IT Services for Small Businesses
When it comes to IT services for small businesses, if you’re a small business owner, you already know that dealing with your IT can be a headache. Most small businesses rely heavily on their technology to do business, yet they do not know how to get the most out of the investments they’ve made.
Instead, it’s often the case that the only time small businesses deal with their IT is when their network goes down, hardware or software stops working, or other problems occur that make dealing with their IT a top priority. Once those problems are fixed, it’s out of sight out of mind.
There’s a better way to manage your IT. Instead of getting trapped in a “break/fix” cycle that results in higher costs to repair or replace your technology, a firm that specializes in IT services for small businesses can help you cost effectively reduce these replacement costs, and can help you prevent data breaches and hacking, while improving your productivity. Instead of high and unpredictable capital costs, you’ll have a predictable monthly operating expense that ensures your data is protected, your equipment lasts longer and your business doesn’t experience unnecessary IT downtime.
Here are two important facts you need to know about IT services for small businesses.
Enterprise Grade IT at Small Business Prices
The reason most small businesses adopt a “break/fix” technology management strategy is simple: they can’t afford to hire experienced IT staff. And, IT is often viewed as a support activity – it supports your main business focus, but is a separate function requiring different skills and expertise.
IT services for small businesses exist to solve this problem. When you hire an IT services firm to deliver all the IT services you need, you get enterprise grade IT solutions like 24/7 network monitoring, mobile device management, and access to cloud technology, without paying for a full-time person.
If you have a small network with only a few people, it isn’t cost effective to hire a full time person to do this work. There wouldn’t be enough to do to keep them busy. By hiring an IT services firm that specializes in small businesses, you get remote monitoring to identify possible problems, and regular maintenance and service to head off or repair problems. It’s all delivered as part of a monthly contract that gives you just the amount of high quality IT support you need, without paying too much.
Capital vs. Operating Costs
There are two ways to pay for your technology. One is to buy all your hardware and software and pay for everything up front as a capital expenditure. The challenge with this approach is that while you can budget a certain amount for capital expenditures and hope that it’s enough to cover your needs when your IT breaks or needs to be replaced, it can be very difficult to accurately predict how much money will really be needed.
Plus, using this approach virtually guarantees that you’ll pay more because your IT expenses aren’t just about physical equipment – your IT budget should also include the cost of software maintenance and upgrades, network security and protection, and other regularly occurring expenses that aren’t technically a capital expenditure. There are high costs associated with failing to do this kind of maintenance – shorter equipment lifecycles, higher replacement costs, and lost productivity to name just a few.
The other approach is to think of your IT needs as a regular, recurring operating cost. An IT services firm for small business makes budgeting for IT a breeze. IT becomes a predictable operating cost that ensures your equipment lasts longer, your data is safe, and your business doesn’t lose money due to being unable to work due to unexpected maintenance problems.
If you have questions about whether an IT services for small business firm can help your business be more productive and lower IT costs, contact Tolar Systems. We’ll be happy to show you a better way to manage your IT.
