(Note: This article was originally posted to CRN.com Aug. 24.)

Want to drive more recurrinf revenue each month? You have to get in front of more qualified prospects and focus your conversations around business results, a managed service provider says.

Channel partners should set their price points above those of the competition so that the conversation with end users can be framed around boosting productivity rather than cutting costs, said Kevin Studley, president of The Network Pro LLC. The Fullerton, Calif.-based MSP has grown its base of monthly recurring revenue from just $30,000 five years ago to some $300,000 today, Studley said.

"Customers don't understand the true costs of IT and technology," Studley said during a session at XChange 2016 in San Antonio, hosted by IT Best Of Breed's parent, The Channel Company. "You have to talk about the results of your process, your company's way of doing things."   

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An MSP should begin its recurring revenue journey by setting a life plan, or liquid net worth goal, for the next decade. Studley said the life plan creates the passion or drive necessary for commitment to a business plan.  

"Once you understand what you're really working for, then you can start with your business plan," Studley said. 

Solution providers almost always underestimate the number of calls needed to secure a meeting and the number of meetings to secure a deal, Studley said. When The Network Pro was trying to break into recurring revenue, Studley said the company needed to meet with 20 or 25 different clients in order to land a single deal.

Studley encouraged MSPs to create a uniform lead-generation and sales pitch process so they can systemically evaluate win rates and test the impact of revisions or tweaks to the formula.

He also said that partners should schedule more appointments than needed to hit their goals since some clients will back out at the last minute; The Network Pro, for instance, targets 3.1 client meetings each week, Studley said, but recognizes it will complete just 2.7, on average.   

Each prospect entered into The Network Pro's database receives a rating of "unqualified," "qualified" or "Warm 250," the term the company uses to describe its best leads.

Studley said a prospect doesn't go from unqualified to qualified until The Network Pro has identified the decision-maker within the organization and gotten a sense of how they spend on IT. Roughly 80 percent of The Network Pro's sales calls take place to prospects that have already been qualified, Studley said.

Once The Network Pro has ascertained that the decision-maker in the client organization will take their call, the prospect is upgraded to Warm 250, which is where Studley said most sales come from.