Our daily lives are increasingly being impacted by the evolution of technology – and the business world is no different. As our fast-paced digital environment continues to pick up speed, large and small businesses alike are looking for expert IT help to keep them ahead of the tech curve.
What’s more, large and small businesses are now almost entirely dependent on their cutting-edge digital assets and IT infrastructure to get through the day. Small businesses in particular, who are often lacking the profits, manpower and efficiency of a larger corporation, are being severely impacted as they struggle to stay ahead of the tech curve and maximise productivity.
As a result, hiring a specialised digital caretaker to maintain your technology could be the answer. Outsourcing the management of your tech guarantees the productivity and efficiency of IT infrastructure and digital assets by ensuring everything is kept up-to-date and operating to a high quality.
When searching for IT support, there are several advantages to take into account – but first, what is managed IT support? And why is it so beneficial for small businesses?
Does my business need IT Support?
If you’re the proprietor of a small business, you may think IT support is beyond the scope of your organisation. After all, IT support is expensive, right?
The truth is there is a number of small businesses these days turning to bespoke IT support services. IT support companies offer a variety of different support service levels which can be tailored to the needs of your business.
You might consider outsourcing your IT support if:
- You are diverting attention away from your business operations to fix technical issues with your IT infrastructure and/or digital assets
- You want to implement new IT infrastructure for your small or start-up business in order to expand or up-scale
- You want to use industry-leading technology for your company but are unsure of what you require.
- Your company needs to go digital but you’re not sure where to begin
- Your company is too small to employ an internal IT expert
- Although you already have an internal IT expert/s, you still need to outsource the management of your tech to supplement your existing staff
The benefits of IT support for small businesses
When considering whether or not IT support is for you, it is critical to carefully examine how much downtime your business can handle. If your systems crash, do you and your team have the knowledge and skill set required to repair the problem? Do you really want your employees preoccupied with things other than the jobs you hired them to do?
Today, the vast majority of businesses rely entirely on their digital assets and IT infrastructure to get through the day. Your business will undoubtedly be less productive if you frequently experience downtime, which will eventually have an effect on your overhead costs, profitability as well as your overall growth. This can spell disaster for a small business or start-up.
What advantages can managed IT services offer a small business?
Cost-effective & flexible
Employing the assistance of an IT support service can significantly reduce your overhead expenditures. When you outsource the maintenance of your IT infrastructure and digital assets to a managed IT company, your business gains access to a fully staffed team of technical specialists – for a fraction of hiring an in-house tech expert, who would otherwise cost you a monthly salary plus benefits.
Numerous expert IT support companies also provide flexible payment schedules and short-term contracts without commitment. This means that even smaller organisations, that might not have the resources or profitability of a larger organisation, can still benefit from an IT support company’s help.
A single port of call
When a technical problem arises, do your employees blow up your phone? With the aid of an IT support provider, you can rest assured that in the event of a disruption and/or crash, your team will have a single point of contact. Any technological issues your company may be experiencing will also be resolved as quickly as possible, which can boost both your employee’s and your technology’s performance and productivity.
Disaster recovery
For large and small businesses alike, a well-thought-out, forward-thinking disaster recovery strategy can be the difference between rapid recovery and prolonged disruptions to your working day. Disaster recovery can be anything from data recovery to network redundancy, as well as testing and planning your recovery processes in the event of a crash and/or disruption. An IT support provider will be able to assess your current processes and identify any risks that pose a threat to your operational continuity – and resolve those issues before they escalate.
Resilient, up-to-date IT infrastructure
As a business, you most likely depend on digital assets and IT infrastructure to get through the day. An IT support company will be able to monitor your system and keep everything under close watch, depending on the degree of service you choose. This results in a more secure and robust infrastructure.
Employing the assistance of a managed IT support company will also ensure your system is kept up to date. This includes your existing IT infrastructure and digital assets, as well as any management software and/or networks your business relies on.
Final thoughts
Your company’s needs will ultimately determine the level of IT support you choose. Start by doing a quick search on your favourite search engines such as Google or Bing. It’s important to note that finding a service local to your organisation will have its benefits even if you’re looking for remote support, so anything location-centric such as ‘IT Support Bristol’ to ‘IT Support Services near me’ should bring up a number of companies close to your own business. From there, it should be easy enough to focus your search and identify the ideal business that shares your own values and can offer you the services you’re after.
The importance of IT support in today’s fast-paced culture cannot be disputed. Cloud services and IT support are only two of the many unique services that IT support companies provide. There is no doubting the critical role IT support plays in the modern economy for both big and small organisations alike.
