EP229 – Ask Stuart #19 – Help! …I’m Scared of Niching My MSP Marketing with Ian Luckett & Stuart Warwick

Or more accurately, the fear of niching. It’s that internal tug-of-war between wanting more leads and being scared that if you narrow your focus, you’ll somehow lose out on opportunities. So in this episode, I turned the tables and interviewed my co-host Ian Luckett, who’s been doing some seriously powerful work with our clients on this very subject over the past 12 months. 

Let’s get this out in the open straight away – niching is not about turning people away or putting your business in a box. It’s about getting clear on who you help, how you help them, and making sure your marketing speaks directly to them in a way that resonates. One of the stories Ian shared perfectly summed this up – a smoked meat restaurant that had crafted a name for itself by focusing purely on one thing: slow-cooked, smoked meats. The manager wasn’t just someone running a restaurant – she knew the ins and outs of the process, the timing, the flavours, and what makes it exceptional. That’s expertise. That’s niching. And it’s a brilliant metaphor for your MSP business. When you’re known for something, people remember you. They seek you out. They refer you. 

Throughout the episode, we reminded listeners that niching is, at its core, a marketing exercise. You’re not changing the structure of your MSP. You’re not excluding existing clients or rewriting all your service offerings. You’re simply putting a wrapper around your message that clearly communicates the value you bring to a specific audience. Whether it’s accountants in the North West, architects in the Midlands, or hybrid-working legal firms in London – if your MSP can solve a clear problem for a group of people, and you can talk about that in their language, you’re already halfway there. 

Ian explained that one of the biggest blocks MSP owners hit is thinking they have to do a full business overhaul to niche effectively. But in reality, it’s about small steps. One message. One landing page. One campaign. That’s all it takes to start seeing what lands, what generates curiosity, and what brings in the right leads. And that’s key – the right leads. Leads who already understand what you do, who are pre-qualified, and who are much more likely to convert. It’s easier, more efficient, and ultimately more profitable. 

We talked about clients who’ve seen significant growth simply by getting tighter with their niche. One MSP doubled his business over two years after focusing on a sector he’d previously worked in. His background gave him credibility. His language mirrored that of his audience. His content hit the mark. Suddenly, he wasn’t chasing leads – they were coming to him. Another client narrowed his niche down to a specific profession in a specific location – and it transformed his marketing from generic and vague to clear, direct and compelling. This kind of shift is possible for every MSP – but you’ve got to start by looking in the rear-view mirror. Where have you been? Which sectors have brought you the best clients? Where do you already have expertise, even if you’ve not yet capitalised on it? 

AI can help with this, too. Use tools like ChatGPT to map out the pain points of your ideal niche, how your MSP solves those issues, and how to speak to them in ways that cut through the noise. Within half an hour, you can have a rough blueprint for your niche strategy. And don’t forget the power of geography – you don’t always have to go industry-specific. Sometimes being the go-to IT provider for a specific area is more than enough to build traction, reputation and referrals. 

The real kicker in all of this is the value of your business. A well-positioned, niched MSP is worth more when you come to exit. It’s more attractive to buyers, less reliant on you as the owner, and easier to grow because you’ve already built a repeatable, scalable marketing engine. And for those worried about stepping back or scaling out of the day-to-day, niching makes it easier to teach your team how to sell what you do – because the messaging is clearer and the target is sharper. 

If there’s one message we want you to take away from this episode, it’s this: you don’t have to niche your MSP overnight. But if you want more leads, better leads, and a more valuable business in the long run, you need to start somewhere. Try one message, one audience, one clear offer – and see what happens. And if you’re not sure how to do that, we’ve got plenty more episodes that walk through building your funnel and your marketing engine, step by step. 

You don’t need to be everything to everyone. You just need to be the right solution to the right people. That’s the power of niching for MSPs. 

Connect on LinkedIn HERE with Ian and also with Stuart by clicking this LINK 

And when you’re ready to take the next step in growing your MSP, come and take the Scale with Confidence MSP Mastery Quiz. In just three minutes, you’ll get a 360-degree scan of your MSP and identify the one or two tactics that could help you find more time, engage & align your people and generate more leads. 

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To join our amazing Facebook Group of over 400 MSPs where we are helping you Scale Up with Confidence, then click HERE 

Until next time, look after yourself and I’ll catch up with you soon!