Working with an Abilene managed service provider (MSP) provides many advantages for businesses—but not all MSPs are created equal. To take full advantage of your IT systems and receive the best ROI, you need to work with an experienced provider that puts your business needs first and prioritizes the most important areas of your IT.
Here are four areas that your IT provider should be focusing on.
Preventative Cybersecurity
Independent of size or industry, your business is at risk of being targeted in a cyber attack. Verizon’s 2019 Data Breach Investigations Report found that 43% of cyber attacks target small businesses, and a breach can result in the loss of anywhere from thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars for SMBs—reaching into the millions in the case of larger corporations. That’s why your managed service provider needs to focus on preventative cybersecurity.
It’s best to have a multi-layered approach to your security involving both software protection and security awareness training to minimize the potential of attacks or breaches stemming from human error.
Comprehensive security services should include everything from firewall management and intrusion detection to dark web monitoring and constant vulnerability scanning.
Along with all these preventative services, your MSP should be quick to respond to cybersecurity attacks immediately after they occur using trusted anti-malware and anti-virus tools. This multi-layered approach can give you the best chance of avoiding the risks that come with cybersecurity attacks.
Backups & Disaster Recovery
Many businesses do not save their data on a regular basis like they should. Fortunately, cloud-hosted data backup services can make saving simple so you don’t have to worry about sudden data loss. The cloud is becoming an increasingly necessary tool for businesses due to the flexibility and secure storage it enables, so your MSP should make your cloud migration a priority.
Not only do you need secure data backups, but you also need to have a disaster recovery plan in place in case the worst occurs. The best MSPs will have experience helping businesses recover in times of crisis and will be able to assist you in tailoring a comprehensive disaster recovery plan for you.
Constant, Reliable Support
A main benefit of working with a managed service provider as opposed to a break/fix IT provider is that they’re available to assist whenever you need them. You cut out the wait time, as your MSP can provide immediate assistance and support. If your provider doesn’t make rapid communication and repairs a priority, they’re not doing their job, and you’re not getting what you’re paying for.
When you work with the right IT partner, you can rest assured that there’s a team standing by to answer your questions over the phone or provide remote support when there’s a problem.
Aligning Your IT with Your Business Goals
Another benefit of working with a reliable MSP is that they’ll get to know your business and your specific IT needs.
When the only IT support you receive is to fix something that’s already broken, you aren’t able to optimize your IT setup and make your technology more efficient. Instead, you need a partner that will get to know your business’s specific goals and help you implement long-term solutions that utilize your technology to meet those goals.
That can come in the form of helping you choose new hardware or software that best fits your business, helping you consolidate and simplify processes, assisting with large-scale IT projects, reviewing your IT budget to advise on areas to adjust spending, etc.
In addition to their IT expertise, your MSP’s knowledge of business processes and their ability to successfully strategize for your business IT needs is a major asset.
The best MSPs will both assist you in setting up a long-term IT strategy and fill immediate IT needs.
Work with Tolar Systems: Your Trusted Abilene Managed Service Provider
When you work with an experienced MSP who knows which areas to prioritize, you’ll be able to stop worrying about IT and instead focus your attention on your business. Dedicating resources to the right areas, processes, and solutions will help your business become more efficient and receive a better ROI—and best of all, your managed service provider can do all the heavy lifting.
If you’re ready to work with an MSP that will prioritize your business and your most essential IT needs, contact Tolar Systems today to find out how we can help you as your Abilene managed service provider!
