It has never been more crucial for both large and small businesses alike to enlist the aid of an IT support provider. As our fast-paced world continues to pick up the pace, driven by the always shifting digital landscape, employing the assistance of an IT support company can help your business stay ahead of the tech curve, gain an edge over your competitors and foster growth. However, in saying that, if you’ve narrowed down your options and are about to sign a contract with an IT support firm, it’s also important to ensure you’ve done your homework.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of managed IT companies can be found online promising a diverse array of dynamic digital services and solutions. Although they can be found with very little effort, you need to know they’re the best fit for your business before signing your contract.
Here are six important questions to ask your new IT support service.
Will this contract tie my business in for a specific time period?
Perhaps one of the most important questions you should ask your IT support company, it is absolutely critical you understand the contract that will legally bind your provider with your own business. A professional IT support provider will offer a monthly and a yearly option to start off with, and will never pressure you into signing into a two or five year agreement right off the bat.
What is your average response time?
A guaranteed response time doesn’t always mean your IT support company will be at the beck and call of your business. However, it will mean they will be contractually obliged to respond to you in a set amount of time. That set amount of time is usually laid out in your Service Level Agreement, also known as an SLA.
Basically, if there’s an issue with your IT infrastructure, internet connectivity, digital asset or software that’s threatening the business continuity of your organisation, your chosen IT support provider should be at your side as soon as possible. As a result, it’s important to check their average response time and make sure it meets your expectations.
Do you provide remote monitoring?
Both in-house and remote technical assistance should be provided from your IT support companies – some companies even provide round-the-clock monitoring and security. It goes without saying that preventing an issue from escalating is important for the safety and stability of your business, so it makes sense to partner with a company that proactively monitors your network and IT infrastructure as much as possible.
In addition, remote management can also help your business save when it comes to travel expenses.
What levels of support do you offer?
A professional IT support company will be able to customise their services and solutions to suit the demands of your business as well as offer different levels of service.
These levels of support should include, at the bare minimum, a pay-as-you-go service and a break-fix service. They should also offer a fully managed, proactive solution that resolves issues before they escalate.
Pay-as-you-go
Pay-as-you-go is the best option if you only require IT support sometimes or for a specific period of time. Pay-as-you-go typically involves a fixed or hourly rate – your IT support provider will be reachable if you require assistance, but won’t help you with any preventative maintenance.
Break-fix
Break-fix support functions much like insurance for your car. When your car breaks down, you hire a mechanic to fix it – but that mechanic won’t do any proactive maintenance to prevent the car breaking down again. They’ll simply fix the issue so you can carry on driving.
With break-fix support, your IT support provider will help you pick up the pieces after a crisis or crash. Although useful for minor issues and challenges, it’s crucial to remember that with break-fix support, there won’t be any safeguards in place to prevent your tech from going off the deep end again. Your IT support provider will simply pick up the pieces and get your business back on track as quickly as possible.
Proactive
With proactive support, your IT support provider will effectively assume total management over your IT estate including your infrastructure, digital assets and crucial software platforms. In exchange, your business will have access to the most up to date technology, a comprehensive disaster recovery plan, assistance with internet connectivity and of course, the ability to implement cloud-centric apps and technologies in your daily operations.
The most crucial benefit of a proactive service is that it will thoroughly maintain and monitor your network. This allows you to address any possible problems before they become more serious, which will further ensure your company’s continuity as well as foster growth and boost productivity.
Do you supply IT infrastructure?
One of the most important benefits of outsourcing the management of your tech to a professional IT support provider is the provision of a single point of contact for any technical issues or challenges your business is facing. So, in theory, when it’s time to replace your IT infrastructure and hardware, you should be able to ask your IT support provider to advise, install and manage your new tech. Doing so will ensure your IT partner can also locate any necessary parts for your network should you require an update or replacement.
Conclusion
Finding tech support is easy, but getting the right support for you and your company can be a little trickier. Your partner of choice should share your beliefs and values as well as and take business objectives and goals into account. Doing so will allow them to build a bespoke IT strategy tailored to the needs of you and your business.
Start by using your location to search for a few different keywords such as ‘IT Support Plymouth’ or ‘Tech Support Plymouth’. From there, it should be easy to narrow down your options until you find a provider who meets your criteria. Just remember not to sign with the first IT support provider you find!
