How to Choose an IT Support Company

Downtime in a business from IT failures can have a catastrophic effect on a company. Gartner recently put a figure on this, and that number came to a jaw-dropping $5600 per minute!

Getting the proper IT support isn't just a tick in the box for a business. It's the smart thing to do financially. 

If you are considering an external company to manage your IT, here is a straightforward guide to choosing the right IT support company for your business. 

What Response Times Do They Offer? 

If you have an IT problem that is putting your company on pause, you don't want to be left hanging with your IT support. Response times are critical to your business operations.

A good IT company will outline its target response times for different types of IT issues.

Check these out, and make a note of the category of support issue each target time covers. Ask yourself whether these will be sufficient for your company if you do run into IT problems. 

Proactive vs. Reactive Support 

Traditionally, IT support companies have focused their efforts on fixing problems as they arise.

At Techspert Services, we've flipped this approach on its head by asking what preventative steps we can take to stop a problem from happening in the first place.

That type of proactive assistance is something you want to look for in the best IT support company.

They will provide online services to maintain the health of servers and networks, so you are less likely to run into a significant problem in the future.

That improves the uptime and stability of your systems and reduces the business costs for you. 

Customer Testimonials

Taking a good look through customer testimonials will give you a helpful insight into the managed services offered by an IT support company.

Do the testimonials describe the IT services as dependable?

If you need further feedback, don't be afraid to ask for detailed customer references. References will provide honest information about how that IT support team has performed for their clients.

It will demonstrate how well they have reacted to problems and how helpful and responsive they have been with the client on a day-to-day basis. 

Breadth and Depth of Expertise

Naturally, you want a company that knows your systems inside-out and has the breadth of expertise to handle every bit of IT in your network. But don't forget about the depth of knowledge and the level of experience in the team.

An excellent IT technician with years of expertise will not only be faster to diagnose a problem, but they will also understand more about how to improve the health of that system.

That will help prevent long-term problems and downtime. 

Talk to the IT support company before you sign. Ask if you can speak to some technicians directly to learn more about their specialist areas and their ideas for improving your IT setup. 

Availability 

Are you a small company that needs managed IT support from 9-5, Monday to Friday? Or a global company that needs weekday support to cover 24 hours? Maybe you are a website in need of 24/7 support?

Take a close look at the type of IT support on offer. More specifically, the availability the IT support company will offer you.

Will the IT company monitor your systems 24/7, or will you need to wait until 9 am the following day for an engineer to examine the problem?

Not everyone needs 24/7 support, and round-the-clock support is inevitably more expensive than 9-5. So it's essential to establish what your business needs before you talk to an IT company about its services. 

Customer Service

Customer service is more than a few polite conversations over the phone. You want to select an IT support company with which you can form a strong, positive relationship.

Suppose you have an urgent problem. In that case, you want to be able to pick up the phone and know whom you are speaking to instead of dialing a number that puts you in a waiting line at a call center thousands of miles away. 

That's one of the reasons companies in Jacksonville, Tampa, and Orlando choose to work with us for their IT support.

As a local company, we offer a higher level of customer service. We build strong working relationships with our customers that make a genuinely positive impact on our clients.  

Cost-Effective

IT support is a business expense, but even critical server and network support need to be affordable for your business in the long term.

To get an idea of how cost-effective the IT support services are, you need to look beyond the headline numbers. What are you getting for that money?

Are you getting a fast response that will minimize the costs to your business during the downtime, and is that worth paying a bit more to give you that peace of mind? 

The lowest-cost offer on the table might not be the cheapest in the long run.

Look for the service package that will proactively manage your IT systems and keep your business running 24/7. That is the package that will be most cost-effective for your business. 

Strategic Input

A good IT support company will provide advice and strategic direction for your future IT plans.

Take office moves, for example. If you are planning an office move shortly, you can ask an IT support company to assist in that move.

But the best IT support company will sit down with you and help you plan that move so that it goes smoothly.

That's the type of strategic input it's worth seeking out in an IT company, so they become almost an extension of your team. 

Choose the Right IT Support Company 

If you want to choose the best IT support company for your business, look beyond the brochure website and the price listings.

Think about your IT support company as an extension of your business, and find one you can trust to keep your IT system up and run for you 24/7. 

If you're ready to take that next step, contact us today about your IT setup, and we can talk you through how we can support your business.