Editor’s Note: A few weeks ago, Ricky Cain shared his strategy for building a successful reseller business with our reseller community. (If you haven’t joined yet, please do! It’s a great way to keep up with the latest reseller program news and share with other resellers). We were so impressed by his approach, focused on providing a value-added service and engaging with his local community, we asked him to write a post detailing his strategy.
CainTechServices began when I bought my first two domains with GoDaddy in 2005, Ricky1146.com and Caintechservices.com, while attending college at ITT Tech. By 2009, I created a reseller account to support CainTech Services. The first year, I had zero sales. In 2010, I had three sales. It wasn’t until 2011 that my reseller business became profitable and I figured out how to really grow. Now, CainTech Services has 30 clients and nearly 100 domains under management!
How did I accomplish this?
1. Specialize
To start, I built up my skill set, focusing on building websites with CMS platforms like Drupal® and WordPress®. This made it easy and fast for me to build professional sites for my clients.
2. Network
Second, I chose to affiliate CainTech Services with local groups to gain visibility in my community. For a while, this doubled my monthly business.
3. Communicate value
With these skills in hand, I began approaching friends, family, and other community orgs (local business groups, etc.) to show them the value and simplicity of owning a website.
4. Showcase simplicity and control
My conversations focused on how I could build the website for them and give them control upon completion. I assured them that updating a WordPress site could be as simple as writing an email. I found this framing works well with groups and individuals who are afraid of the complexity of going online. To assuage any last fears, I even offered a money-back policy if a client was unhappy with my services.
5. Avoid sales pitches
Instead, I opt for working relationships with groups that I believe in, who may have a genuine interest in my services. My philosophy is that my work speaks for itself, and I’d prefer to work with groups that improve the community where I live.
Since 2012, I’ve used this approach to dramatically grow my business. CainTech Services is an active member in local and regional associations. I now have a diverse portfolio of clients ranging from a national park to substance abuse centers, Women Empowering Women Inc. (Paula's House), and dozens of other small businesses in Monroe County.
I’ve had a lot of success with this strategy and would recommend this approach to other resellers looking to differentiate and grow!
