What is the benefit of help desk support?

October 12, 2018

Technology support is expensive, and not every business can afford their own in-house IT professionals. Which is why outsourced support has gained so much popularity in recent years, you’re still getting the help you need but without having to pay a salary. The two main issues companies face when looking into IT services is how to bring them on, and how to maintain their services.

Onboarding

In house: Hiring a new employee is stressful. You go through hundreds of resumes and interviews trying to find the right fit for your company. Which takes away valuable time you could be spending working on what you need to, and sometimes you find someone you like but their qualifications just aren’t up to par. So, between hunting, interviewing, and posting an ad (which can become expensive) bringing an IT specialist on is usually unappealing for small businesses.

Remote: You find a company that is the right fit for your business and don’t have to worry about bringing them in, just work out an agreement and enjoy hassle free onboarding.

Maintenance

In house: After the hiring process you need to find the space for your IT specialist, get them any tools they may need, a budget for repairs. All of it really begins to add up, not to mention the salary and any other benefits your company offers.

Remote: As a third party, outsourced IT technicians don’t need a salary or benefits. You just pay a flat monthly fee and enjoy all the help you need.

Some companies choose to forgo any type IT help and just wait until something breaks before looking for help. This is not ideal, with regular IT support the goal is to prevent issues by using preventative maintenance. Letting things break end with more damage and sometimes it’s not reversible. Now, what if you’re in an area where you can’t call a technician to come and assist you with an issue? This is where remote service can benefit you, outsourced technicians are already equipped with the means to connect from afar and help solve your IT problems.

With in house IT you don’t always have the option to call or request help at any time including after business hours. With external IT there is generally a person on call in case of a crisis. It also gives your employees a go to contact for when they need help instead of derailing them until you can find someone who can come fix the issue.

Doing your research on the cost and benefits can help your company come to a decision about what kind of IT services is right for you. But you definitely have some type of support, technology is an investment and you need to be able to maintain it. Plus your IT provider can offer valuable insight on improving your security to help keep your company safe and introduce you to new technologies. Being up to date on technologies for your website and business can give you an advantage over your competitors.