5 Ways IT Support Companies Can Boost Your Business

IT is vital to the way businesses operate and communicate, and without a robust network with high up-times, companies and their staff may not be able to deliver services to their customers in the most efficient ways. For example, if your email server and other forms of communication are not working effectively, you could be losing business, and your reputation negatively impacted.

Running and maintaining an IT system is a full-time job eating into human and cash resources that could be better diverted to other areas of the business. Furthermore, there is the requirement to ensure IT staff are fully trained in the most recent products and able to technically lead your business. For such reasons, lots of London based businesses rely on IT support services from Managed Services Providers (MSPs), like ITRM, to do the job for them so they can focus on running their business. It's a cost-effective, professional solution to operating an enterprise, and here are the top five benefits of outsourcing your IT.

1. Ensuring You're Always Online

As a business, you need the highest uptime you can get from your IT, as close to 100% as possible. It may not always be possible, because crashes occur and outages happen — and you may have little control over them. But, having an IT support company maintain your system will go a long way towards ensuring you get as near to that crucial uptime goal as you can.

IT support services can include services such as remote monitoring that will highlight issues before your business even knows they exist, providing the opportunity to address and reduce, if not eliminate, the risk of downtime. Although your outsourced IT department will work to prevent your business from being interrupted, there may be occasions where you experience an unexpected outage or you require something to be set up, such as a new user, and your IT support provider will be available to help you with such requests.

MSP providers, like ITRM, work within strict Service Level Agreements (SLAs) which will be used to outline, amongst other things, the response times you can expect from them on certain IT support requests. Understanding the SLAs that your business requires from your IT support company is an important consideration and may determine who you partner with for outsourced IT services and which support package you select.   

2. Updating and Upgrading

All that expensive hardware and software your company invested in — guess what? It's now out of date and fast becoming obsolete. Developments in the tech world

happen at lightning speed and today's innovation can fast become tomorrow's scrapheap. Failing to keep your IT updated can interrupt your business in many ways. Failing to upgrade or update doesn’t just result in slower IT and reduced productivity; failing to update your systems could put your organisation at risk of security breaches. For example, an out of warranty server will not receive any security updates and, being unpatched leaves it vulnerable to cybercrime.

It is important that you have the IT you need to help you achieve your long term business goals and are not be burdened by outdated IT. A good MSP will help you build a strategic IT plan, detailing your needs, options and budgetary requirements so that you are able to plan well in advance – no scary unknowns.

By partnering with a strong MSP you can maximise your IT whilst letting the experts manage it in the background, taking control of any upgrades, fixes or patches whenever they are needed.

3. Keeping Cybercriminals Away

Cyberattacks are happening every day and no company is immune from the threat. The techniques used by cybercriminals are forever evolving and it is essential that your

IT security is capable of protecting your business. A multi-layered approach to security is recommended and your MSP will be able to implement a range of solutions across your network to reduce the risk of your business becoming a victim of a cyberattack. Your business security measures must adapt as quickly as the methods of attack and should be layered with a suitable Back up & Disaster Recovery Plan. Your IT support company will work with you to ensure that your business is adequately protected and respond quickly should a disaster occur.

It is recommended that you work with an IT support company who will provide a detailed security audit, checking for vulnerabilities and helping you understand the solutions available to you to address them.

4. Transitioning to the Cloud

It's all happening in the cloud. Transitioning all or part of our IT to cloud computing offers several major benefits: lower costs, increased flexibility, easier scalability and higher levels of security. Shifting your IT to the cloud isn't always the easiest of tasks if you're attempting to handle it yourself.

Microsoft offer many cloud based solutions and good MSPs will hold gold, silver or bronze competencies across the MS cloud services suite. By selecting an IT support company which is recognised as a Microsoft Gold Partner, like ITRM, you can be confident in their team’s ability to ensure you are utilising the best solutions for your business needs and any transitions can be managed smoothly.

5. Relocation

Companies move premises all the time, whether for expansion or if their lease has expired. From March to December 2020, despite the pandemic, ITRM’s IT relocation service was used to relocate over 800 users and it is expected that the changes to working arrangements will lead to an increase in office moves. Decommissioning and recommissioning so much tech can be a difficult undertaking. With your IT support company leading the way, you can move office and have your IT system installed in the new place without having to endure lengthy and costly periods of downtime, or encounter difficulties when it's switched back on again. And, your IT support team are always on hand to ensure everything runs smoothly the next time you log on.

Getting the right kind of IT support for your business can help to propel it forward — you can get a free consultation from the support experts at ITRM to see what we can do for you. Contact us now.