If sales is the lifeblood of an organization, your team is its beating heart—and both must stay healthy if you want to grow. For Nathan Whittacre, CEO and founder of Stimulus Technologies, that balance has been the foundation of three decades of steady scaling. Today, the company operates six locations across five states, employs more than 70 people, and generates $12 million in revenue—not because of one breakthrough moment, but because of disciplined sales involvement, intentional hiring, and a process-driven approach to growth.
Here’s how he made his first million—and kept scaling.
Steering the Sales Ship
While hiring a dedicated salesperson is a great move, don’t think that means you’ll get to step out of sales. “It’s really important—no matter what size you are, but especially when you’re small—[that you don’t] hand off sales to somebody and step out of it,” Whittacre says. “[That’s} a problem that we have, as technical owners of businesses. We are uncomfortable with sales. One of our innate desires is to hand it off to somebody and never think about it again. But that’s the biggest mistake you can make.”
“Client acquisition is why we’re in business for ourselves [in the first place],” Whittacre points out. “Because we want to choose the clients we work with and how we work with them. You have to be involved with sales to do that.”
Early on, Whittacre read Guerrilla Marketing, by Jay Levinson, and E-Myth Revisted, by Michael E. Gerber, which helped him better understand how to position his small business in marketing and sales initiatives. “It’s important to understand where you lie and where you can do really good work,” he says. “[MSPs] aren’t going to be huge behemoths, but there’s a very important niche for us, whether we’re a one-man shop or [an MSP with] 170 employees. But understand your positioning, understand what makes you unique and different, and teach the sales and marketing people what it means to do business with your company.”
That’s a decision that comes from the top, not from the sales department. “I’ve had salespeople that want to lead the company in a direction that, as an owner, I don’t want to go in. You set the strategy, you set the vision for the company, and you inform the rest of your team why that’s where you’re going and how you’re going to get there,” Whittacre says. “Sales is such a huge part of that direction.”
Related: The Tech Assessment: Your Ultimate Sales Tool
Build the Right Team to Hit $1M
When asked what helped his MSP break the million-dollar mark, Whittacre credits his team. “The thing that’s at the top of the list is the right people,” Whittacre says. “That’s the hardest part of running a technology company—bringing in the right team members. It’s the most expensive part of your stack too; add up everything else below people, and it’s never going to be more than the people that are involved.”
“So, having the right team and making sure they are all trained and growing in the right direction is really the first and most essential part of getting technology right. Because in the end, all that tech stuff we do is really to serve people. We might use tools and technology to do it, but in the end, it’s people serving people,” Whittacre says.
A critical part of building a functional team is giving them the processes necessary to work effectively. “Everybody inside the company is unique in a certain way, but you need to set up a process that generally anybody can follow. Anybody can get the work done,” Whittacre says. “The amazing thing about that is you don’t have to [exclusively] hire top-level talent because you can train the staff to do the work in the same manner you would. [But] you have to hire people that fit your culture, that believe the direction you’re going is the right one, that understand technology, that can communicate with people.”
Getting a Handle on Acquisitions
A significant component of the MSP’s growth—now to the tune of $12 million—has been acquisitions. With six acquisitions under his belt, both in and out of state, Whittacre has learned what to expect from the process.
“Be prepared for a roller coaster,” Whittacre advises. “It’s fun. I’ve discovered that I love the acquisition process. I really like meeting a new business owner, talking to them about their business, understanding how their business works, and piecing together how we can integrate the work together and grow what they’ve built.”
That said, he doesn’t suggest that the process is easy. “It is a lot of work, and the due diligence required is extensive,” Whittacre says. “As with everything, we have a very clearly documented [due diligence] process. We have tons of spreadsheets and documentation on how to do the acquisition process, but … a lot of it comes down to the businesses’ core visions and the way they work—do they align or are they distinctly different?
“And really, you can have all these nice talks, but [it isn’t] until you get into the purchase agreements that the deal gets real. It is a fun process, but a very difficult one too; it’s going to challenge you in ways that you never expected,” Whittacre explains.
To hear Whittacre’s full MSP journey and learn more of his secrets to success, tune into his episode on the My First Million Podcast.
