Connecting With Tech Owners: Data-Driven Strategies That Work

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Connecting With Tech Owners: Data-Driven Strategies That Work

When you think of technology companies, giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia often come to mind. While these corporations dominate the headlines, there’s a valuable segment of smaller tech companies making waves lately.

As you’ll see in the data that follows, unlike traditional small business owners, tech entrepreneurs are less tied to local advisors, choosing expertise in their industry or experience with high-growth companies over proximity. They are also digitally savvy, relying on advanced tools like AI and predictive analytics to run their businesses and make decisions. This mindset shapes how they consume information and respond to advisors. They value efficiency, data-driven insights, and logic over emotional appeals.

The Value Builder Analytics team dug deep into the technology industry to see what makes these business owners tick and how you can tailor your message to get their attention. You’ll find the report here, and we’ve summarized some key insights below.

The Technology Sector By The Numbers

The U.S. technology sector is a powerhouse that includes an estimated 400,000 businesses generating annual revenues between $1 million and $10 million. These companies tend to be fast-growing and driven by innovation, often led by founders who are focused on scaling their operations and building value for a third-party sale. While they excel at leveraging technology to fuel their growth, they often face unique challenges like managing rapid expansion, navigating competitive markets, and optimizing their business for a lucrative exit. This creates a prime opportunity for advisors to guide these owners in achieving their ambitious goals.

These days, names like Nvidia and Open AI tend to dominate the headlines, so it’s easy to forget that most technology companies are small and can be segmented into several industries. In fact, just the list of subcategories that follow makes up approximately 295,000 companies in the $1-$10 million range in the U.S. Approximate number of these companies appears beside each:

1. Managed Service Providers (MSPs): 40,000 companies

   Comprehensive providers offering a mix of services, including network management, cybersecurity, cloud solutions, help desk support, and proactive monitoring, acting as outsourced IT departments.

2. Network and IT Infrastructure Management: 50,000 companies

   Specializes in optimizing IT networks and systems but without the broader scope of MSPs.

3. Cybersecurity and Risk Management: 60,000 companies

   Focuses solely on protecting businesses from digital threats and ensuring compliance.

4. Cloud Computing and Virtualization: 40,000 companies

   Provides tailored cloud hosting, migration, and virtualization services.

5. Help Desk and Remote Support: 30,000 companies

   Offers dedicated IT troubleshooting and support services.

6. Proactive IT Monitoring and Maintenance: 25,000 companies

   Prevents downtime with continuous system monitoring and issue prevention.

7. Backup and Disaster Recovery Services: 20,000 companies

   Ensures data security and continuity during disruptions.

8. Specialized IT Services for Industries: 30,000 companies

   Delivers industry-specific IT solutions for sectors like healthcare, legal, or finance.

How to Find Technology Companies (and Their Owners)

Since the technology sector is so vast, let’s focus on the MSP industry for the purposes of getting granular, understanding that you can apply the same rigor to any industry you choose.

Reaching MSP business owners in the $1-10 million range requires you to know the lingo and where they hang out. Here are some places to get started:

🧭 LinkedIn Sales Navigator: Leverage LinkedIn’s advanced filters to pinpoint technology companies with 10–50 employees in industries like software or IT services. Pro Tip: In LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can set alerts by saving leads (individuals) or accounts (companies). This automatically tracks updates like funding rounds, leadership changes, or key company news, which show up in your Sales Navigator feed. It’s an easy way to stay on top of opportunities and engage at the right time.

🏢 Industry-Specific MSP Events: Skip the mega-conferences and zero in on MSP-focused events like ASCII Edge and MSP Expo. These aren’t just for networking; they’re packed with MSP owners eager to learn and grow. Can’t attend? Many events offer attendee lists or post-session recordings to follow up with leads.

🎙️ Sponsor or Guest On MSP-Focused Podcasts Targeting These Owners: Podcasts like Paul Green's MSP Marketing Podcast or The IT Provider Show cater specifically to MSP owners. Sponsoring an episode—or better yet, being a guest—puts you directly in front of MSPs actively looking for ways to grow their businesses.

💻 Lean on Vendor Directories: Many tech vendors maintain directories of certified partners. Microsoft’s Partner Finder, Cisco’s Partner Locator, and Datto’s Partner Directory are goldmines for identifying MSPs. These directories often include company size, location, and focus areas, giving you a clear view of who fits your target profile.

🖱️ Online Communities: MSP owners love to share insights and troubleshoot with their peers. Join forums like r/MSP on Reddit, participate in MSP Geek Slack Channels, or engage in Facebook groups like MSP Owners. These spaces offer invaluable insights into their pain points and priorities—plus, they’re great for striking up organic conversations.

Once you’ve identified tech business owners who fit your target profile, the next step is critical: knowing what to say when you connect. As you’ll see, tech entrepreneurs are looking for advisors who truly understand their industry, think strategically, and can help them navigate the complexities of scaling and building value. Here are some ways you can speak to their goals and pain points.

Make Sure You Appeal to Their Desire to Exit Big

Tech business owners are more mercenary than their traditional business brethren. Our proprietary data, gathered from over 80,000 business owners through the Value Builder assessment, reveals that these owners want to sell to a third party, with a remarkable 67% planning to exit this way—significantly higher than the general business owner population.

Given their plan to sell to a third party, it’s not surprising to hear that they don’t care much about their legacy, with only 16% pointing to that as their biggest fear in selling their business. Their lack of emotion makes sense when you consider their career choice: they have opted into an industry that is defined by zeroes and ones. Their educational background is often science and engineering, where the scientific method reigns supreme. Decisions are made based on fact, not opinion. Their real concern is leaving money on the table. In fact, 60% of technology company owners point to this very practical, measurable fear as the one that keeps them up at night.

And why not? Tech owners have good reason to expect a pot of gold at the end of their rainbow. The data shows that tech companies garner offers that command multiples 37% higher than average.

The big takeaway here is to appeal to the logical side of their brain when selling your advisory services to these owners instead of playing to their emotions. Start by showing tech owners what their business is worth today, using an objective measure, and show them how much money they stand to gain by hiring you.

Technology Sector Owners Lean on Coaches and Consultants over Accountants

Unlike the average small business owner, who typically relies on their accountant for advice, tech business owners take a different approach. The data reveals that 36% of tech entrepreneurs turn to business coaches or consultants as their go-to resource for building the value of their company.

Why? Because tech owners are looking for advisors who can think strategically and guide them through complex challenges. The data shows that accountants still play a critical role in managing finances, but if you’re a coach or consultant, you’re uniquely positioned for a tech entrepreneur to seek you out for broader business-building expertise.

It doesn’t stop there—59% of technology owners say the most important quality in an advisor is industry expertise. Geography is not a big deal. They’re three times less likely to choose an advisor based on proximity than the average business owner. What they really care about is whether you understand the challenges of building a fast-growing technology business.

Tech Founders are Bullish

Imagine working with a client base that’s brimming with optimism and primed for growth—tech owners are just that. In our data, a striking 44% of tech owners believe their industry is growing much faster than the broader economy, far outpacing the confidence levels of owners in other sectors, where only 20% report the same growth expectations. Only a mere 1% of tech business owners see their industry in decline. This data points to a client group that’s not only bullish on their future but also highly motivated to invest in strategies that capture and sustain this momentum. Tapping into this confidence offers a rare chance to help these owners translate industry-wide growth potential into real value within their own businesses.

That’s because they’re also very confident in their own growth. Unlike their peers in other sectors, tech owners are not interested in modest growth strategies. Our data shows that nearly half of all tech owners expect their company to grow by over 20% in the next year, which is 40% more than the general business owner population.

These ambitious growth plans make them hungry for practical, provable ways to build value. If you can bring clarity and a clear path forward, they’ll be eager to invest in your expertise.

How to Win Over Tech Owners

Tech owners are laser-focused on achieving the highest possible multiple for their business. They are bullish about the future, confident in their ability to grow, and motivated to work with someone who understands their industry inside and out. To attract and work with these owners, start with an objective valuation that shows them exactly where their business stands today, the potential value they could add, and what they could achieve by working with you.

Remember to appeal to their logical side—they prioritize results over emotion. Highlight your expertise in scaling businesses and preparing them for successful exits. They are digitally savvy and expect efficiency, so ensure your process is streamlined, grounded in data, and tailored to their unique challenges. When you demonstrate a deep understanding of their world and their goals, you position yourself as the trusted advisor they need to achieve their ambitious targets.

Curious to learn more? Our next free live research webinar is coming up on December 12th at 12 pm EST and will focus on the booming tech industry. Join best-selling author and Value Builder Founder & CEO John Warrillow for a live, interactive session. Details and registration information are here. And remember, Value Builder advisors have on-demand access to all past webinar recordings and presentation materials in the Value Builder portal.

Register Now

📖 Your clients' businesses are their most valuable asset, but many owners don’t fully recognize it. They're often caught up in the daily grind, working in their business instead of on it, which limits its true potential. To help unlock that hidden value, it all comes down to eight critical drivers that directly impact a company's worth. In our free whitepaper, The 8 Key Drivers of Company Value, you'll learn how these drivers work from an owner-friendly perspective, along with step-by-step strategies for helping business owners improve their performance on each driver.

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🎥 Missed our webinar, "Nailing the Niche: Winning Over Construction Owners," with best-selling author and Value Builder CEO John Warrillow? We’re making the recording available for a limited time. During the webinar, John revealed data-backed strategies for attracting and working with business owners in the lucrative construction industry.

Watch the recording here.

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This Week's Contributors

Jason Reilly, Vice President of Marketing; Michael Sarkis, Director of Advisor Marketing; Deanne Kong Ting, Director of Customer Success; and Jen Chou, Senior Graphic Designer.