Everything can be done for less. Agreed? You can buy a delicious prime steak dinner for $75 and you can buy a steak dinner at Golden Corral for $9.99. It’s all steak, so what’s the fuss? What’s that you say? They’re not the same? Hmm. So, let me ask you – if that’s the way you shop for steak, why don’t you shop for your IT services the same way?
When businesses settle for 1-man IT departments or, worse, the weekend warrior (meaning they have a full time IT gig, but they’re working on your business stuff on the weekends), it always makes me cringe a little. Don’t get me wrong, I understand the logic. Managed Services are expensive. But when you opt for a single man IT department, it’s just not the same thing. Not even close. Read more on why we think bringing on IT weekend warriors are like eating steak at Golden Corral.
Your client’s won’t respect it.
Your clients rely on you to make the best possible decision regarding your technology so that you’re available to serve their needs and provide them with the quality produces and services that you offer. If your phone system or servers go down mid-day and you have to wait until your IT guy gets off work to take care of the issue, what does that say to your customers? It says that saving a buck matters more to you than ensuring that your technology can support them. Sound a little harsh? It’s just reality. In an age of technology and instant gratification, companies that refuse to innovate and invest in their IT get left behind.
The service just isn’t as good.
Have you ever gone to a really high end steak house? You know they have a guy specifically dedicated to removing the crumbs from your table? They don’t exactly go to that level at Golden Corral. You can’t pay exponentially less and expect the same level of availability and support to serve your users that you would get with a full Managed Services provider.
It’s not the same thing.
IT services are IT services, right? Wrong. A comprehensive Managed Services strategy from a team of IT industry professionals is completely different than “Managed Services” from a weekend warrior. IT companies spend literally hundreds of thousands of dollars investing in tools to maintain your networks, offer remote support and create reports to allow you to understand how your technology is working for you. Your weekend warrior just doesn’t have that. Make sure that you’re comparing apples to apples when you’re analyzing the cost.
You’re going to regret it later.
The majority of lesser quality restaurants typically come with a predictable consequence. Unfortunately for you, when you choose poorly with regard to your IT provider, the resulting issues are far worse than indigestion. They include complete data loss, failed backups, lost productivity, user inefficiency, extensive downtime, poor support and a hit to your bottom line.
So, tell me this: what do you really stand to save in the long run by saving in the short term? When you’ve worked for decades to build a business, you want to make sure that you ensure that your technology will support it. When you hire a weekend warrior or single man IT department that just can’t happen. Make sure you understand exactly what you’re paying for when you get an estimate for comprehensive managed services and avoid the unfortunate consequence that comes with making the wrong choice.
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