How do I reduce the costs of the technology in my business?

“How do I reduce the costs of the technology in my business? ”

Reducing the costs involved with technology in your business is a long-term process. It can include anything from changing suppliers to using a different brand of computer hardware to cut costs back.  The most effective cost-cutting method is to streamline and unify your technology services.

First, you need to find the cost. Without establishing the total cost of your company’s technological infrastructure, you cannot see where it can be streamlined, and money can be saved.

There are many layers to a company’s technological infrastructure. It is essential to find out what software is in use, what devices are being used and what hardware so that you can adequately judge where, if anywhere, savings can be made without jeopardising your business’s capacity.

Savings can be made in software licensing. Is your business paying out for multiple software solutions to handle orders, gather customer information and run the business?  Licensing is easily duplicated, as is Antivirus.

This is where an external IT managed solution can come into play. You can migrate some of your company’s data and reduce costs by consolidating information. Instead of having multiple servers on-site, a single networked series of drives can provide all the data storage required or an online cloud-based solution can be employed removing any need for on-site storage.

Moving data to the cloud can increase productivity as cloud data can be accessed at home and on the go, giving you and your employees more flexibility.

Another thing your business can do to reduce costs is to have a proper, proactive maintenance approach.  IT systems can be fragile; anything from crashes to malware and data loss could be an issue. Regular maintenance helps to keep your IT systems running smoothly and lower your ongoing costs. It’s cheaper to pay for routine maintenance than to have to replace an entire server, computer or to risk losing data.

Finally, have you ever calculated how much it would cost your business if your employees were just unable to work due to an IT system failure? This is not just the inability to produce orders, it is also the inability to locate information quickly, at the click of a mouse. It is the cost of a lost opportunity or being unable to raise a shipping request. It is the cost of being unable to secure pricing on an order because your supplier must have email confirmation.

“How would I get started?”

Getting started is as simple as a phone call to AAG. We’ll come and review your IT infrastructure and see what we can do to improve and streamline the technology your business uses in its day to day operation. Now, for any more issues get in touch and we’ll answer your questions (and many more, we’re sure…) next time.

In the meantime, if you or your IT department are looking for assistance with your IT services, consider giving us a call like Gary and outsourcing to one of our experienced IT consultants. We can even be your IT department if you don’t have one. External or on-site, find out what AAG-IT can do for your IT services today on 0114 352 0688.