One decision Louisiana business owners have to make that can impact their operations significantly is how to manage their technology.
Do they sign up for a managed services plan with an IT provider or just get their network equipment and computers repaired when something goes wrong?
Taking a break/fix approach (waiting until something is broken to call in a pro) may seem less costly to some people, but is it really?
When you wait until things go wrong, the cost to repair them and associated downtime can cost more than ongoing management that keeps anything serious from happening with your IT.
We’ll take a look at several reasons why managed services actually end up being a better deal and more cost efficient than break/fix.
Proactive Maintenance to Mitigate Downtime
Most people get their oil changed regularly in their vehicle as an ongoing maintenance task. They know if they didn’t do this, their car would eventually have a major breakdown that costs much more than those oil changes every few months.
Keeping an IT infrastructure running is similar. Proactive maintenance through a managed services plan can keep major breakdowns from happening that result in downtime and emergency repair costs.
If you take a break/fix approach, you can expect higher costs throughout the year. It’s estimated that the cost of each unmanaged business computer is $5,000 per year.
24/7 Monitoring to Catch Potential Security Issues
Cybercrime and malware attacks are on the rise. The FBI reported a 400% increase in cyberattacks since the start of the pandemic.
Attacks come in all forms and can hit a network anytime. Speed in detecting and mitigating the threat as soon as possible is vital to safeguarding your network and data.
When you’re only calling in an IT pro when something goes wrong, you can have spyware planted in your network, stealing passwords and other data for months, and not be aware of it.
With managed IT services, you have 24/7 monitoring of your network and systems that identifies any potential threats immediately (even in the middle of the night) and keeps them from endangering your business.
Enterprise-Class Antivirus/Anti-Malware
Along with network monitoring, it’s important to have a sophisticated, enterprise antivirus/anti-malwareprogram that can block emerging threats. This includes zero-day attacks that older antivirus programs can’t keep up with.
You get managed enterprise-class antivirus/anti-malware software with a managed services plan, which ensures that even the newer types of malware can be detected and blocked.
Patch & Update Management
How many times a month do you or your employees click “later” on an operating system (OS) or software update? These updates are vital to keep your devices secure, but they’re often not done in a timely manner, which can result in a breach.
In 2019, 60% of data breaches were due to unpatched software.
Patch and update management is an important part of managed services. All updates are handled for you and in a way that doesn’t interfere with your users’ workflows.
This ensures that not only are your systems kept secure, but that updates go smoothly without any problems.
Equipment Longevity
If you’re waiting until something breaks to have it serviced, your equipment is going to have a much shorter lifespan than it should. Just like those oil changes improve the usable lifespan of your car, ongoing computer maintenance improves equipment lifespan.
When hardware is properly maintained, it operates more efficiently and doesn’t have catastrophic breakdowns because it’s being properly cared for. This helps it last longer, giving you a higher ROI on your technology purchases.
Improved Productivity & Tech Support
The average employee spends 22 minutes each day struggling with IT issues. This equates to more than 2 weeks out of the year in lost productivity.
When workers don’t have a help desk or IT support person they can go to for a software or hardware problem, productivity comes to a standstill as they try to fix a problem themselves (which they could end up making worse).
When you sign up for a managed services plan, it includes technical support for your employees, so they always have an expert tech resource to turn to should they have any issues.
Through phone and remote support options, often issues can be handled in a matter of minutes, getting your team back to work fast.
Additionally, when their devices are being well managed by a professional, there are fewer incidents or problems because PCs are kept running efficiently.
Save Money, Improve Security, & Boost Productivity Today
Sign up for a managed IT services plan with Carl’s Computer Care and enjoy a more secure IT environment, lower costs, and better productivity.
Contact us today to schedule a consultation! Call 225-315-3498 or reach us online.