Why do small businesses need IT support?

It’s common for IT to be treated like a secondary concern by small business owners who’ve recently made it through the lean, DIY startup years.

The issue is that IT is still viewed as an option rather than a necessity. But when the first meltdown occurs, like a server crashing or email going offline, owners begin to realize they need some reliable support after all.

Here’s a question that many smaller businesses ask themselves:

Why not just get the office manager to troubleshoot problems as they occur? Or maybe an hourly help desk service would do the trick – after all, it seems cheap.

While it’s true that these solutions are better than nothing, having a dedicated team of IT experts watching over a company’s network decreases the likelihood of having another emergency situation arise in the first place.

And that’s not all – a knowledgeable team of IT folks can get you back on track without taking time away from your employees or worrying about the variable cost of working with a “by-the-hour” IT service.

Here’s a quick breakdown of what a stable managed IT service provider can help businesses do.

1. Stay more productive

Trying to solve all operational problems related to your business can become a real setback in getting the work done.

With experts dedicated to ensuring that your computers are running properly, people can do their jobs and you won’t have to worry about productivity hitting a wall when something does break.

Related: See what Entrepreneur says about outsourcing as a whole

2. Keep your technology competitive

Investing in IT support should be a prerequisite for any business, no matter the size. Why? Because it’s one of the many important things that keeps your business running smoothly and with minimal disruption.

Consider this – IT solutions for computer software, hardware, and more recent innovations (like VoIP phone systems and cloud storage) are difficult to manage and keep up with.

But when a company’s only job is technology support, there’s nothing more important to them than keeping up with technology.

We believe good technology can keep clients happy and competitive while helping businesses get better results over time.

3. Improve your security posture

Security is also a big problem for many small businesses, largely because cybercriminals know that most companies of this size don’t deploy tough security measures.

This is usually either due to a lack of knowledge about the threats out there or because the perceived cost of being protected is too high. The ugly truth? Cybercriminals don’t play favorites. They just look for an open door.

Did you know? According to Small Business Trends, 60% of small companies go out of business within six months of a cyberattack.

Most of the time, it’s just automated intrusion programs going through a list. If your server somehow makes it onto that randomly generated list, then the damage caused can be pretty extensive. Maintaining up-to-date security measures should be a huge priority no matter the size of your business.

Unless you’re working daily in the IT industry, it’s near-impossible to keep up with all the latest preventative measures.

Final Thoughts

IT Support is an absolute necessity if you want to stay productive, deliver on promises, and grow your company.

Getting reliable managed IT support keeps your people doing what customers are paying you to do instead of focusing on the things that slow you down.

Interested in learning more about IT support best practices? See how much you should be spending on IT in the first place.