I'm a small business. Do I need to hire a professional IT company?

It's no secret that small business owners must wear multiple hats. The might do their own bookkeeping, process their own payroll, and sometimes, even sweep their own floors. We understand the need to watch funds carefully when you're just starting out.  When it comes to technology, It's not uncommon for a new small business owner to go to the local big box store, purchase computers off the shelf, and hope employees are savvy enough to install updates on their own. But if you've ever worked in an environment like that or have owned a business like that, you know that eventually, an IT issue will come up. It is inevitable.

The most successful small business owners recognize that there are only so many hours in the day. Why spend that time waiting on "some guy who does IT" to call you back or worse, troubleshooting your employee's PC issues personally? You could better spend that time making sales or providing top-notch customer service.

At some point, a small business owner will recognize the cost benefits of outsourcing their IT. At Keytel Systems, our general rule of thumb is that when your small business reaches five or more workstations, the time to outsource your IT has come.

Managed IT Services

In our last blog, we answered the question, What is Managed IT Service? Basically it means that as an owner of a small business, when you hire a comprehensive managed services provider, you are being PROACTIVE about your IT, not REACTIVE.  The goal here is to prevent issues before they happen, all at a flat-rate monthly cost that you can plan for.

Return on Investment

Most of the small business customers who contact Keytel Systems are already experiencing IT issues, either with another IT company or because they have no outsourced IT at all.  So it's not hard for them to understand return on investment. They know the costs of downtime and other IT issues, and they are fed up with it.

However, if you're just starting out and haven't experienced a significant IT problem, it might be hard to gauge ROI.  Think about the consequences for your business if your computers or phones went down for the day, or even a few days. How would that impact your bottom line? How many customer calls or emails might you miss? How many of your customers might decide to hire one of your competitors? Preventing one poor customer experience might pay for an entire year of managed IT services.

Keep Your Existing Devices and Infrastructure

Small business owners might be hesitant to hire an outsourced IT company because they think they might have to purchase all new workstations, phones, routers, or other infrastructure. Unless those devices are truly ancient relics, that is not the case! Our decades of experience means that we've seen it all, and we excel at working with what you already have to get the most out of it.

Many small businesses allow their employees to use their personal cell phones for business purposes. That strategy can work great when it's implemented correctly. Sadly, we often see it implemented poorly. As part of a comprehensive network audit with Keytel Systems, we analyze possible cyber security flaws on employee's personal mobile devices and take the necessary steps to close those security holes.  Your business's security should never be compromised for convenience.

It’s true that adding new technology solutions to your business adds additional cost. However, that investment is offset with improved productivity and seemless customer experience. Contact the IT professionals at Keytel Systems for a no-obligation phone consultation to see how we can bring your small business to the next level.