Now more than ever, we rely on technology to run our businesses and our lives. When the “Internet goes down,” most businesses come to a standstill until they are back online, costing thousands in lost productivity and sales. A perfect example would be the AT&T outage that happened a few weeks ago, when an estimated 1.7 million customers, including small business owners, lost service. No phones, no Internet. Could you afford your business being down for minutes, hours or even days? The answer is likely no.

Downtime is one way bad IT support can disrupt your business, but it’s not the ONLY issue. Big problems like recovering deleted files, removing malware and constantly monitoring and patching your network, and small irritations like getting file access, resetting forgotten passwords and repairing broken printers, can stack up over time and affect productivity.

That is why you must have a way to get back up and running quickly should something happen – or even a way to ELIMINATE tech problems before they start.

Unfortunately, paying through the nose for IT that can’t troubleshoot its way out of a paper bag is more common than you’d hope. These so-called “IT Wizards” who promised you top-notch support for bargain-basement prices are sitting around using their magic wands as backscratchers, waiting for YOU to let THEM know something has gone wrong. It has to stop. That’s why we’ve put together a list of fundamental and necessary requirements that ANYONE who’s working on your network should meet.

Check off all that apply:

• Does your IT company answer their phone LIVE and respond to emergencies promptly (within 15 minutes)?
• Is your IT company easy to reach and highly responsive (responding within an hour) when you need them for non-emergencies?
• Do you know if your IT company proactively monitors, patches and updates your computer network’s critical security settings daily? Weekly? At all? How do you know for sure? Hint: Most don’t!
• Does your IT company offer proof that they are backing up ALL your data, laptops and devices?
• Does your IT company meet with you regularly (at least once a quarter) to report on what they’ve been doing, review projects and offer new ways to improve your network’s performance instead of waiting until you have a problem to make recommendations?
• Does your IT company provide detailed invoices that clearly explain what you are paying for?
• Does your IT company explain what they are doing and answer your questions in terms you can understand, NOT in “geek-speak,” and routinely ask if there’s anything else they can help with, no matter how small?
• Does your IT company proactively discuss cyber security with you, make recommendations for protecting your network from ransomware and offer training videos so your employees don’t fall victim to a scam?
• Has your IT company provided you with complete network documentation or do they hold the “keys to the kingdom,” refusing to give you admin passwords, so you’re totally helpless if something goes wrong and you can’t get a hold of them?
• Do techs arrive on time and dress professionally, and do you look forward to working with them, or do you cringe every time you have to make that call?

If your current IT company, technician or “IT guy” does NOT check the boxes on every point, you could be – and most likely are – paying for substandard support.

This oversight could not only jeopardize your data and your network’s security but also cost you thousands in lost productivity because you and your employees are spending time dealing with problems that shouldn’t exist, but if something goes awry, you’re going to be the one everyone blames.

If that’s the case, then it’s time you see what else is out there and make sure you’re getting what you pay for. Anything less is a liability to your business.

To schedule your assessment with one of our senior advisors by calling us at 954-994-0822 or going to www.thecompulab.com/10-minute-discovery-call/