In this fast-paced business world, it’s essential to ensure your business’s IT is up to date. Outsourcing IT management saves money on hiring in-house staff and makes operations more manageable and less stressful for your and your team.
However, it is important to weigh the pros and cons before signing on to a managed IT service. Some things to think about: What options do you have? How much will it cost? What can you expect in terms of quality and reliability? Can the service provider meet your specific needs?
You know how important secure and dependable IT is to your operations, but you want to ensure the right team manages your IT services.
This article outlines what makes for good; affordable managed IT services and how they could benefit your small business. If you’re looking for affordable managed IT services in the Kingston area, here are a few things you should look for.
What are Managed IT Services?
Many things fall under the banner of IT or Information Technology, so it takes time to devise a simple way to measure the value of IT services, specifically managed ones. Depending on the needs and size of your business, your IT infrastructure requirements may vary significantly.
With that said, let’s look at some of the services modern providers offer for managed IT solutions. They can offer much more than just keeping your server up and running – they also provide security services, hosted software and storage solutions, data backup/restore services, and even hardware replacement and setup services.
Outsourced IT solutions are becoming more popular because they can offer many benefits, including saving time and money. They also increase the efficiency of your company’s technology systems, leading to improvements in productivity. Some providers have a knowledgeable team of experts with technical skills and expertise. Still, others may have one or two contractors who aren’t as familiar as they need to be to keep your downtime minimized and your network secure, so it is essential to hire a leading provider like Response I.T..
How Much Do Managed Services Cost?
IT-managed services are typically based on a company’s needs. The cost is usually scaled to use, so if you have a small team with minimal IT requirements, you can expect to pay less, whereas larger enterprises with more extensive needs can expect to pay more for managed IT services.
To give you an idea of costs, you can expect to pay anywhere between $15-$300 per user. Your company might have specific requirements too, which will cost a little extra. A managed IT service provider will have a range of services that can vary in scope and frequency. Now let’s explore the benefits of managed IT services so you understand what you can expect and how to can fit it into your budget.
Benefits of Managed IT Services
Outsourcing IT management can cut costs, save time, and do it all while maintaining business continuity.
The following are just some of the benefits of using a Kingston, Ontario-based managed service provider:
- System Stability: Remote hosting means your data and applications are safe, and it’s easy to host them securely on a virtual server. Managed IT services provide peace of mind while you continue to produce high-quality work. Your data will be stored in a safe location, meaning that even if you suffer a cyber attack, theft, or natural disaster, you’ll have peace of mind knowing that your data is backed up offsite.
- Cost Predicability: Rather than paying for in-house staff that is not needed daily, businesses receive the benefit of a complete IT solution for one affordable monthly fee.
- Improved Network and Hardware Performance: MSPs understand the need for a reliable connection. They also work hard to keep your hardware and network performance if you’re up against an outage or using outdated devices.
- Panic-Free Disaster Recovery: MSPs provide disaster recovery plans so that you don’t have to worry in the event of a crisis. This gives business owners peace of mind knowing that recovery will be quick, ensuring minimal damage to your systems and access to all important data.
- Consistent Monitoring of System Components for Proper Functionality: Monitoring should happen 24/7 if you expect to maintain constant system availability and proper functionality for your business, which means that your system components must be monitored at all times.
- Access a Dedicated, Expert Support Team: Working with an MSP grants you access to a team of experts whose goal is to help you achieve your aims. MSPs bring together highly talented people in one place, filling crucial gaps in your company’s staffing.
What To Look For in Managed IT Services
Running an efficient IT system is critical when you want to grow your business, and by partnering with a managed IT services provider, you can free up more of your own time. Activities like network administration, server management, and help desk support are all in the purview of the MSP. This helps you stay focused on the critical parts of your business.
Rather than managing an IT department on your own, managed IT services can offer many benefits. Choosing the right provider will make all the difference, but the following criteria are what you should look for in a managed IT service provider:
Update Management
At a growing company, when technology requires updating, it can be tempting to ignore it. When this happens, your systems may function more slowly or update at an inopportune time, leading to inefficiencies and downtime. A managed IT service will make sure your updates are proactively scheduled so that you avoid issues or untimely updates.
Network Security and Protection
A professional firm that offers Managed IT services can help you protect your network against cyber-security threats and hackers. Your MSP should include regular security testing and monitoring to protect your network from possible threats.
On-Site Support
Always ensure you are selecting a vendor available for onsite service. Using a local provider is the best way to get high-quality support for your IT systems. That way, you won’t be waiting for days to get on-site support from an out-of-town service contractor to arrive.
Responsive Help Desk
There are many times that minor issues pop up for growing businesses. A responsive help desk can solve problems instantly. Working with a managed IT service provider that provides a responsive help desk as part of their package can be incredibly beneficial. They can fix the issue and often provide a solution remotely.
Business Continuity
One of the best benefits of managed IT services involves disaster recovery and backup options. It would be best if you had IT solutions in case of a disaster because you want to be able to recover your data as soon as possible. Managed IT services provide a way to meet this need.
Choose Response I.T. for Affordable Managed IT Services
IT has always been an essential factor in running a company. However, with the recent developments in the industry, one has to ensure that they are using up-to-date software and hardware to make their business run smoothly.
For businesses in Southeastern Ontario, you can trust that Response I.T. provides competitive rates for managed IT services without sacrificing your technology’s functionality, safety, or effectiveness.
Response I.T. provides fully-supported IT services that allow businesses to succeed in any environment, from cloud to on-premise. Our network service and cyber security expertise will enable you to get back to what matters for your company: serving customers and clients. We take the time to get to know you and work with you so that we can better accomplish what’s important for your company. Contact us today to get started.