As a business owner, you know the importance of multitasking. With a miles-long to-do list, you must juggle sales and customer service with hiring, accounting, inventory and more. Even if you are not personally handling all of these tasks, you are certainly well aware of what is going on in each of those departments. Let’s face it, purchasing, installing and managing new technologies understandably falls to the bottom of the priority list.

That is where it can be prudent to include a technology partner to lend a hand. A technology partner can provide your company with consultation and solutions for making your technology investments a true competitive advantage. Furthermore, working with a technology partner can reduce stress and provide support for the goals and ambitions of your business, all through the lens of cutting-edge applications and systems.

Most small businesses that utilize a third party for IT and technology assistance point to increased efficiency and the peace of mind that comes with having a trusted partner as the top reasons for working with an outside IT firm.

We are often asked what some of the key benefits are when choosing to work with an IT partner. Our experience providing IT & technology services for businesses has uncovered some clear advantages of having an IT partner. In this article, we'll share 4 key benefits of having an IT partner.

4 Key Benefits of Having an IT Partner

1. Technological Expertise and Future Planning

Just as you are an expert in your chosen field, technology partners are experts in the technology and services that can help your business grow. A technology partner will know what tools and solutions in the market would most benefit your business. Even better, the right partner can help design IT solutions that fit not just your exact needs but your budget as well. A third-party technology provider can easily help you determine the right solutions for your small business, saving you significant time and energy you would otherwise spend trying to solve technology challenges on your own.

An IT partner can also help future plans, mapping out a growth plan that supports your goals and makes sense for where your business is headed. By surfacing new technology and technology-related ideas for your consideration, your organization will have a wider lens and deeper expertise when it comes to IT decisions.

2. Unbiased Recommendations

A full-service technology partner will be solution-agnostic. That is to say that it is in their best interest to offer and support the products and solutions that are right for your business and your needs. Even better, these recommendations almost always come with a plan for integrating and optimizing your hardware and software to work together properly and securely, all without you having to be responsible for ensuring everything works. For example, a new email solution that makes your team more efficient can be tied into a database you use to keep track of inventory.

The right IT partner will not try to fit your square business into a round hole. A quality IT partner has access not just to new technology but also experience with a wide range of potential options for you. From desktops and laptops to software and connectivity, an IT partner can help you determine what investments to make that will fit your business and specific use cases.

3. Saving Time and Money

A good technology partner makes supporting your needs a priority. In fact, in most cases, this support is core to the relationship. If you have a technical problem, then they are available to help troubleshoot and solve the problem. If you are unsure how to use a tool or system, your IT partner can train you or answer questions. As a result, you can focus on other business-critical tasks instead of worrying about software updates and cloud connections. Additionally, a third-party IT partner means you will not need to recruit, hire, and employ an internal IT resource, saving considerable time and cost.

Another key time benefit to working with an IT partner comes in the form of availability: IT emergencies can happen outside of normal business hours. Many IT partner companies are staffed 24/7, giving you access to the support necessary to run your IT operations whenever you need.

4. Improved Security

From network intrusions to malware installed on your website, from employees forgetting to keep their machines safe to natural disasters that take your business offline, cybersecurity is a foundational part of your business. More than 80% of the respondents to InsuranceBee's survey of more than 1,300 SMB owners, indicated that they lack the money necessary to recover from a cyberattack or data breach.

Unfortunately, the facts about actual attacks are not working in favour of business owners. According to Verizon's most recent Data Breach Investigation Report, nearly half of all data breaches target small and mid-sized businesses. Cybercriminals targeted small businesses at an exorbitant rate in 2018, increasing nearly 425% from the previous year according to Cybersecurity firm 4iQ in its 2019 Identity Breach Report.

By collaborating with an IT partner with security capabilities, you can trust that your business is being protected from cyber threats and bad actors. Underestimating the importance of a robust security posture can be not just harmful, but fatal to your business. It is almost impossible to put a price on peace of mind when it comes to your network, the peace of mind an IT partner can provide.

IT Partnership Makes Sense for Your Business

Aligning your business goals with your outside partners is critical. From a bookkeeper or banker that understands your future plans to an IT provider that understands how technology can best serve your business, you need relationships that help you move forward. Every business is a technology business now. Isn’t it time to leverage that to your advantage?

Taking on the burden of managing your technology footprint is unlikely to be a good use of your time or resources. TeraLinks has been serving businesses for years, turning technology investments into drivers of business growth and success. From security to networking, cloud migrations to hardware refreshes, the TeraLinks team understands the role technology plays and how to best recognize the benefits. Contact us now to learn more about how TeraLinks can be the IT partner that helps your business grow into the future.