Large businesses have traditionally invested heavily in managed IT services. These efforts increase the accessibility and visibility of IT services to their users, but small businesses often regard IT investments as a luxury they can’t afford. Fortunately, the falling cost of IT has helped level the playing field with respect to businesses of different sizes. Furthermore, the growing connection between IT investments and business performance increases the probability that IT solutions will pay for themselves. The most beneficial small business IT solutions include the following:
- Mobile applications
- Unified communications
- Analytics
- Cloud storage
- Security
Mobile Applications
Mobile applications are particularly useful for small businesses, which often rely more on mobile devices for communication more than a traditional landline system. Modern mobile phones can perform virtually any office function with the right app, including the organization of users. Mobile apps can also be automatically updated, ensuring that a business always has access to the latest software futures.
Unified communications
Many businesses have a frequent need to communicate with clients, staff and vendors in geographically separate areas. However, expensive face-to-face meetings is typically prohibitive for small business. Unified communications (UC) provide an ideal solution to direct communication, including teleconferencing and messaging platforms. UC also allows users to share documents and other written material at a lower cost than other methods. These capabilities allow small businesses to maintain an international staff like larger businesses.
Analytics
Many small businesses already perform most of their marketing activities on social media. However, this strategy also requires these businesses to assess the effectiveness of those efforts. Managed IT services include analytics, which provide deep insight into marketing data and can provide a great advantage over other competitors. Analytics software often includes a dashboard that monitors multiple IT services, allowing users to visualize the relationship between web traffic and sales. This type of software can also illustrate the specific widgets on a webpage that visitors are clicking.
Cloud Storage
The lack of adequate resources to maintain IT infrastructure on site is often a major challenge for small businesses, especially when it comes to meeting their storage requirements. Managed IT services routinely include cloud storage, which allows users in different locations to share data. Cloud hosting services also include apps that allow users to replicate data on multiple systems, which is an essential component of disaster planning.
Security
The frequent use of mobile devices creates additional security concerns for small businesses, as these devices are easily lost or stolen. IT security solutions include apps that locate mobile devices, lock them, or wipe their data, preventing unauthorized personnel from accessing confidential data. Some mobile security apps even perform these functions when the device’s battery is dead.
Summary
CSCi provides many IT services to small businesses in the San Diego area. These businesses often use our hourly service plan, which provides services by request or according to a schedule. We also partner with major companies to provide the latest IT products and services. Call us today to find out what we can do for you.