Guaranteeing Stable Internet Connectivity for Your Office

We’ve all felt the frustration of having unstable Internet connectivity, whether it’s at home or in the office. Perhaps it’s inconvenient when you’re at home, but when you have unsaved corporate documents and softwares that depend on Internet connectivity to save and sync, the stakes are incrementally higher.

Less than Ideal
Despite this, many offices still settle for less-than-ideal internet connectivity solutions, such as having too many users share the same bandwidth, or using multiple broadbands within the same office, causing the network to jump whenever you change locations.

Not only is this detrimental to productivity, it also raises the risk of data loss due to disrupted synchronization. In human resource, finance and legal departments, the loss of crucial documentation can prove to be disastrous.

Ensuring Quality
The process of selecting an internet service provider (ISP) can be challenging due to the sheer number of plans and providers existing in the market today. Many of the offerings have competitive prices and similar specifications. It is hard to quantify or assure quality of connectivity, but ISPs that can do so usually provide a service level agreement (SLA) that clearly states guaranteed uptime, response time, and compensation in the event of downtime. Although this is not and should not be interpreted as an indication of excellent quality, the SLA will ensure you have a baseline to go by.

Peace of Mind
It is also important to ensure that your SLA has a clause covering the measures that can be taken during downtime. During Nservice interruptions, one of the most frustrating experiences a customer can experience, especially during downtime, is being at the end of a line put on hold, waiting to be transferred to yet another customer support officer, yet another technician. No matter how small your account is, you run a business, and your connectivity is of utmost importance. Look for providers that assign a dedicated account manager to work with you.

Having a dedicated account manager allows you to have one single contact point, and receive the support you need without going through the frustration of having your calls transferred from person to person (and having each one end up with a different story, too!). Dedicated account managers will understand your business requirements from the beginning, and be there to scale with you when your business expands. Growing your business may mean that you require additional IT solutions, for example, cloud storage or hosting in addition to internet connectivity – having all your services managed by one point of contact will make adoption of additional solutions a smooth and simple process.

Leave It to Someone Else
There are benefits to a ‘mix-and-match’ of solutions for your business needs. This may include paying less (as you save on the service charge) and perhaps a quicker purchase process, as it could be a cart purchase service, and you need not liaise and go through proposals or quotations. However, the ‘mix-and-match’ approach could mean that since your solutions were not developed to be used in conjunction with other applications, they might not integrate well with each other, leaving you with two disparate systems. It’s only made more challenging if you’re not tech-savvy. Having to find solutions, troubleshoot and maintain multiple applications and appliances is time-consuming and troublesome. Technical expertise can be outsourced to experts to allow you to focus on high-value work for your business.

Getting a broadband plan is crucial, a decision you make once and appreciate for a long time after. With the myriad of service offerings out there, it’s important to hone in on the features you need and make an informed decision. Power your business growth with good systems that boost productivity – it all begins with your internet connectivity.