MSP appointment setting in Memphis: who to call first

8 things to know before prospecting MSP in Memphis

1. 01411 IT services firms work the Memphis metro (+14 in a year), 27% less concentrated than the U.S. as a whole.
2. 024.2 target businesses per IT firm ranks Memphis #21 of 100 markets and #1 of 4 in Tennessee.
3. 03The biggest buyer group is medical, dental and outpatient practices: 368 sites with 20 to 499 employees.
4. 04Memphis over-indexes on wholesale distributors at 1.17x the national mix, so build references inside that group.
5. 05Medical, dental and outpatient practices added 101 establishments in a year: new sites without a managed service provider relationship.
6. 06Tier 1 is 412 sites with 50 to 499 employees among medical, dental and outpatient practices and wholesale distributors; those deserve two or three contacts each.
7. 07Shelby County holds 83% of the target businesses across 8 counties.
8. 08Little Rock (115 miles) has more target businesses per IT firm, if your engineers can cover it.

These are the 12 industries Abstrakt's SDRs call for MSP work, with how many of each are in the Memphis metro and who to ask for. Compared with the U.S. as a whole, Memphis leans toward wholesale distributors (1.17x) and medical, dental and outpatient practices (1.15x). Build the list around those categories. Architecture and engineering firms and nonprofits and member organizations are thinner than the national mix, so treat them as selective targets.

1. 01
   Medical, dental and outpatient practices368

   Ask for: Practice administrator 117 with 50 to 499 employees 1.15x U.S. mix +101 in a year
2. 02
   Wholesale distributors314

   Ask for: Owner or president 137 with 50 to 499 employees 1.17x U.S. mix -31 in a year
3. 03
   Manufacturers298

   Ask for: Owner or president 158 with 50 to 499 employees 1.12x U.S. mix +28 in a year
4. 04
   Construction contractors293

   Ask for: Owner or president 99 with 50 to 499 employees 0.86x U.S. mix +95 in a year
5. 05
   Nonprofits and member organizations140

   Ask for: Executive director 47 with 50 to 499 employees 0.73x U.S. mix +6 in a year
6. 06
   Private schools and education providers123

   Ask for: Head of school or director 66 with 50 to 499 employees 1.06x U.S. mix +6 in a year
7. 07
   Real estate brokerages and property management offices44

   Ask for: Broker-owner 11 with 50 to 499 employees 0.91x U.S. mix +43 in a year
8. 08
   Accounting, tax and bookkeeping firms37

   Ask for: Managing partner 11 with 50 to 499 employees 0.91x U.S. mix +2 in a year
9. 09
   Law firms29

   Ask for: Managing partner 7 with 50 to 499 employees 0.94x U.S. mix +26 in a year
10. 10
    Architecture and engineering firms29

    Ask for: Principal or owner 12 with 50 to 499 employees 0.71x U.S. mix +10 in a year
11. 11
    Wealth management and investment firms28

    Ask for: Firm principal 4 with 50 to 499 employees 0.89x U.S. mix -5 in a year
12. 12
    Insurance agencies and brokerages18

    Ask for: Agency principal or owner 8 with 50 to 499 employees 1.10x U.S. mix -3 in a year

Businesses are establishments with 20 to 499 employees (U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023), the small and mid-sized range MSPs sell to; the SBA Office of Advocacy counts firms under 500 employees as small businesses. Change and concentration: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1.

Wholesale distributors, manufacturers and private schools and education providers run larger in Memphis than across our 100 metros, which puts more of them in Tier 1. Wealth management and investment firms run smaller, so that group needs a seat-count question before a meeting is booked.

• Medical, dental and outpatient practices are the largest group in Memphis with 368 businesses of 20 to 499 employees, more than Little Rock has (206): more concentrated than nationally (1.15x), up 101 establishments in a year, and typical in size (16% with 50 or more employees).

• Wholesale distributors are the second-largest group in Memphis with 314 businesses of 20 to 499 employees, more than Little Rock has (171): more concentrated than nationally (1.17x), down 31 establishments in a year, and larger than across our 100 metros (25% of those with 10 or more employees have 50 or more, against 20%), so plan on two or three contacts per account.

• Manufacturers are the third-largest group in Memphis with 298 businesses of 20 to 499 employees, more than Little Rock has (144): close to the national mix, up 28 establishments in a year, and larger than across our 100 metros (38% of those with 10 or more employees have 50 or more, against 32%), so plan on two or three contacts per account.

• Construction contractors are the fourth-largest group in Memphis with 293 businesses of 20 to 499 employees, more than Little Rock has (190): less concentrated than nationally (0.86x), up 95 establishments in a year, and typical in size (18% with 50 or more employees).

• Nonprofits and member organizations are the fifth-largest group in Memphis with 140 businesses of 20 to 499 employees, more than Little Rock has (86): less concentrated than nationally (0.73x), up 6 establishments in a year, and typical in size (17% with 50 or more employees).

• Private schools and education providers are the sixth-largest group in Memphis with 123 businesses of 20 to 499 employees, more than Little Rock has (53): close to the national mix, up 6 establishments in a year, and larger than across our 100 metros (38% of those with 10 or more employees have 50 or more, against 25%), so plan on two or three contacts per account.

After those six come real estate brokerages and property management offices (44), accounting, tax and bookkeeping firms (37), law firms (29), architecture and engineering firms (29), wealth management and investment firms (28) and insurance agencies and brokerages (18), smaller groups to work by fit rather than volume.

Where a rule or a client review puts a date on security work in Memphis: medical, dental and outpatient practices (368, HIPAA), manufacturers (298, CMMC where they supply defense work), accounting, tax and bookkeeping firms (37, the FTC Safeguards Rule), law firms (29, client security questionnaires), wealth management and investment firms (28, SEC and FINRA exams) and insurance agencies and brokerages (18, carrier and state insurance data security requirements); together, 778 businesses where the first message can lead with the requirement instead of the service.

What leads in each core county

• Shelby County: medical, dental and outpatient practices (299), wholesale distributors (245) and construction contractors (235) lead its 1,359 target businesses.
• DeSoto County: manufacturers (45), wholesale distributors (42) and medical, dental and outpatient practices (37) lead its 181 target businesses.
• Crittenden County: manufacturers (12), medical, dental and outpatient practices (11) and wholesale distributors (6) lead its 34 target businesses.
• Tipton County: construction contractors (8), manufacturers (4) and wholesale distributors (4) lead its 22 target businesses.

Employee bands: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, establishments with 10 to 499 employees; suppressed size classes count as zero. Concentration and one-year change: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, private ownership, 2026 Q1. The 100-metro average is the same share summed across every market we publish.

411 IT services firms are based in the Memphis metro. 14 more opened over the past year, so buyers are fielding new names. The IT services industry is 27% less concentrated than the U.S. as a whole, so a consistent outbound program reaches business owners and office managers that are not tired of contractor calls. 4.2 target businesses per IT firm puts Memphis 21 of 100 markets, and 1 of 4 in Tennessee. That is more room per IT firm than most metros, so systematic prospecting tends to find accounts nobody is working. If you can serve Little Rock, it has more target businesses per IT firm than Memphis.

Tier 1 covers medical, dental and outpatient practices, wholesale distributors and manufacturers with 50 to 499 employees.

Shelby County holds 83% of the target businesses across the 8-county metro. The other 7 counties split the remaining 17%, which is where Tier 1 accounts justify the drive and smaller sites do not.

A new office or location needs network, devices and security set up before people move in, and the provider who does that work is in the best position to support it after.

• Medical, dental and outpatient practices: 101 more establishments than a year ago

  In this category the usual openings are a new location, a HIPAA risk assessment, an EHR or practice management change, a security incident.

• Construction contractors: 95 more establishments than a year ago

  In this category the usual openings are office growth, a new branch, job site connectivity problems, a wire fraud attempt, a cyber insurance renewal.

• Real estate brokerages and property management offices: 43 more establishments than a year ago

  In this category the usual openings are a wire fraud attempt, a new office, agent growth, a change in property management software.

• Wholesale distributors: 31 fewer establishments than a year ago

  An acquisition puts a business under new owners, who usually review who runs IT and fold it into their own systems.

More questions for every prospect type, and how to follow up after the meeting, are in the MSP prospecting playbook.

If your engineers travel, Little Rock, Huntsville, Birmingham and Nashville are the closest metros we track. Here are the same counts used above for Memphis.

• Little Rock, AR

  115 miles away, with 974 target businesses and 192 IT services firms, or 5.1 businesses per IT firm (#16 of 100 markets); the largest buyer group is medical, dental and outpatient practices, and it over-indexes on law firms at 1.58x the national mix.

• Huntsville, AL

  190 miles away, with 656 target businesses and 530 IT services firms, or 1.2 businesses per IT firm (#94 of 100 markets); the largest buyer group is manufacturers, and it over-indexes on architecture and engineering firms at 2.88x the national mix.

• Birmingham, AL

  236 miles away, with 1,691 target businesses and 499 IT services firms, or 3.4 businesses per IT firm (#33 of 100 markets); the largest buyer group is medical, dental and outpatient practices, and it over-indexes on insurance agencies and brokerages at 1.48x the national mix.

• Nashville, TN

  242 miles away, with 2,991 target businesses and 1,310 IT services firms, or 2.3 businesses per IT firm (#66 of 100 markets); the largest buyer group is medical, dental and outpatient practices, and it over-indexes on insurance agencies and brokerages at 1.32x the national mix.