Let me share something that might sting a little: most MSPs I talk to are actually losing money on their cybersecurity offerings. Not because they're bad at security—but because they're approaching it all wrong.

After 27 years in this industry and building QMasters into a successful MSSP, I've seen this pattern repeat itself hundreds of times. MSPs bolting on security tools without a strategy, drowning in vendor complexity, and watching their margins evaporate.

Sound familiar? Let's fix it.

The Hidden Costs Killing Your Margins

When I audit MSP security practices, I consistently find these margin killers:

1. Vendor Sprawl

The average MSP manages 7-12 different security vendors. Each one has its own:

• Portal and login
• Billing cycle
• Support process
• Training requirements
• Integration headaches

That's not a security stack—it's a time sink. My team calculated that MSPs spend an average of 15 hours per week just managing vendor relationships. At $150/hour, that's $117,000 annually in hidden costs.

2. Reactive vs. Proactive Pricing

Most MSPs price security reactively. They wait for a client to ask, then quote individual tools at minimal markup. This commoditizes your expertise and trains clients to shop on price.

The winners bundle security into comprehensive packages that emphasize outcomes (protection, compliance, peace of mind) rather than tools.

3. The "Free" Security Trap

How many of you include basic security in your managed services package "at no extra charge"? You're not alone—but you're leaving money on the table.

Security isn't a feature; it's a service line. Bundling it free devalues your expertise and makes it harder to upsell comprehensive protection later.

The Framework That Actually Works

After helping dozens of MSPs transform their security practices, I've developed what I call the Security Profitability Framework:

Step 1: Consolidate Your Stack

You don't need 12 vendors. You need one platform that integrates best-of-breed tools with unified management. This alone can recover 10-15 hours per week.

Step 2: Productize Your Offerings

Create three tiers:

• Essential: Basic endpoint + email protection
• Professional: Add MDR, vulnerability scanning, security awareness
• Enterprise: Full vCISO services, compliance, 24/7 SOC

Price based on value delivered, not cost-plus. Your Enterprise tier should have 60%+ margins.

Step 3: Automate Everything Possible

Manual processes kill margins. Every hour spent on:

• Onboarding new clients
• Deploying agents
• Generating reports
• Investigating alerts

...is an hour you can't bill for strategic work. Automation isn't optional—it's the difference between 20% and 60% margins.

Step 4: Lead with Compliance

Compliance requirements (HIPAA, PCI, SOC 2, CMMC) are your best friend. They create urgency, justify premium pricing, and make security a business requirement rather than an IT decision.

Position yourself as the compliance enabler, not just the security vendor.

Real Numbers from Real MSPs

Here's what I've seen MSPs achieve after implementing this framework:

• Average margin increase: 35% → 58%
• Time spent on vendor management: Down 70%
• Security revenue per client: Up 2.4x
• Client retention: Up 23%

These aren't theoretical—these are actual results from MSPs who stopped treating security as a checkbox and started treating it as a growth engine.

The Bottom Line

Security should be your most profitable service line, not your biggest headache. The MSPs winning today aren't the ones with the most tools—they're the ones with the smartest approach to packaging, pricing, and delivering security services.

The opportunity is massive. SMBs are spending more on security than ever before, and they need partners who can simplify the complexity. That can be you—if you're willing to rethink your approach.

Ready to transform your security practice? Let's talk about how Fortress can help.