5 Common Misconceptions When Arranging Business Technology

Today’s Guest Blog is brought to you courtesy of Mark Williams of Pensar IT – one of our partners – an IT support company based in Central London.

In this current digital era, it’s very unusual for companies to work without computers, smartphones or some other tech items. Whether you’re establishing a new business or merely adapting to the new times, keeping on top of your IT is vitally important. The main problem is that a high percentage of business owners are not familiar with new technologies and a few common mistakes are made. At Pensar, we’re determined to help you bust through these misconceptions and set your tech goals to avoid IT pitfalls.

1. Macs Are Immune to Viruses

If you look on the Apple website, you’ll find they mention that their computers aren’t at risk of any of the viruses, spyware and malware found on PCs. While this is true, it doesn’t mean that Macs are completely immune to these threats. In fact, since they’ve become more and more popular, the number of viruses aimed specifically at Macs has increased. This means you’ll still have to think about anti-virus software to keep your business safe.

2. Video Calls Can Be Done on a Standard Setup

Technology has advanced so much now that we can have a proper meeting with people around the globe with full video and sound. Setting up one of these systems needs more than just a few computers, a webcam and an internet connection however. In fact, you’ll need something more akin to the following:

• A dedicated setup
• High speed internet
• Soundproof room
• Pre-tested connections

The good news is that you don’t have to set everything up in your office. If you don’t have the space or the technical expertise, you can simply rent an external facility. In addition, these video conferencing suites will reduce your carbon footprint as you won’t have to fly around the world to meet your clients.

3. There Is No Need for a Corporate IT Strategy

When it comes to establishing yourself as a leading entrepreneur, most people tend to think they can just gloss over their technical setup. This misconception can lead to many costly mistakes as your IT systems may be inefficient, prone to breaking down, or simply outdated.

A better solution is to sit down with a business technology partner and work out a detailed IT strategy for your company. These experts will cover a range of bases including:

• Finding the best technology for your needs
• Reducing your company’s overall IT budget
• Producing scalable solutions and meeting these aims
• Optimising performance, usability & agility
• Implementing environmentally friendly systems

So don’t fall into the trap of thinking everything is fine simply because it’s working. Instead, align your business strategy with your information technology and make steps towards a better platform that performs to its fullest potential. Hiring a local business technology partner is a good idea that comes highly recommended.

4. Buying New Means No Maintenance Costs

Most business owners equate new to more cost effective. After all, if you purchase a whole range of brand new computers and other electronics, you won’t need to change, upgrade or maintain them, right? Again, this cannot be further from the truth! Technology is changing quite rapidly so you need to stay on top of the latest software updates, peripherals and more to keep your business competitive. This of course will take effort, another area which a business tech partner can assist with.

5. Waiting a Long Time to Upgrade Saves Money

Finally, most entrepreneurs think that it’s best to just refrain from upgrading your office computer systems for as long as possible. While it’s true that you do save money by not purchasing new software or hardware as soon as it comes out, there is a limit to how long you can wait before your business starts falling behind. For example, you’ll need to put your staff through lengthy training if you wait too long to upgrade your IT. This will cost you more time and money than you’d spend if you’d simply made the change earlier on.

As you can see, there are quite a few errors that people make when setting up their corporate IT systems. Now that you’re aware of them though, you can make every effort to avoid these misconceptions and create a technical platform that really works. Let us know about any question or enquiry you might have, and we will be happy to share our expertise.

This blog post was brought to you in collaboration with Regus, the world’s largest provider of flexible workspaces – See more at: www.regus.co.uk

We believe that if you delay upgrading, you will always be one step behind. Training takes more time too as the jump from an older system to the new one can be very great. For example those companies who upgraded from Microsoft Office 2003 to Microsoft Office 2007 which was quite a jump, have a much shorter learning curve when upgrading to Office 365 and Office 2013. This enables them to take advantage of new features more easily . The net result – better performance and an improved bottom line.

If you have recently upgraded or if you are considering an upgrade, give us a call to discuss giving your staff the necessary skills to take advantage of new features. Call us on 020 8203 1774. Email enquiries@theittrainingsurgery.com