What happens if there’s an IT issue and you need immediate assistance? How long can you wait before your business is dramatically affected by the downtime? Many businesses have standard operating hours. But what about yours? Are you a retailer open until 11PM daily? What about a machine shop that runs with a third shift crew? What do you do when emergencies happen?
Most managed service providers only operate during standard business hours. If you have any issues, you can call them and they will respond within their standard time frame. If you outsource your IT, you may end up waiting a while depending on their standard ticket response time.
For most businesses, there is a 4-6 hour window before someone will even acknowledge you have a problem. Can you wait that long for service?
After the ticket is acknowledged, it will be assigned to a technician, and they will begin a remote session. A remote session is a common practice among IT support, where you allow your technician has access to your computer via the internet. They can control your PC as if they were sitting in front of it.
Conversely, what if the issue you have cannot be fixed through remote service? What if the computer does not turn on or can’t connect to the internet? If they are not a local managed service provider, they may not provide onsite service for emergencies. What do you do then? Who do you turn to if your managed service provider can’t help you? If a vital system goes down, will you be ready?
What to Look For in a Local Managed Service Provider
Look for a local managed service provider that offers onsite, remote and in-house support. Another great feature to look for is emergency contact numbers. If you have an emergency outside their standard business hours, you’ll still be able to call someone and get help to decrease possible downtime. Also, check to see who answers those emergency calls. Do they just go to an answering service or go they do directly to technicians that work at the company? You would be surprised to find out how many after-hours services are outsourced overseas and only offer remote support.
At Southern New England Computer Services, we are a locally owned and operated company in northern Rhode Island. We service a variety of small to mid-sized businesses located throughout Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. If you experience any problems, our team of technicians can remote into your computer within minutes. In the event that we need to be onsite to solve your problem, a technician will arrive on location as soon as possible.
