CompTIA, the nonprofit association for the technology industry, has launched a Managed Services Client Lifecycle tool in an effort to help boost managed services providers (MSPs) customer acquisition, retention and growth.

The new tool was created by the CompTIA Managed Services Community and is designed to help MSPs navigate the customer engagement process - from initial prospecting through contract renewal.

An upcoming CompTIA study on the managed services market shows that the top two immediate priorities for MSPs are increasing their volume of net new customers (cited by 62% of MSPs surveyed) and expanding business with existing customers (58%).According to CompTIA, the tool allows any MSP to visualise the optimal client engagement for a managed services practice. It can also be combined with other content and programmes created by the CompTIA Managed Services Community, and the resources are linked to the Managed Services Client Lifecycle graphic, which enables users to find the most relevant and helpful information available, according to the company.

“Many MSPs are winging it, with no real direction or understanding of what it takes to bring on a new customer and keep the customer for the long term,” says Vince Tinnirello, community chair and CEO of Anchor Network Solutions, a provider of IT consulting services.

“The Managed Services Client Lifecycle can help them identify and evaluate all areas of their business to assure that they're doing all they should for their clients,” he says.

“Each of these lifecycle steps must work together to build an effective MSP business model,” says community member John Tippett, vice president and general manager of Aisle8, a unified manufacturer and distributor serving IT solution providers.

“This tool provides a graphical overview of the MSP client lifecycle and helps visualise how each area is related. The interface brings a breadth of resources together for easy access in each of the major cogs,” he says.