Nothing is more exciting than watching your small business gain traction with new clients and higher sales. As the work grows beyond your current capacity, you begin to hire additional employees, scale your operations, and automate processes. But sometimes in all the hustle to keep up with the demands of your growing business, crucial IT tasks get bumped to tomorrow’s to-do list again and again.
That’s a mistake you can’t afford to make. While cybersecurity, data backup, and routine maintenance may operate in the background, when something goes wrong they can sink your business fast.
So how do you know when it’s time to outsource technical support for your small business? Here are 6 signs it’s time to take the plunge.
- Your business is growing faster than your backup and security strategy.
Security and backup are two of the most important IT needs in any business. Without them, your data is at risk every single day. If a breach occurs, you could lose not only your own sensitive information, but also that of your customers. Even worse, you could be held legally responsible and face penalties that could shut you down. It’s not something you can afford to skimp on. For many small businesses, outsourcing is the most effective way to put the right security measures and data protection strategies in place while also keeping costs manageable. - You don’t have a disaster recovery plan.
Power outages, floods, fires, and other catastrophic incidents can bring your business to a grinding halt if you don’t have a plan in place to maintain business continuity. Your disaster recovery plan should include protocols for responding to the loss of any part of your system, including power supply, hardware, connectivity, software, data centers, and servers (either onsite or cloud-based). If you don’t have the personnel or resources to develop and implement a plan like this, outsourcing is often your best option for keeping data safe and secure. - You want to stay competitive with innovative technology in your industry.
Even if you have an internal IT team, they may be too strapped to stay abreast of the latest technology innovations, especially in rapidly evolving industries like manufacturing and healthcare. But cutting edge technology can give you an edge over the competition, which can be essential for up-and-coming businesses that are trying to establish a foothold in the market. Managed IT providers give you that competitive edge and ensure that you won’t be left behind in the race for innovation. - You need a robust technology strategy that doesn’t break the bank.
Technology gets expensive quickly. According to Gartner, 80% of IT costs occur after the initial purchase. Your total cost of ownership will include things like tech support, database administration, helpdesk, IT staff salaries, network costs, maintenance, updates and upgrades, troubleshooting, lost productivity due to downtime, and facilities costs. Outsourcing your IT services to an MSP drastically reduces the total costs you can expect to pay to keep your IT infrastructure up and running. - You need to reduce technology-related risk.
Expanding your IT capabilities carries inherent risks, including service continuity downtime, data loss, security breaches, damage to your business reputation, operational failures, budget excesses, and many others. Identifying and mitigating those risks is a full-time job, especially as privacy concerns have mushroomed over the past decade. When you outsource your risk management function, you can depend on the fact that IT experts with cutting-edge knowledge of current risks and mitigation strategies will make sure your business is above board and protected. - You want to focus on expanding core competencies, but IT is eating up too much of your time and budget.
When you outsource IT, you enjoy the freedom to focus the attention of your staff on developing and delivering the products and services that form the core of your business. Effectively managed IT will also help you run those operations more efficiently, reduce technology snags that hinder productivity, and help you run your business as you always planned.
Technical support demands significant time and resource investment for small businesses, especially if you are trying to handle it alone. Outsourcing your IT needs to a managed services provider gives you the peace of mind you need to grow your business without worrying about lagging behind in the IT department.
If you’re ready to find a provider in your area, we can help! Simply tell us what you need and we’ll match you with quality MSPs near you.