Achieving MSP Excellence in 2026: Do This — Not That
If you want to grow a top-tier MSP business, you’re in the right place. Here at The 20, we don’t help busy owners with struggling shops get a little better. Our goal is loftier than that: we want to help you be great – a top-20% company with healthy margins, consistent growth, and next-level scalability.
But sometimes, sound advice on how to reach the top of the managed services industry can get lost in translation, misinterpreted, taken the wrong way. And when that happens, what could’ve been sage guidance turns into self-sabotage. You do what you thought you were supposed to do . . . but end up worse off than before!
To help you avoid this, we’ve compiled some common words of wisdom on MSP excellence – but with key clarifications. For each of the following nine pieces of advice, we’re sharing what it means – and just as importantly, what it doesn’t. If you can remember to take the right advice the right way, you’ll be well on your way to MSP excellence.
1. Don’t Be Your Business – But Don’t Be Invisible
If you are your business – i.e., if the knowledge it takes to run your business lives primarily inside your head – you’re bottlenecking your own growth. Elite MSPs run smoothly without direct and constant oversight from their owners.
But that DOESN’T mean you should ‘disappear.’ In fact, in modern B2B sales and marketing, the companies with highly visible leaders fare the best. So, as scary as it may feel, you need to start building your personal brand if you haven’t already. Start with something small – a weekly LinkedIn post for instance – and then go from there. You don’t want to be your business – but you definitely want to be its face.
2. Put Clients First – But Not by Always Saying Yes
In 2026, a ‘client-centric’ approach remains key to achieving MSP excellence. So make sure to put your clients first!
However, DON’T interpret that to mean always saying yes. Indiscriminate compliance with your clients’ requests stretches your resources too thin and leads to burnout. In fact, putting clients first not only means saying no to specific requests, but letting go of clients who drain resources and constantly cause problems.
3. Standardize – But Don’t Become One Size Fits All
Elite MSPs reduce operational chaos with consistent tools and processes enshrined in crystal-clear and up-to-date documentation. That’s hardly breaking news.
But make sure NOT to pursue standardization and consistency at the expense of personalization. A standardized MSP isn’t rigid or blind to clients’ unique needs, goals, and IT environments. In fact, the point of standardization is to make the easy stuff easy, so you can devote energy to the hard stuff, which includes making every single client feel seen, heard, and respected. If you want to go from a mere help desk to a strategic partner, use standardization to drive personalization, not replace it.
4. Simplify Your Message – But Don’t Be Generic
Surely you’ve heard it by now: MSPs need to sell outcomes, not features, and lead with a crystal-clear and ultra-simple value proposition. Last month at MSP SUMMIT, marketing expert Katie Vreeland asked the room: “Can a prospect figure out what your MSP is all about within 10 seconds of visiting your page?” Your answer better be yes if you want to win new business in 2026. So, make sure your MSP’s core message is unmistakable, unignorable, and above all, simple.
However, be careful NOT to achieve simplicity through vagueness. “We help SMBs stress less about tech” is super simple and easy to grasp – but it’s too generic to pack any real punch. Simplicity is necessary for MSP excellence in 2026, but it’s not everything; you also need specificity.
Bonus Tip: A clear message is one that paints a vivid picture of how your MSP will, as Stefanie Hammond at N-able puts its, “change the client’s world.” If you’re not articulating a concrete outcome, chances are, you’re being too generic and vague.
5. Be Proactive About AI – But Don’t Put the Cart Before the Horse
AI is here – and MSPs are facing a generational opportunity with this new and exciting technology. So, don’t be timid and wait for others to figure things out. MSP excellence in 2026 will require a bold and proactive approach to AI. Anything less will risk letting someone else come in and fill the role of trusted advisor to your clients.
That said, do NOT interpret this to mean that you should deploy new tools willy-nilly, without first implementing rigorous policies, controls, and governance frameworks. Smart MSPs will lead with safety and strategy, because, as security expert Scott Barlow reminds MSPs, “without structure, policies, and controls, AI creates more operational risk than efficiency.”
6. Think Like a Business Owner – Just Not in That Way
Here at The 20, we’re all about helping MSP owners make the crucial mindset shift from “tech person” to “business owner.” Simply put, we give you the structure and support you need to start tackling MSP growth from a commercial perspective.
However, we are also very careful NOT to instill in our MSP community the poisonous attitude of profit over everything. That’s because a one-dimensional obsession with profit undermines an MSP in the long run – or oftentimes sooner than that. MSP excellence is sustainable, and that means investing in relationships, valuing your team, and focusing on actually helping clients.
7. Pick a Niche – But Not Just Any Niche
Specialization is becoming a foundational strategy for MSP growth. Generalists are a dying breed, and the best MSPs typically focus on one to three verticals. Not only does specialization allow your MSP to become a go-to expert more easily, but it also dovetails with the goal of crafting clear and compelling outcome-based messaging (see #4); when you help a certain type of client in a specific industry, you can tailor your message accordingly.
For instance, if you’re looking to land legal clients, don’t boast about your “proactive IT services.” Instead, tell prospects you’re the “only MSP in the city that ensures 24/7 secure access to client data while fully complying with ABA security requirements.”
But, while picking a niche is integral to MSP excellence in 2026, picking any old niche is NOT. Choose a focus that aligns with your team’s existing skills, experience, and growth potential. We recommend basing your choice on an ideal client profile and market research, targeting industries that are thriving rather than shrinking. Do that, and you’ll not only stand out, but set yourself up to do outstanding work.
8. Don’t Underprice – But Make Sure the Value’s There
The best MSPs don’t compete on price. So, if you want to achieve MSP excellence, stop competing on price alone. Simple.
What’s NOT simple: increasing your MSP’s pricing while simultaneously shoring up your value proposition to justify the price hike. The last thing you want to do is raise prices without first making sure that in doing so, you’re more accurately reflecting your MSP’s true value. And remember, having the value isn’t enough; you also need to convey it effectively to your clients (again, see #4). Simply out, they need to know what they’re paying for.
9. Create Trust – But Don’t Just Earn It
This one is huge. So huge, in fact, that it’s fair to say we’ve saved the best for last. If you’re pursuing MSP excellence in 2026, you’ll want to keep the T-word top of mind – in everything you do. Trust is the only real currency in managed IT today, and without it, you’re toast.
And while that sounds simple, it’s easy to misunderstand – or underestimate – what securing trust actually involves. The modern consumer is doing their own research before reaching out, which means trust is created in advance – not earned after the fact. Your website, content, and reputation must convey competence and credibility in advance. This is easy to forget because we tend to think of trust as something earned once a relationship has started. But thinking this way is dangerous for MSPs in 2026. If you want trust in today’s B2B landscape, create content that builds it when you’re not in the room.
Final Thought
Do this, not that! There’s no shortage of advice out there for growth-focused MSPs. But knowing what to pursue when is tricky business, and prioritizing correctly is the ultimate competitive advantage.
If you’re looking for more than advice – if you’re looking for a comprehensive execution framework that lays out a clear path from A to B – consider becoming a member of The 20. We don’t just tell you what to build; we help you build it. Learn more.