Uptime: it’s one of the most important words in the IT industry. Every company is striving for the key goal of uninterrupted uptime: the ability to successfully navigate all day, every day at work without having to worry that your systems are going to go down. In spite of that desire for unlimited uptime, however, many businesses fail to realize the full cost benefits of unlimited uptime–or how to go about acquiring it.
Bringing Your Uptime Up
There are several key ways to bring up your uptime and make it easier to reach your performance goals as a business–not least of which is making sure that you have a qualified IT team at your fingertips who can support your business and provide the key elements you need to maintain efficient and effective service for your clients. Outsourcing your IT needs will ensure that you have the resources that you might not be able to afford in-house, including:
- A large team to monitor your network, website, and other aspects of technology for your business
- Access to the latest information in cybersecurity, including the latest threats and other key problems
- All the staff you need to help bring your website or network back up quickly if there is an unexpected problem
- A wider library of programs, apps, and solutions to help keep your business secure
If you’re struggling with unexpected downtime and you don’t have the resources to keep your business running smoothly or to bring it back up, working with an outsourced IT agency is one of the most effective ways to improve your overall IT performance.
The Benefits of Ongoing Uptime
For many businesses, the biggest question is the bottom line. If you do opt for outsourced IT or take other steps to increase your uptime, how much will you really benefit? Consider these financial benefits of increased uptime.
You’ll keep your customers. Repeat customers will often spend as much as 300 times the amount spent by a new customer, making them one of the most valuable assets your business has. Repeat customers are willing to keep coming back for more purchases, and they’re more likely to purchase your high-dollar products and services. Unfortunately, if you consistently have problems with downtime, you might not be able to keep those customers. As a result, you’ll miss out on the benefits of returning customers and lose out on sales you could otherwise have gained.
You won’t end up with high amounts of employee downtime during the work day. When your system goes down, many of your employees are unable to complete even the most basic tasks. In some cases, that may mean that you’re paying them to sit around and do virtually nothing! For many businesses, downtime can run a lost productivity cost of around $50,000 per hour. To calculate your anticipated losses, consider how many employees you have in your business and how many of them would be impacted by downtime.
Increased uptime means happier customers. There’s nothing more frustrating for a customer than coming into your business or calling your customer service line, only to discover that you’re unable to help them. When you increase your uptime, you also increase your ability to create happy customers. Happy customers in turn spend more with your business and recommend you to their friends and family members, not to mention writing quality online reviews that will help shape your overall reputation.
Your employees will be able to work more efficiently. Your employees need to be able to access your network in order to complete their daily business tasks. If the network goes down, they’re not able to work–and that means a backlog of projects that aren’t completed in a timely manner. This, in turn, leads to customer projects that are completed late or stressed employees who end up working overtime to finish their projects.
Increased uptime decreases employee stress. Whether you have a traditional work environment where employees come in from nine to five every day or a more flexible work schedule, your employees need to know that when they go to access your systems, they’re able to get to everything they need. When they can’t work, employees aren’t able to turn in projects on time or keep their customers happy–and as a result, their stress levels go up. Increased uptime, on the other hand, means that employees can take care of their daily tasks without having to reschedule around a system that’s not working the way they need it to. As a result, they’ll be happier at work, which can help decrease turnover and create a better working environment.
If you’ve been struggling to maintain consistent uptime in your business, it’s time to change the way you approach your IT. Instead of struggling to do it all yourself, consider how outsourcing your IT needs can help keep your business running more smoothly. Experience the benefits of uptime for yourself! Imagine: no more lost sales. No more unhappy customers who are upset because you can’t offer them the help they need when they need it or whose projects aren’t completed on time. It’s time to make a change! Contact us today to learn how we can help.
