Internet Solutions: Maintaining Business Traction Through Connectivity
Hope for the best, plan for the worst. It may not be the most profound business advice but it still makes a whole lot of sense – especially when it comes to your internet solutions.
In fact, a secure managed network is the backbone of a successful business and essential to maintaining traction in a constantly shifting digital world. None of us wants to be left thinking “If only!” when our essential services go down.
Can your chosen internet solution really make the difference between success and failure? Why are so many businesses opting for managed network services anyway?
What Exactly is Managed Connectivity?
Before we get lost in the quagmire of technical terminology, let’s take a look at the term “managed connectivity.” What exactly does this mean?
Search Networking offers a great definition: “Managed network services are networking applications, functions and services that enterprises outsource to be remotely operated, monitored and maintained by a managed service provider (MSP).
“Managed network services range from basic network access and transport services like traditional leased WAN and LAN lines to newer software-defined WAN (SD-WAN) connections and virtual network services. Beyond network access and transport services, the wide variety of available managed services include WAN optimization, unified messaging, network administration, managed security firewalls and virtual private networks (VPNs).”
Your connection to the outside world via the internet, as well as your interoffice connectivity, are all parts of the same digital puzzle. The stability and security of your internet solution, as well as your failover strategy, goes a long way toward running a healthy business.
Business Continuity Relies on Sound Internet Solutions
Imagine if you will, that you are gearing up for a business affair. Let’s say you’re attending a trade show, opening a new branch or participating as a vendor in a popular event. Mid-way through your carefully planned promotion, your internet goes down. Amid this calamity, (and if that’s not enough), you also can’t process card payments.
What if your retail outlet can no longer access customer accounts online or check for stock at another branch? Perhaps your team can’t access social platforms to respond to questions, queries or complaints.
Without labouring the point, it’s clear that almost every business out there relies heavily on their connectivity, and their internet solution simply has to work – always.
When you throw your hands up and apologise to waiting clients, they will simply pick up their coats and go elsewhere. Your revenue and your reputation are eroded.
A Good Internet Solution Has a Failover
If you are a small business owner then you know exactly what we mean when we say that you wear a number of hats: Accounts, stock control, staff management, customer care, security and somehow have a social life and try to get enough sleep!
Having a failover strategy means that you can focus on your actual job, and not try to balance the IT & Connectivity Professional hat precariously atop all the others. It’s just like taking out car insurance; we drive carefully but never know when we’re going to get side-swiped. Having a failover in place means that no matter how busy you are, no matter what day of the week or time of the day, if your primary connection falls over, your failover kicks into place.
Now that’s got to be a relief for a busy business owner.
Moving With The Times
One of the key weaknesses of small businesses and start-ups is that they don’t have the budget to constantly upgrade to the latest version of – well – anything. In order to stay above the curve, every business needs to have an internet solution which is scalable and future-proof.
It’s wise to remember that in today’s commercial world, your competition may not be the guy up the road anymore but is entirely likely to be someone in another province or even another country. All they need to get the jump on you is to be available when you’re not, to have a faster turnaround time and a quicker response time.
This, added to the fact that the requirement for mobile staff is growing exponentially, it becomes clear that those copper cables or that little router in the corner are actually holding up your entire business.
Nobody wants to get left behind – especially based on a problem that is entirely within your ability to rectify. Don’t hope that your system never falls apart – ensure that it doesn’t. You can do that by calling the Huge Connect team who will provide a solid internet solution that is as reliable as you are.
