Running a small business requires dedication, time and considerable personal investment. Despite what many people think, it’s impossible to do it all and working with qualified experts in specialist areas, IT especially, is something all small business owners should consider. Managing your own IT systems can be time-consuming, and without expert knowledge, you may not be able to do it securely and react effectively should anything go wrong. Unless you are highly trained in IT yourself, considering IT support should be one of your top priorities to make sure you have time to focus on growing the business.
Working with professionals like Freestyle TS ensures your small business has adequate support for all things IT. Let’s look closely at why IT support should be considered essential for small businesses.
1. Security of Data & Information
How much do you know about GDPR? Data security and data protection must be a top priority for any organisation handling customer data, and all small businesses fall into this category. However, this can be a minefield for small business owners and improper practice of GDPR protocols can leave you at risk of hefty fines that could cripple your business. Did you know that according to GDPR.EU, around half of small businesses are failing GDPR compliance due to lack of data security concepts such as encryption?
IT service & support teams are there to offer support and guidance on best practices for storing data and can help setup encryptions to ensure proper data management is in place for your business. Your IT support partner will work to ensure your network is secured and all data is fully protected too, taking the stress away from you.
2. Safety & Security
Your business’ safety is tightly connected to its online network, website and other IT systems. Cyberattacks are not just something big multinationals have to worry about. One report found that 55% of small businesses reported an attempted cyber-attack in 2019, a figure that is increasing year on year. Simply having a basic anti-virus software package isn’t enough for the average business and working with professional IT support ensures an additional layer of security. Your IT support partner will put safety measures in place and ensure anti-virus software and other tools are regularly updated, ensuring devices on your network are regularly monitored. IT security also includes regular backing up of your data and system settings, so you can revert to a previous position in the event of an attack.
3. System Maintenance
Most businesspeople have the basic knowledge to get their systems up and running, but that’s usually as far as it goes. A lot of business owners can underestimate the importance of making sure your systems are regularly updated and having the latest firmware and hardware updates in place. Without this, you could be at risk of slow speed, issues using the software on a daily basis and even worse, risk of losing information or data. By having professional IT support to manage this, taking all the stress out of it. They’ll make sure all systems and networks are using the latest updates to keep systems running to the best of their ability and keep things ticking along.
4. Proactive & Fast Response to Technical Problems
Spending hours trying to fix a technical error can cost your business money but more importantly, your time. While the issue may be fixable after a few hours, can you really afford taking the time out of your business to fix it? Why not have a team of local IT specialists on-call to help with these common issues. At Freestyle TS, our experienced team of technician’s act as an extension or in some cases, your own IT department should there be a technical hitch. Not only will they be able to quickly respond and find a workable solution to your problem as quickly as possible, but they’ll take the stress away leaving you to focus on more important tasks.
5. Seamless Integrations
As the world becomes more digitised, you will find your customers demand more services and solutions online. Thousands of fantastic tools, software programs and apps work wonderfully together, but this isn’t always easy to configure without expert knowledge. IT support can seamlessly integrate different programs, apps and more to ensure you have the perfect setup to run your business efficiently.
6. Expert IT Professionals on Hand
Small businesses that invest in IT support have highly skilled experts on hand, often within a matter of minutes via telephone call or email to help with your request or issue. This not only means that any troubleshooting issue you come across will be resolved quickly causing minimal damage or impact on the business but may even give you a one-up on any competitor who cannot call upon such expertise. IT solutions for all elements of your business, from computer software and hardware to VoIP phone systems and cloud technologies, can be complex and difficult to understand unless you have the technical know-how. Not for IT support teams, they thrive on this information and keeping up with technology is what makes their business work, they want to share these skills with businesses where they can make a difference.
7. Easy Configuration
Accessing your business systems and network should be user-friendly and straightforward. With IT support, your systems can be set up effectively to ensure ease of use. Running your system on the Cloud ensures instant updates and enhanced levels of security. It also makes it easy for your IT support partners to step in and manage any issues or technical concerns. IT services are critical to almost every modern business; if you’re not particularly tech literate, you shouldn’t be held back. An IT support team should be able to configure your systems to ensure ease of use for any end-user.
8. Network Connectivity
IT downtime has impacted almost all businesses at one time or another. Downtime can cost your business dearly. Without support from trained IT professionals, the outage will likely last even longer. Data from IDC suggests unexpected downtime costs businesses more than £40,000 per 100 users. These costs quickly add up, making it even more vital that you work with trained IT professionals to keep your network online.
An IT support team is there to help keep your network connected and running as smoothly as possible. In the event of any downtime, they’ll be quick to react and find proactive solutions to ensure no lasting impact or significant damage is caused by the time offline.
Discover How Freestyle TS offer Tailored IT Support to Work as an Extension of Your Business
Freestyle TS have built a team of experts over the last 20 years helping support many small businesses with their IT around the Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire area. We offer a fully tailored service, ensuring we deliver solutions suitable for your business depending on your business size, industry, and other key factors. We specialise in helping small businesses improve their IT and work alongside you to ensure you get the level of service suitable for your company’s growth and success. Our highly experienced IT professionals are on hand to provide real-time support and act as an extension of your IT department whenever you need them.
Sign up today and we’ll offer you a FREE 3-month trial so you can see for yourself. Alternatively, speak to a member of the team via our chat box or contact form to find out more about how Freestyle TS can help your small business.
