If you’re looking to switch your business’s IT support or need new IT support it can be difficult to know what to look for in a provider. From the millions of IT support providers out there, here are some key things to look for to help you narrow down your search.
They can deliver tangible results
It’s a good start if the IT support provider can talk to you about your ROI (Return On Investment) of the support they propose to provide. If they talk in vague terms about ‘keeping you going’ but can’t tell you any detail about surveying your systems and how they save you from outages then it’s difficult to see where your money is going.
Also, if they are not particularly interested in talking about your ROI then they’re not likely to be interested in your business full stop.
A continuous improvement strategy
Do they collect data and analyse it to improve their service? Can they tell you an average response time for answering and resolving a ticket? Not only this, they should be collecting customer feedback from their service delivery and be able to tell you how they use it to improve their processes and products.
If there’s no evidence of their continuous striving to improve in a fast-moving IT world, their support to you is likely to become watered-down and ineffectual very quickly.
They don’t talk techie
Can you understand what they are saying to you about the service they will provide to your business? Don’t feel embarrassed that you can’t talk tech – you’re probably not an IT support expert so it’s their job to put you at your ease and answer your questions in your language.
If they can’t talk to you in clear, business support specifics then they are unlikely to be running the type of customer-focused, helpful service desk you want.
They don’t keep referring you to the contract
Providers that constantly point out what they don’t deliver, or ‘isn’t in your contract’ are less interested in being your IT support provider than they are about reaping your monthly payments. For big things that aren’t in your contract, say support for telephony, then fair enough – if it’s not in your contract you don’t get it, but a good provider will attend to some of the smaller things without quibble because they want to build a relationship with you.
They have flexible contract options and pay-as-you-go
All businesses are different. Can the IT support provider work in the way you want them to? If you have big changes on the horizon you may want a short-term contract or pay-as-you-go to give you the biggest flex in the future. Are they willing to do that, and will they penalise you financially for these options?
A good IT support provider will offer short contracts and pay-as-you-go because they want you to stay, because you want to, not because you have to.
They’re not the cheapest
The cheapest IT support is not the best. Accreditations, qualifications and knowledgeable, customer-focused staff don’t come cheap so you shouldn’t expect it to. Look for pride in their work, and quality measures and standards, rather than if they’re the cheapest on the market.
IT support really is one of those services where cheapness equates to low quality. That’s not to say you should go for the most expensive, but one that is comparable to other quality providers.
They’re big on security
First of all, are they secure themselves? Do they know GDPR in detail and are they following best practice Cyber Essentials guidelines? If not, don’t go anywhere near them. If they can’t keep themselves secure, they will fail you at the first hurdle.
IT support is now more about security than it has ever been. Their knowledge of IT security should be coming out in their dialogue with you loudly and clearly.
And lastly…
Although this is likely to be the first thing you should do, check out any reviews. Do they have only a handful of Google reviews or a healthy amount? Can you see their credentials on LinkedIn? Are they recommended by other businesses in your sector?
People do not leave good reviews lightly, but genuinely want to sing the praises if they’ve had a good experience, which makes your job easier of choosing a solid, reliable IT support provider you can trust and be in partnership with for the long term.
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