[00:03:45] it's through integration, co-marketing or other things.

[00:03:48] So while Pitch It might be a pitch program where ultimately each one of the folks like

[00:03:52] Daniel gets to share five minutes on what their business is, it really goes beyond that.

[00:03:58] It's almost like truly an accelerator for early stage vendors in the MSP community to really

[00:04:04] get some visibility, get some responsiveness, get some coaching that they otherwise couldn't

[00:04:09] obtain without being part of the program.

[00:04:11] And then the secondary part is getting to compete, refining that pitch, really understanding

[00:04:17] what others think of your place in the market.

[00:04:19] And then ultimately, like Daniel's going to get to do, hopefully get up on the grand stage

[00:04:23] and win some money.

[00:04:25] Absolutely.

[00:04:26] Did that do a good job?

[00:04:27] Did that cover it well?

[00:04:28] Yeah, you covered it very well.

[00:04:29] I think it's important that people know.

[00:04:31] You're beautiful, man.

[00:04:32] You're beautiful.

[00:04:32] Actually, but you know what, what your pitch of Pitch It was tells you exactly the importance

[00:04:37] of what Pitch It was to you, which is probably the same thing as Daniel.

[00:04:40] I think we've established that Accelerated Incubator Program, that exposure to training.

[00:04:44] In reality, it's a competition first.

[00:04:46] You made the competition secondary because the reality of competition really is the long

[00:04:52] haul of being on business.

[00:04:53] I think it really speaks volumes to what you guys have built around the program though.

[00:04:58] While the competition's first, I think if you talk to a man, most of us will say, yeah,

[00:05:03] we want to win.

[00:05:04] We're all competitive and we want to get the money.

[00:05:06] But really, we want to build better businesses.

[00:05:09] And the goal here is 10Xing what you're doing today in a much more strategic fashion.

[00:05:16] And you guys have done a great job at ConnectWise bringing the right people to help us do that

[00:05:21] through the other things that you're doing is just kind of the enhanced offering.

[00:05:24] But yes, it is a competition.

[00:05:26] And like I said, Daniel, my objective is to make sure that he gets up the 70 grand this

[00:05:32] year and not the 30 grand I got.

[00:05:38] So with that said though, now, Brian, thank you for graciously helping me be a head coach

[00:05:43] and for being Daniels.

[00:05:45] Just so people know that this was a random pick.

[00:05:47] It was a random draw.

[00:05:48] Nobody was assigned to anybody for any specific reason.

[00:05:50] However, I feel like you guys are a good match.

[00:05:52] Every one of you guys actually matched up really well as far as I'm concerned.

[00:05:55] You know, because Daniel, you're already a natural storytelling.

[00:06:00] Like you're really good at it.

[00:06:02] Maybe you're not natural.

[00:06:03] Maybe you practiced it.

[00:06:04] But as far as I can tell from my exposure, you've been really good.

[00:06:07] Brian is really good at it as well.

[00:06:09] I think the one thing that we found out though, and even you, you're guilty of as well as what

[00:06:14] are the real talk points of something you have to talk about?

[00:06:16] Brian's simple example for Brian was, why don't you tell people you're an MSP?

[00:06:20] Because he wasn't telling anybody.

[00:06:22] I'm like, tell people.

[00:06:24] I think we, I think as vendors, we take for granted so many of us came from the MSP space.

[00:06:29] But I, you know, Sean, since you've said that, I've even noticed that there's a lot of traditional

[00:06:34] commercial vendors that are now trying to step over to the MSP space.

[00:06:38] They've seen what the opportunity is.

[00:06:40] And that MSP separation does mean more.

[00:06:42] And I think our friend Daniel might have that in his back pocket as well.

[00:06:47] I agree.

[00:06:48] So let's talk a little bit.

[00:06:49] Let's talk about a little bit, Daniel.

[00:06:50] Tell me, tell us about you and about the business real quick.

[00:06:53] Yeah, certainly, certainly.

[00:06:55] Well, background, small business server, 2003, Windows XP, 2005.

[00:07:01] That's when I set up my MSP.

[00:07:04] That was great fun.

[00:07:05] You know, back when, back when Sage tech support would take most of the, most of the week.

[00:07:10] But that was 20 years ago.

[00:07:12] We've scaled it.

[00:07:13] We've grown it.

[00:07:14] We joined ConnectWise.

[00:07:16] We joined the Evolve community.

[00:07:17] We started getting into the MSP, collaborating with other MSPs into that community.

[00:07:24] And somewhere along the line, I started stepping out of my MSP and stepping into PC PowerSafe.

[00:07:30] And that's what my product's all about.

[00:07:32] I'll give you the headlines on it.

[00:07:34] Firstly, I did some work at a school once upon a time, and I saw a problem.

[00:07:38] The problem was that the computers were using a lot more energy than they needed to.

[00:07:44] Way more.

[00:07:45] An alarming amount more.

[00:07:46] So I wrote a little widget, which helped out, and didn't think much more about it until around three years ago.

[00:07:54] When, due to various sort of geopolitical issues here in Europe, the price of energy went way up.

[00:08:00] And the price of running computer systems started increasing significantly as well.

[00:08:04] So PC PowerSafe was dusted off and rewritten for the modern era.

[00:08:09] It's a product.

[00:08:10] Sits on your computer systems and reduces and optimizes the energy consumption.

[00:08:15] Generates reports on it as well.

[00:08:16] So the MSPs, they can go to their customers at all the QBRs, and they can say, hey, guys, look how much money we saved you this month in energy consumption.

[00:08:24] So it gives the MSPs some good news to give to their customers every now and then.

[00:08:28] So it assesses energy consumption and reduces energy consumption.

[00:08:32] That's what the product's all about.

[00:08:34] That's fantastic.

[00:08:35] So it's fantastic.

[00:08:36] And I like that you actually started with a story about the school.

[00:08:39] Yeah, it started.

[00:08:41] Just like, I mean, over here, even in the U.S., schools are always, it's always a conversation about budgets.

[00:08:48] And how can they mitigate some of the costs?

[00:08:51] And they never know really where to do it because there's really, so many schools are so archaic.

[00:08:56] They just keep spending the same amount of money every year because that's what they've always paid for this.

[00:09:00] They've always paid for that.

[00:09:01] They always, it's just, they never even check and balance it anymore.

[00:09:03] So that's, that's actually fantastic.

[00:09:05] Now, do you know by chance, like what the average percentage in savings is for doing this by anybody in general?

[00:09:12] It's quite tricky to average it out because it depends on a lot.

[00:09:16] And I'll, I'll explain it.

[00:09:18] So the first thing the software does, I'm switching to a pitch.

[00:09:22] I partly apologize for that, but not entirely.

[00:09:26] First thing it does when you install it, it analyzes the machine.

[00:09:29] And I'm talking what software's installed, what hardware components you've got, how often the computer is left switched on unattended, how often the computer's left switched on overnight.

[00:09:38] It'll look into the price of energy for that area and what you're using.

[00:09:43] And that's a lot of factors to smoosh together.

[00:09:45] And it means we're trying to work out user behavior here.

[00:09:48] So in one environment, I managed to save across about 60, 70 computers, managed to save 500 pounds per month in the first month that it was switched on.

[00:10:00] But that's all down to the user behavior.

[00:10:02] That was down to a load of people who use desktop computers and quite a few people left the machines on overnight.

[00:10:07] Naughty.

[00:10:08] But you've got other businesses where they'll switch their laptop on for an hour a day.

[00:10:11] So there's a right amount of variance here.

[00:10:15] But generally, we found that we're saving about 10 to 20 percent, probably about 16 percent on the computers that are used really well.

[00:10:26] And on the computers that are used really badly.

[00:10:29] Oh, goodness me.

[00:10:30] I mean, you find that a running cost of 30 pounds a month, that'll drop down to about, it's been about eight.

[00:10:38] So I don't know what percentage that is.

[00:10:40] Couldn't tell you off the top of my head.

[00:10:41] 30 a month down to eight.

[00:10:42] That's a pretty nice saving.

[00:10:44] Whatever currency you use.

[00:10:46] That's literally about 60 percent.

[00:10:50] Maybe 66 percent along that line.

[00:10:52] Because you're sitting almost like 60, 70 percent approximately, but not really.

[00:10:55] But that makes sense, right?

[00:10:57] When you think about a school system, they're using the computers about eight hours a day.

[00:11:00] That means there's 16 hours that they shouldn't be on.

[00:11:04] If you can optimize that period, that's about 60 percent.

[00:11:08] So that equation fits.

[00:11:09] Well, I studied it in one customer.

[00:11:11] They had lessons around first period in the morning, and they didn't have lessons again until last period of the day.

[00:11:17] I think that was every Thursday.

[00:11:19] And for the entire day, the computers were switched on unattended, generating heat.

[00:11:23] If a process crashed, the CPU would ramp up to 100 percent, and they'd kick out more heat, and you'd hear the fans going.

[00:11:29] And then the air con plant would fire up.

[00:11:31] So they're wasting energy in lots of different ways.

[00:11:33] But that was every single Thursday.

[00:11:36] The computers would be on all day, not even being touched.

[00:11:39] Wow.

[00:11:39] There are loads of businesses that do the same.

[00:11:41] It's not just schools.

[00:11:41] Loads of businesses.

[00:11:42] Someone will come into work.

[00:11:43] They'll have a meeting at nine.

[00:11:44] They'll work in the morning.

[00:11:45] Then they'll have a meeting, and they won't come back until the next day sometimes.

[00:11:48] Yeah.

[00:11:49] That happens.

[00:11:51] Yeah, all the time.

[00:11:52] And I love that concept, especially if you're – it's always user error first that costs all the money.

[00:11:59] Yes.

[00:12:00] So you're actually sort of mitigating user error as well.

[00:12:03] Yes.

[00:12:04] Yes.

[00:12:04] That's actually the primary saving we're making.

[00:12:07] We make savings in a whole bunch of ways that users would never think of.

[00:12:11] There's a lot – once you pop the hood, there's a lot of settings in Microsoft Windows that can be used to optimize energy efficiency that no MSP would ever touch.

[00:12:19] Most MSPs don't even have access to those switches to control it.

[00:12:23] We've given access to all of that now and making some pretty nice savings.

[00:12:27] But that's not user error.

[00:12:28] You know, you can't hold the users responsible for that.

[00:12:30] But the whole pitch, the whole product is we optimize the energy consumption.

[00:12:35] With the product, you'll save a bit of energy or you'll save a lot of energy.

[00:12:39] But in either case, you know you're doing the absolute best you can to be as energy efficient as possible, which most businesses love.

[00:12:47] They love being able to save.

[00:12:49] And one last question.

[00:12:51] Is it for only PC or is it also Apple?

[00:12:55] That's a really good question because I looked into making it for Apple.

[00:12:59] You're welcome.

[00:13:00] I looked into making it for Apple.

[00:13:01] But because Apple write the operating system, they authorize the software and they make the hardware as well.

[00:13:09] Because they're the only manufacturer that can do that.

[00:13:12] They've made it really, really efficient.

[00:13:14] It's why my laptop on my Mac, the battery lasts so long.

[00:13:19] They're really efficient.

[00:13:20] So I could write something for Mac.

[00:13:22] And we probably will at some point, but the savings would be much smaller.

[00:13:26] So the advantage isn't as strong to the customer.

[00:13:29] The value add is diminished.

[00:13:31] Got it.

[00:13:31] Okay.

[00:13:32] So back to over to now, you know, Brian.

[00:13:36] Again, we talked about this before.

[00:13:38] One thing you need to talk about is being an MSP when you went on your pitch.

[00:13:42] One thing Daniel said right away is back in 2002, 2003 when I was an MSP.

[00:13:46] I don't think it was even called MSP, by the way.

[00:13:50] No, it was like IT guy, computer fixer guy.

[00:13:54] IT support, man.

[00:13:56] Yeah, right?

[00:13:59] So what would you say is some of your takeaways aside from that from when you were in the program itself?

[00:14:03] Because you did go to the finals.

[00:14:05] That's hard.

[00:14:06] Yeah.

[00:14:06] So, you know, like, as I said, especially when you're getting into the finals, most of the, you know,

[00:14:11] the competitors have really done a good job of refining their pitch and getting ready to, you know, perform.

[00:14:18] So the pitch itself is usually pretty tight at this stage.

[00:14:21] But the thing that you've really got to play into mind, and I've shared with Daniel, is you're now going out on the grand stage, if you will.

[00:14:29] There's 600, 800, 1,000 people in the room that are now watching you.

[00:14:33] You're not behind a screen like we are in the preliminaries.

[00:14:36] You've really got to work on things like your timings.

[00:14:39] Know where you are because you're going to be a little amped up.

[00:14:41] You're going to be a little bit more nervous, you know, as you get into this kind of setting than you might be on the online setting.

[00:14:47] So, you know, know where you need to be at the end of different segments in your pitch.

[00:14:52] You know, you're usually talking about three to five topics in a pitch realistically during that period.

[00:14:58] Where do you need to be at the end of the first one?

[00:15:01] Is it at a minute and a half?

[00:15:02] Look down at the clock.

[00:15:03] There is a clock, if I recall, Sean, that you guys set up on the floor so we're able to keep track of that.

[00:15:08] Am I ahead of schedule or am I behind schedule?

[00:15:11] And you better really practice beforehand how you can either make up time or reduce time within each section.

[00:15:16] What's that thing I can cut out if I'm running long in this section that nobody will really notice?

[00:15:21] What can I insert into this section if I want to go a little bit longer?

[00:15:24] Because you also don't want to leave a lot of time on the clock.

[00:15:27] You know, as far as I'm concerned, you've got to finish between that 445 and 5 o'clock drop or five minute drop the mic time to really maximize and be efficient.

[00:15:35] The second thing that you've got to plan for is the questions.

[00:15:40] There is, you know, it's not, I'm done with my pitch, it's all over.

[00:15:44] The questions, I feel, I don't think they'll make and break you, but your judges are looking for those responses.

[00:15:50] And then from those responses, there is probably a little bit of, hey, this really resonated with me.

[00:15:55] I like that guy.

[00:15:56] I now know more from that response than I did from the pitch.

[00:15:59] And that could play into the voting.

[00:16:01] So you've got to be ready to respond to those questions, be ready to understand that you don't know what's coming at you and be able to pivot if it is something that's there and do it in an entertaining way that keeps the audience involved as well.

[00:16:14] You know, I remember, Sean, I had a question from one of my people that said, you know, how many people actually do QBRs?

[00:16:20] Is it like 80% of the MSPs?

[00:16:22] And I remember just starting laughing.

[00:16:23] I go, I wish.

[00:16:24] I wouldn't need this program if that was the case.

[00:16:26] It's about 20% of the MSPs that are probably operationally mature enough to do QBRs.

[00:16:31] And then they grow into it.

[00:16:33] But that's why we've also enhanced the product with GRC to, you know, expand our reach as well.

[00:16:37] You know, and you got to kind of think in those terms and be very quick on your feet.

[00:16:41] So those were my two biggest things.

[00:16:44] Your pitch is pretty much refined at this point.

[00:16:46] Your coaching groups, Sean, got them to this level.

[00:16:50] Now it's about, are you really ready to be stage ready?

[00:16:53] Yeah, I would agree.

[00:16:54] So Daniel, with hair and all that, have you ever spoke on stage?

[00:17:00] Oh, I think I did it back when I was in school.

[00:17:04] It went horribly if I remember rightly.

[00:17:06] But I think I have, but not in a while.

[00:17:10] Yeah.

[00:17:10] Well, so how do you feel about all that?

[00:17:13] How do you feel you're going to do it?

[00:17:15] Absolutely fine.

[00:17:16] Just don't ask me five minutes before.

[00:17:21] That's when the discomfort will set in.

[00:17:23] I'm going to record footage right before you guys go up.

[00:17:26] Oh, thanks for that.

[00:17:27] Yeah, that'll be great.

[00:17:28] Ask you what you're ready for.

[00:17:30] I'm not nervous yet, but when the time comes, don't you worry.

[00:17:33] I will be.

[00:17:36] Actually, let me put it another way.

[00:17:39] When I first tried to enter two years ago, or when I first entered this year,

[00:17:44] I just kept thinking, wow, if I could explain this product in front of a whole room of MSPs,

[00:17:50] like on that stage at IT Nation, that would be incredible.

[00:17:53] What an opportunity.

[00:17:55] Aha, you provided that.

[00:17:57] So thanks very much.

[00:17:58] So I'm incredibly grateful.

[00:18:00] I'm excited about it.

[00:18:01] And aha, I've got to make that.

[00:18:04] Yeah.

[00:18:05] I've got to make that work.

[00:18:06] Got to make it work.

[00:18:07] It's too good an opportunity to waste it by crapping myself.

[00:18:09] So, you know, I would say this, though.

[00:18:11] The good news is it's a room that is encouraging.

[00:18:15] Everybody is there both to learn about your stories, but also to encourage the process as well.

[00:18:20] So the good news is it's a friendly room.

[00:18:22] Nobody's out there to, you know, hijack your kind of throw you off off your pace.

[00:18:27] Second thing is, Daniel, I walked off, looked at my phone, and I already saw two stripe waters.

[00:18:32] So people do buy when you're up on that stage.

[00:18:35] There is an opportunity that's there, you know, and you got to maximize.

[00:18:39] And take advantage of that as well.

[00:18:41] Absolutely.

[00:18:42] Absolutely.

[00:18:44] Yes.

[00:18:44] I think the combination of the seasonal, well, now with the alumni and the whole season now

[00:18:51] of all the competitors, a lot of them come to see the finals.

[00:18:56] Like, because you guys became friends and they want to see how it pans out.

[00:18:59] And they also want to talk a little bit of crap, too.

[00:19:01] Like, I beat that guy in the preliminaries, I'm sure of it.

[00:19:04] Look at him, he's horrible.

[00:19:05] You know, so you have a bit of both, which is good.

[00:19:06] But I love coopetition, but I love competition, period.

[00:19:13] I think it brings up, you know, competition breeds excellence.

[00:19:17] I would say it feels like the industry as a whole, you know.

[00:19:20] The IT, the MSP space is one of those industries where we will be friends with our competitors.

[00:19:26] We will work with them to help each other to grow together.

[00:19:29] I found it really reminds me of the IT Nation Evolve groups.

[00:19:33] Evolve groups, you will sit in a room and you will all help each other out as an MSP.

[00:19:37] You've created that with Pitch It as well.

[00:19:39] You'll all sit in a room and help each other out as a vendor.

[00:19:42] I adore that.

[00:19:44] I couldn't agree more.

[00:19:45] But there's still competition, though, too.

[00:19:47] And Evolve.

[00:19:49] Because they all talk about the numbers, ultimately, right?

[00:19:53] And I will say, look, I love Bobby and Mark and I love Matt and the whole crew over at Nodeware.

[00:19:59] But in that half an hour that we were in the stage, make no mind.

[00:20:04] I wouldn't have been unhappy if Matt accidentally stammered over a couple of his words or Bobby or Mark forgot what they were going to say.

[00:20:12] In that moment, I would have felt bad, but I would have been happy.

[00:20:15] And then I would have felt empathetic later, right?

[00:20:17] But, you know, it is a competition.

[00:20:19] You want the bragging rights.

[00:20:21] It's, you know, at a bare minimum, you know, no offense to Marvin, but I don't want his knives, man.

[00:20:29] I don't want them either.

[00:20:32] I saw Matt's look on his face and I saw Andrew Hoyen's look on their face when they got knives, man.

[00:20:36] It didn't feel good.

[00:20:38] I know.

[00:20:38] It felt really good on my side, but I can tell it didn't feel good for them.

[00:20:44] So, okay, so now you guys have had a chance to meet once or twice so far?

[00:20:48] Sure.

[00:20:49] We haven't gotten one time because of travel and illness.

[00:20:53] So we're a little behind the eight ball, but, you know, I think Daniel's got the right pitch, the right approach.

[00:20:58] I got to watch his channel program pitch to get understood there.

[00:21:03] You know, I think really it's the, you know, for us, it's the tactical planning and how can you win the room?

[00:21:08] You know, he's already got one feather in his cap, right?

[00:21:11] You know, everybody sounds smarter when they're English.

[00:21:13] Oh, superb.

[00:21:15] Well, all with the villains in your movies.

[00:21:16] Well, we like that too, though.

[00:21:18] Like, for instance, who over here uses superb?

[00:21:21] No.

[00:21:22] Everyone?

[00:21:23] Nobody over here uses that.

[00:21:25] I mean, maybe people do.

[00:21:27] No, stick to it.

[00:21:28] It makes you sound smarter immediately.

[00:21:31] Outstanding.

[00:21:31] Thank you.

[00:21:32] You see?

[00:21:33] And we don't say outstanding really either.

[00:21:34] Good job.

[00:21:35] You're on our roll.

[00:21:37] So, no, you're absolutely right.

[00:21:40] And then the fact that he looks like Professor Xavier before he lost his hair makes it even better.

[00:21:45] So I think he's like really smart.

[00:21:47] I'll take it.

[00:21:48] I'll take it, man.

[00:21:49] Oh, yeah, you should.

[00:21:50] Everybody loves James Bond, right?

[00:21:52] You know, you got to play up this whole angle.

[00:21:54] Oh, my God.

[00:21:55] Yes.

[00:21:56] Yes.

[00:21:56] Yes.

[00:21:56] Yes.

[00:21:58] But, you know, and I think, you know, the other piece is really, I think, you know, that Daniel's got a good sense of what the competitors are.

[00:22:06] The selling sale is in his product, right?

[00:22:09] People only buy things.

[00:22:10] I say it all the time for three reasons.

[00:22:12] Save money, make money, or mitigate risk, right?

[00:22:15] And you've got the save money portion down in spades.

[00:22:19] And, you know, make sure you've got your ROI in your conversation, those kind of things, because that's your product.

[00:22:25] You know, and as a whole, it's really one that can make a difference economically for larger scale organizations like a school.

[00:22:32] You know, where budgets are tight and that money can be used for something else.

[00:22:35] Milk and paper.

[00:22:36] Those are two things I run out of at my life school all the time.

[00:22:41] Look, there's your value add right there, right?

[00:22:43] Milk and paper.

[00:22:44] I love that, because the value add to it is acknowledged.

[00:22:50] It's about telling a story in a way that makes sense to the regular buyer.

[00:22:53] I feel too often in our space, vendors talk to MSPs and tech talk only.

[00:23:01] MSPs talk to their end users and tech talk only.

[00:23:04] And when it's tech talk, I don't understand what you're saying to me.

[00:23:06] You know, your doctor does not understand what you're talking about just as much as you don't understand what they're talking about when they speak in Latin terminology.

[00:23:15] Yeah.

[00:23:16] Yeah.

[00:23:17] And I think that's a great statement, Sean, because the audience, while tech background comes from a variety of tech, you know, they're walking tech, right?

[00:23:28] They could be salespeople.

[00:23:29] They could be technicians.

[00:23:31] Everybody has different technical aptitude in that audience.

[00:23:34] But at the end of the day, we all understand real language.

[00:23:36] We all understand business.

[00:23:38] We all understand value props.

[00:23:40] And I think that's, you know, another approach you got to look at is, you know, I don't think you're going in there talking about exactly how many kilowatts you're saving and how you're doing it by, you know, squeezing this and doing that kind of thing.

[00:23:51] Keep it high level, but hit the things that really are going to make people excited.

[00:23:55] You know, money savings is always a huge one.

[00:23:57] Yeah, I've found, you know, there's so much technical information I could provide, but it's not worth it.

[00:24:03] That's what someone will come over to me on a stand and ask about if they're really curious.

[00:24:08] As techies, we're always keen on explaining how something works because we put all that effort into making it.

[00:24:13] But that doesn't mean you need to say that.

[00:24:15] Stick to you can save this much money, guys, and save the world while you're at it.

[00:24:19] But a lot of owners can't help themselves.

[00:24:21] They have no choice but to say it.

[00:24:22] So, okay, so with that, Brian, is there any specific place that you're starting with Daniel and Al to get them ready?

[00:24:30] Other than music?

[00:24:30] Because you mentioned work the room, but that's obviously a byproduct, I feel like.

[00:24:33] No, it's, you know, again, I've kind of said this a couple times throughout our times together, Sean.

[00:24:39] It's getting your timings down, being prepared, in your head knowing what you can add and what you can cut if you're going long or going short.

[00:24:46] Because that time is your enemy when you're up there on stage.

[00:24:50] The other thing is really making sure you've got your value proposition type.

[00:24:54] You know, we've talked about cost, but also ease of implementation.

[00:24:58] You know, ability to scale it.

[00:25:00] You know, is there automation that drives the implementation?

[00:25:04] Can I install it once on a server and push it out to the rest of the world?

[00:25:06] Those are the things that translate into ease of delivery.

[00:25:12] You know, and that's things, you know, I would say also keep in mind, what are the things your product does that your MSP is going to have to sell when they're selling you?

[00:25:20] You know, I think a lot of the pitch at folks, we forget sometimes that ultimately, great, once our customer buys our product, they need to go sell it.

[00:25:27] So what are the compelling value propositions that you're going to take, Daniel, from your product and be able to communicate to an MSP so they can just turn around and take your words and, you know, repeat them to get their customer to understand it?

[00:25:41] Verbatim.

[00:25:42] In an easy way.

[00:25:43] Yeah.

[00:25:43] As a four-year-old should.

[00:25:45] Yeah, and I think that four-year-old statement is definitely the most important one.

[00:25:49] Keep it safe.

[00:25:50] So, all right.

[00:25:52] So, and Daniel, again, you're a very good storyteller.

[00:25:54] I did say that before, but, like, what do you think are some of the takeaways or things you need to work on?

[00:26:01] There's something I heard in one of your episodes recently, which was, so I'm going to go and I'm going to get my mom to explain my product to me.

[00:26:12] That.

[00:26:13] You said that in a recent episode.

[00:26:14] I love that.

[00:26:15] I love that.

[00:26:15] Actually, I think we have to give that credit to Zach, right?

[00:26:18] I think that was Zach talking about his mom who watches all the stuff where my mother doesn't care much about my stuff at all.

[00:26:23] Oh, yeah.

[00:26:26] That's a class I've given for three or four years, almost, even maybe even longer.

[00:26:31] I started telling the entrepreneurs, the founders, to tell their mother or wife or husband or daughter or son what it is they do.

[00:26:38] Give them a pitch and see if they understand it.

[00:26:41] I've been telling them because I realized I would have these full-blown arguments with the entrepreneur.

[00:26:47] Like, I'd be like, I don't understand what you do.

[00:26:49] And they're like, it's easy.

[00:26:50] Look at this and this and this and this and that.

[00:26:51] And it's like, no, I don't get it.

[00:26:54] You're like, how could you not get it?

[00:26:55] Maybe you're wrong for this space.

[00:26:57] You know what I've been told I'm wrong for the industry?

[00:27:00] Oh, my Lord.

[00:27:02] I'm like, go ask your parents.

[00:27:03] Go ask your wife.

[00:27:04] Go ask your husband.

[00:27:05] And they come back.

[00:27:06] They're like, my mother said, what is it?

[00:27:09] Yeah.

[00:27:09] Like, what the hell do you do?

[00:27:11] And I was like, yeah.

[00:27:12] And Zach does have, he did mention that when we brought it up, how his mother watches the episodes.

[00:27:17] It's like, yeah, I don't know what that is.

[00:27:19] No, but I think that's a great point, though, Sean, because I'll tell you the truth.

[00:27:23] And I joke about my mother.

[00:27:24] She'll watch some of my stuff.

[00:27:25] You know, she's a good woman.

[00:27:26] But all kidding aside, when I was first starting my job, one of my first jobs was I was a telecom agent, sold long distance.

[00:27:33] That was my first job in tech.

[00:27:35] For 15 years, my mom told people apparently that I sold phones.

[00:27:39] In 15 years, I never sold a phone.

[00:27:42] I never sold one single phone in 15 years, yet that's what she told everybody because we worked as an agent for AT&T.

[00:27:49] I assume we've all been there as well with people saying, hey, you can do our website, right?

[00:27:53] You're an IT company.

[00:27:54] No?

[00:27:55] Same kind of concept, right?

[00:27:56] They're all the same.

[00:27:59] They're all the same.

[00:28:00] Come on now.

[00:28:00] You know they're all the same.

[00:28:02] Yeah.

[00:28:03] IT, website, email domains, all the same stuff.

[00:28:06] No, but it's spot on.

[00:28:08] Like, even for me in my career, my mother was like, my mother still to this day has no idea.

[00:28:13] I mean, one by two, Sean, sometimes, you know?

[00:28:16] I wonder every day what I do.

[00:28:18] Anytime you hear evangelist, you wonder.

[00:28:21] I just preach the good word of technology.

[00:28:24] No, I tease.

[00:28:27] I preach the good word of technology.

[00:28:28] I bring everything together.

[00:28:31] Like, you know, the UK and the US, I'm bringing them together on this call.

[00:28:35] Bridge on the ocean.

[00:28:37] Evangelizing.

[00:28:38] Where would you guys be?

[00:28:39] You would never have met.

[00:28:40] You're welcome.

[00:28:43] Modern hero, sir.

[00:28:44] I just want to let you know, though, Daniel, not set any real false expectations,

[00:28:48] but really expectations, that when Brian took second place, he sent me a nice box of cigars.

[00:28:53] Just saying, no, just so you know.

[00:28:55] Anyway, moving on, though.

[00:28:56] No, no, no.

[00:28:56] I won't send you anything.

[00:28:58] I'll just clear it up right now.

[00:29:00] There you go.

[00:29:00] Managing.

[00:29:02] Actually, I do have something in mind.

[00:29:04] I have a little something in mind.

[00:29:07] But Daniel is my favorite applicant, period.

[00:29:12] So because, Brian, I don't care about the story, but like two years ago, I got the email.

[00:29:17] After we wrapped up who was being accepted into the program, we were like weeks into it at this point.

[00:29:22] And I get an email and it says like, shit, oh shit, oh shit.

[00:29:26] That's what the subject line says.

[00:29:28] And with Daniel.

[00:29:29] And he's like, I want to apply for Pidget.

[00:29:32] Is it too late?

[00:29:33] Like literally, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.

[00:29:35] I was like, that alone was like, I have to respond regardless.

[00:29:39] This guy's earned a response.

[00:29:41] And yeah.

[00:29:42] I love it, of course.

[00:29:43] But look, how do you want to report?

[00:29:45] You've not been ready for this.

[00:29:46] There's a little bit of that story you, I never actually told you, I don't think.

[00:29:51] If you're interested.

[00:29:53] Yeah.

[00:29:54] I guess why you did search me, he did hunt me down in the US.

[00:29:56] Oh, I did.

[00:29:57] I most certainly hunted you down.

[00:29:59] Yes.

[00:29:59] At Secure.

[00:30:00] But no, it was a couple of weeks before I sent you that email.

[00:30:04] Yeah.

[00:30:05] You've met Larry Little, right?

[00:30:06] You know, he's a good dude.

[00:30:07] Yeah.

[00:30:08] I met him through the Evolve community.

[00:30:09] Great guy.

[00:30:10] Once upon a time, I was standing up on stage with him and I had to represent the monkey personality.

[00:30:16] And I had to explain what an acronym meant, which I won't explain on this public podcast because it was full of swear words.

[00:30:21] And the look on his face, it was like I'd stood on his cap and I felt really bad.

[00:30:25] And I realized the US and the UK, we have a very different attitude towards naughty language.

[00:30:31] So I had to check with some of your colleagues.

[00:30:34] Hey, I've got to email this Sean Lotto guy.

[00:30:36] Would he be okay if I was a little, you know, if I demonstrated my true feelings in this email?

[00:30:41] Would he be okay with that?

[00:30:43] Yeah.

[00:30:44] Now I've met you, man.

[00:30:45] You're fine with that.

[00:30:46] You're fine.

[00:30:47] You can take the occasional curse word.

[00:30:49] I'm more than okay with it.

[00:30:51] I had to check with so many people.

[00:30:52] I was nervous about ruining my chances.

[00:30:55] I only did the opposite.

[00:30:57] Yeah.

[00:30:57] It stood out.

[00:31:00] My advice to everybody coming into this space is authenticity without disrespect.

[00:31:07] Right?

[00:31:08] You can be authentic and not disrespectful.

[00:31:12] And the beautiful thing about the space is most people are very human.

[00:31:16] It's not, I always say it's the difference between LinkedIn and Facebook.

[00:31:20] The way you communicate on LinkedIn is stuffier corporate.

[00:31:24] Where on Facebook, it's more family friendly and you can let loose.

[00:31:28] Is that what I was supposed to do on LinkedIn?

[00:31:30] No.

[00:31:30] You do what you want.

[00:31:31] Whatever you want.

[00:31:32] And then Twitter is basically, yeah, good luck.

[00:31:35] Anything can happen there.

[00:31:37] That's like the wild west with my hat on.

[00:31:40] So, no, I think it's important that, and I just had this call.

[00:31:45] I just had this conversation earlier today with a startup company.

[00:31:48] And they were trying to, they'd been around doing corporate.

[00:31:52] And they want to go into the MSP space.

[00:31:54] And they were just trying to figure out what the difference was.

[00:31:57] And really what the difference is, is that it's, again, a bunch of friends.

[00:32:03] If you do it right.

[00:32:04] It's either a bunch of friends or a bunch of people that don't like you, so you have to leave.

[00:32:07] It's like, that's fine.

[00:32:10] That's how it works.

[00:32:12] So, no.

[00:32:12] So, okay.

[00:32:12] So, you think you're ready for the competition now?

[00:32:15] Oh, no.

[00:32:16] For the finals.

[00:32:17] No?

[00:32:17] Good.

[00:32:18] I'm definitely enthusiastic, but I'm not going to stop refining this until five seconds before

[00:32:23] I'm up there.

[00:32:25] Well, yes.

[00:32:27] But your deck is due before that.

[00:32:28] So, therefore, no.

[00:32:31] That's fine.

[00:32:32] The deck won't change.

[00:32:33] Just what I say.

[00:32:35] Oh, my God.

[00:32:36] Yes.

[00:32:37] I would say just practice, practice, practice.

[00:32:40] And, you know, that is a key component because you'll get your timings down.

[00:32:43] You'll get your inflections down.

[00:32:45] You know, that's it, too.

[00:32:46] You've got to be human out there, right?

[00:32:47] And, you know, you've got to show emotion.

[00:32:50] Do you have a methodology, Brian, used to practice your presentation?

[00:32:55] So, honestly, what I used to do when I was practicing running up to this was I would still do it in front of, you know, I would do it on Zoom.

[00:33:02] So, at least I was talking into a camera.

[00:33:04] Talking as if there was people out in front of me.

[00:33:06] I stood up, stood at the standing desk to do it.

[00:33:09] And I put the, and I would set my timer.

[00:33:12] So, when I would go into it, I would hit my timer to make sure that number was rolling in my face.

[00:33:16] I was talking to the crowd.

[00:33:17] And really, when I look back at the video, what I was looking at is did I keep eye contact?

[00:33:22] Did I do, like, there's things that I've been trained.

[00:33:25] Make sure you look at the whole room.

[00:33:27] You know, kind of turn your head a few times to the room.

[00:33:29] So, you know, I was practicing making sure that you were making that connection with the audience.

[00:33:34] Because a big part of it is not just what you say, but how they feel about you.

[00:33:39] And if you're looking down at your cards, that's not going to, you know, help.

[00:33:42] If you're looking back at your PowerPoint, that's not going to help.

[00:33:45] Because your PowerPoint will be off, you know, stage right, if you will.

[00:33:49] It's not in your line of sight.

[00:33:50] You've got it in front of you that you can kind of see.

[00:33:52] But, you know, the point is you want to be making that connection.

[00:33:55] So, that's how I practice, Sean.

[00:33:56] Again, whether that's right, wrong, or indifferent.

[00:33:57] It was really pretend like the crowd was in front of you.

[00:34:00] Stand up like you're going to be on the stage.

[00:34:03] And give that speech.

[00:34:04] And make sure that you're also looking at how am I controlling the audience in it as much as timings and all that.

[00:34:09] That's my approach.

[00:34:10] Absolutely.

[00:34:11] This year is no podium, by the way.

[00:34:13] Which actually is probably better.

[00:34:15] It is.

[00:34:16] I didn't like having a podium up there.

[00:34:17] So, we're doing no podium.

[00:34:19] You will have your confidence monitor.

[00:34:21] So, you can see your deck.

[00:34:23] And you will have the timer.

[00:34:25] And, yeah.

[00:34:26] And actually, we'll be unveiling a company.

[00:34:30] We actually have a Pitch It final sponsor this year, which we'll be unveiling soon.

[00:34:34] That actually paid money to sponsor Pitch It because they found the program so awesome.

[00:34:40] Larger company in our space, too.

[00:34:41] That actually, I had five different companies approach me that are bigger companies saying, how do we get involved?

[00:34:47] And I was like, oh, I don't know.

[00:34:48] I haven't thought about that.

[00:34:50] I haven't thought that far.

[00:34:50] And so, now we'll be announcing our Pitch It final sponsor at the event.

[00:34:56] So, I'm pretty freaking excited about that.

[00:34:59] That's wonderful news.

[00:35:00] I know, right?

[00:35:01] Came a long way from 20 people in a room watching this happen.

[00:35:05] Yeah.

[00:35:06] Yeah, man.

[00:35:06] Definitely.

[00:35:08] I'm excited.

[00:35:10] I mean, I just want to.

[00:35:12] As long as I can.

[00:35:13] If I can happen.

[00:35:13] As long as I can pace back and forth and wave my arms enthusiastically, I'll be happy.

[00:35:18] That's what I want to happen.

[00:35:19] I want that.

[00:35:22] I want you to be so excited.

[00:35:24] I want energy.

[00:35:25] I want entertainment.

[00:35:26] If you're lame and you're very monotone, you lose the interaction.

[00:35:32] A lot of times people can win something.

[00:35:33] One thing I learned in sales was even if you don't know what you're talking about, if you speak loudly, people assume you know what you're talking about.

[00:35:42] And they will follow you.

[00:35:44] Like, this way.

[00:35:45] Oh, sounds good.

[00:35:46] Now you go.

[00:35:47] It could be a cliff.

[00:35:48] But I said it really loud and confidently.

[00:35:51] And I think getting rid of that podium is huge because it was kind of an obstruction in the way.

[00:35:58] By the time I got to Q&A, like fortunately, because of where your confidence monitor was, you kind of had to stay either on the right side of the podium or at the podium.

[00:36:06] You couldn't go left, which was kind of tough.

[00:36:09] And I remember when Q&A happened, I remember actually putting the podium almost behind me, like when I got hit with that 80-20 question.

[00:36:15] I used to put my arm on the podium like, wow, that's a good question.

[00:36:18] And, you know, getting that thing out of the way is going to give you the ability to bring the arms into it.

[00:36:22] You guys can't see it in this screen, but I'm always moving the arms and giving the Italian inflection.

[00:36:27] That's my mama.

[00:36:28] Don't want to sound a valve.

[00:36:30] Fool you.

[00:36:31] Yeah, that's odd.

[00:36:32] Well, no, but you're Italian.

[00:36:34] Well, Doyle's the Irish side, right?

[00:36:35] But, you know, mom's a good closer here.

[00:36:38] What should make you louder?

[00:36:38] What should make you louder?

[00:36:41] The Irish side, too.

[00:36:42] I mean, I'm Italian and Irish, obviously.

[00:36:44] I'm not loud enough for you.

[00:36:47] For me, yes.

[00:36:48] Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

[00:36:51] All right, guys.

[00:36:51] Well, we've turned this 20-minute recording.

[00:36:54] Sean, as a host, failed at least the timing part here, Daniel.

[00:36:57] And we've gone well over, but I think we should work on wrapping this up.

[00:37:01] It's been a fun conversation, though.

[00:37:03] And, Sean, thanks for taking the hot seat and kind of driving this thing today.

[00:37:07] I feel like it was not the hot seat.

[00:37:09] I feel like you guys had the hot seat.

[00:37:10] I think we can share the seat.

[00:37:14] But, you know, my two cents, and this will be my time for being biased during this period,

[00:37:19] everybody get out there, support Daniel, let him know that you are ready to see him do his thing.

[00:37:26] Find kind Englishman up on stage who's ready to win 70K.

[00:37:32] Well said, sir.

[00:37:33] Come see me at the show, this special offers.

[00:37:38] That's a great call to action.

[00:37:40] 70K, that's worth like 10 pounds in the UK.

[00:37:44] So you can buy like three coffees.

[00:37:46] Oh, yeah.

[00:37:47] It'd be great.

[00:37:47] I was going to say maybe pay that one light bill.

[00:37:52] Yeah.

[00:37:53] Hey, I guess I'll close it off because I'm the one running this.

[00:37:56] There you go.

[00:37:57] You know what?

[00:37:58] Brian, thanks for being on my show today.

[00:37:59] I really appreciate it.

[00:38:00] You know, it was a pleasure.

[00:38:02] You know what?

[00:38:03] Anytime.

[00:38:04] You're welcome back anytime you like.

[00:38:07] Daniel, good luck, man.

[00:38:08] Thanks, man.

[00:38:09] Thank you.

[00:38:10] I look forward to seeing what you can do November 6th, 3 p.m. Eastern Standard down in Orlando.

[00:38:18] I don't know what room yet.

[00:38:19] I'll let you know as soon as I find out.

[00:38:20] But it'll be on the agenda.

[00:38:21] Once it's on there, you guys got to start running with it.

[00:38:25] Excellent.

[00:38:25] Looking forward to seeing you all as well.

[00:38:27] And next week, we have our last pitch at finalists joining us as well, listeners.

[00:38:32] So come on in and see who's number three.

[00:38:35] Number three on the depth chart of these shows.

[00:38:37] And certainly number two, at least behind Daniel.

[00:38:39] Once we go out there and do pitch it.

[00:38:42] Wow.

[00:38:43] I appreciate that.

[00:38:44] I'm throwing down the gauntlet this year, buddy.

[00:38:46] I'm glad.

[00:38:47] Good.

[00:38:47] I want to see that.

[00:38:48] Top smack.

[00:38:50] I'm sorry.

[00:38:51] Outstanding.

[00:38:52] Outstanding.

[00:38:53] Superb.

[00:38:56] Splendiferous.

[00:38:56] Sholly.

[00:38:57] So that's all we have for today.

[00:38:58] Thank you all for watching.

[00:39:00] Look forward to the next episode.

[00:39:01] Can't wait to not host that one.

[00:39:03] Thank you, Brian, for giving me the hot seat.

[00:39:05] All right.

[00:39:06] Ride them, cowboy.

[00:39:07] Take care, buddy.

[00:39:09] Toodles.

[00:39:09] T Gabs,

[00:39:09] You