Managed IT services is a model for getting IT support using a professional outsourced firm. These are usually companies located in the same time zone but can often be local enough to be able to provide on-site services quickly. However, they can be nearshore agencies or more remote options that manage clients’ IT on a software level.
What Are the Benefits of Managed IT for SMBs?
There are numerous benefits of managed IT services, specifically for small businesses.
Cost Effectiveness
One of the primary benefits of going with managed IT services is the impact it has on your wallet. SMBs don’t tend to have deep pockets or large budgets, especially not for tech infrastructure. Shops, locally owned restaurants, small retail or grocery stores, and online businesses or sole proprietorships are unlikely to have a full in-house IT department, but that doesn’t mean IT services aren’t needed. Protection from cybersecurity threats and effective hardware and software usage can still be the difference between success and failure for SMBs.
Rather than hire an in-house team and pay for payroll, benefits, office space, equipment, and leave, managed IT allows you to tap into an established team that is ready to work for your business needs. As a small business, you may not even have enough work to keep an in-house team busy and justify the expense. Having a managed IT team available on-demand can prevent you from paying for services you aren’t using.
Instant Expertise
An in-house team also needs to be trained. You can hire the best talent, but they need to learn your system and also your personal way of operating your business. You not only need to take time to hire each member of your team, but you also need to onboard them, train them, and actively manage them on a day-to-day basis. This plays into the first benefit of cost-effectiveness but having instant access to a team of IT experts who have worked with businesses across all industries and sizes removes the need for all of that time and effort to be invested at the outset and on an ongoing basis.
Breach Risk Reduction
One of the primary reasons to have professionals dedicated to your IT needs, in-house or managed, is to defend your business against cybersecurity threats. It can be tempting to think that hackers and social engineers (hackers who try and trick the people using the computers rather than hacking the computers themselves) will only target large companies that might represent a significant payload.
However, these individuals know that larger organizations often have robust defense systems provided by their IT services and are difficult marks. The easy targets are small businesses with poorly encrypted documents and little to no antivirus software or backups. It’s all too easy for a bad actor to apprehend crucial business documents and then hold them for ransom — and this is just one of the many ways SMBs can fall victim to cybersecurity breaches.
One of the first orders of business for a managed IT services firm is to establish, reinforce, or shore up your cybersecurity defenses, depending on their state. With managed IT, you can rest easy knowing your small business is protected from cyber threats on all sides.
Flexibility and Scalability
The lower costs in time, effort, and money mean that you can focus your resources on things that scale your business rather than your in-house team. You can move to a new office, open a new branch, or expand into a new market without having to worry about your IT team. A managed IT firm will be able to support you no matter where you are or how you grow.
IT issues rarely happen at convenient times. With 24/7 support from managed IT services, you don’t have to worry about PTO or off-hours preventing you from getting help immediately. This flexibility and availability are prime advantages of going with an external firm for your IT needs.
How eTech Can Help You Take Your IT to the Next Level
Don’t leave your small business’ IT needs to chance. You can either go with in-house or managed IT services, but you need to have someone watching your back, protecting you from cyber threats, and ensuring your business has its hardware and software running as efficiently as possible. Here at eTech, our managed IT services provide SMBs with customized solutions allowing you to scale your business and maintain your competitive edge. Take advantage of lower costs, higher security standards, as well as increased flexibility and scalability through better IT solutions.Give us a call today and let us be your IT tech partner that takes your business to the next level.
