Your business server is the heart of your company’s success. Without a reliable and secure server, you’re risking damage to your finances, reputation, and ability to operate efficiently.
Outsourcing your IT needs to a server support company sounds costly – but it’s not. In fact, outsourcing will save your business thousands of dollars every year as you avoid downtime, improve productivity, and streamline your IT systems.
If you’re not sure whether you need to outsource your server maintenance to an external company, keep reading.
Key Signs You Need External Help with Your Server
From a lack of cybersecurity to no plans for an earthquake, here are some signs it’s time to speak to an external server maintenance company.
1. You Experience a Lot of Unplanned Downtime
The unproductive hours of unplanned downtime quickly add up, as each employee is delayed in their ability to carry out their daily tasks.
Worse, your customers will soon get tired of a website that keeps failing! Your reputation will be affected, and this will cost you even the most loyal of customers over time.
2. You Can’t Afford 24/7 In-House Support
If you’re a cash-strapped startup, your first thoughts won’t be on 24/7 server support. However, this is essential to ensure your network remains safe, your website keeps running, and everything runs smoothly.
An external supplier can help take the load off of these costs by providing flexible pay-as-you-go technical support, alongside guarantees surrounding downtime and maintenance.
3. Servers, Networks, and IT Systems Confuse You
If you don’t know your network from your server, or have no idea what a firewall is, it’s time to call in a professional.
While it’s possible to learn – or to send staff on training courses – this is all valuable time away from core business tasks.
Taking time to train means you’ll also risk missing essential server updates in the meantime. For example, you could miss essential installation of security patches to prevent malware from attacking your business network.
4. Your Business Needs to Scale Rapidly
When your business is growing fast – or downsizing – you need to manage your network systems to match.
External support enables much easier scaling of your IT systems and server requirements than handling it in-house.
5. You Don’t Have Disaster Planning in Place
Do you back up your servers daily? What happens if there’s a fire, flood, or an earthquake? Could you easily restore your business systems from a new location, or do you risk everything being destroyed?
An external company will deliver disaster management services for your peace of mind and business continuity.
What to Look for in a Server Support Company
Now you know you need support for your server and IT systems, here are the important things to look for before you hire an external company to help.
1. A 24/7 Service
You should be able to get in touch for technical emergencies at any time of day.
The service should also include daily backups, server maintenance, and on-site technical support when you need it.
2. Plenty of Experience and Ongoing Staff Training
A highly experienced team is a great start, but make sure to ask your potential supplier how often they invest in additional staff training, too.
A company that invests in qualifications and additional training is one that will be up-to-date with the latest technological and software advances. You’ll receive top-notch service when your team members have extensive knowledge to cope with emergencies.
3. Guaranteed Response Times
There’s little point in paying for extensive technical knowledge, a dedicated team, and 24/7 service if that means you’ll be waiting hours for any help.
Make sure your contract includes guaranteed response times, to help you manage any IT emergencies swiftly and with minimal downtime.
4. Flexible Support for Changing Business Needs
Your business needs will change over time, so it’s important to find a support service that can adapt with you.
You may need additional server space, extra licenses, legacy upgrades, or new security measures as your business grows and changes. Make sure you can change your contract as and when your requirements shift over time.
Discover Flexible Managed IT Solutions for Your Business
A server support company offers so much more than basic server maintenance. You can opt for software management, network installation and maintenance, cloud services, and even disaster recovery planning.
Whether you need someone to manage your back-end IT processes, or handle all of your systems and daily IT tasks, we’re here to help. Contact us today to find the best IT solution for your business needs.
