The responsibility of an IT support team is to maintain the computer networks of the organization they are assigned. Its services include the maintenance of computer systems, installation and configuration of hardware and software and solving all the technical problems.
You must ask the right questions from the company before choosing an IT support provider for your business, whether it is big or small. Your business is important and it should be given all the due importance any business should get.
Explained below are some important questions that you should ask and help you to sort out what is right for your business.
How expanded is your company?
IT companies vary in size. They can range from enormous companies to a support team of a man only. However, it depends on the size of your business, and the needs. If you have an empire, you must get enormous IT support for the smooth running of your business. But if you do have a small business, you must consider all the preliminaries before choosing the support. Because what is important is the type of services they provide, not the size of their company.
You should talk to reference companies
It is a common practice when one is running his own business and it is also very important to check if the support companies let you speak to any referral companies or not. You just have to ask for a reference and analyze where they stand as a company. It is not important that you call everyone and ask unnecessary questions but asking one time won’t hurt anyone. By this, you’ll be able to understand the condition of the support company.
Here are some of the questions that you can ask when you talk to a referential company.
- Can we trust them?
- Does the company respond properly and deliver the work on time?
- Do they let you know about what exactly is the issue?
- How much do they charge?
- Would you recommend them for a small business?
Ask if the company is insured?
There are times when things do not go the way we plan them. In such cases, it is recommended by almost everyone that one should ask before taking a support plan from an IT company that is insured. As insured companies are less likely to make any blunders and they’re being registered gives you an edge.
What levels of support do your company offer?
IT support companies offer various levels of choices that can suit the standards of your business (whatever they are). They can include:
Pay as you go support
This is the type of payment method in which you pay an hourly rate or a fixed amount for the services the company provides you. This method can turn out to be expensive in the long run.
Break-fix support
This is the amount that is either paid advanced or afterward. It can be offered on a fixed price contract or can be charged as an insurance policy.
Managed service support
This is the type of support where the company is actively involved in managing your systems to reduce the chances of things going wrong. This type of contract involves signing a yearly contract.
Are your contracts fixed for a specific period?
Almost all IT support companies provide a contract with a minimum or maximum period contract. However, sometimes, you do not get contented with the services of the company so you might want to change it. In such cases, it is recommended that you go for a short term contract so that you can easily negotiate with it.
Take care of the response time
While looking for an IT support company it is an important thing that you consider them giving you a response in a certain time. If they don’t, there is a possibility that they won’t provide the service at the right time. It is said in this business world that a ‘guaranteed response time’ gives you a guarantee that the IT support company won’t ignore your issues and will start resolving them on time.
Talking about response time, it is also important that you beware of the companies that only give you a limited time to resolve the issues of your business. Because sometimes, the issue might take longer to get resolved than it is told.
Will my company gets the same engineer every time?
On your part, it is not reasonable to expect the same engineer/technician from the support company, every time. As it gets difficult to send the same one every time. IT support companies, be they big or small, have to pay all the employees and for that, they have to observe every employee. They have to get responses from the respective companies about their performances so you should always try to be reasonable about your demands.
Should I only call when there is an issue?
Mostly the IT support companies only tend to respond to the issues that are common IT issues. But sometimes it is considered courteous and generous on behalf of the company if they help to answer general questions of the customers that they are unable to tackle. This leaves a good impression on the customer and there are chances they might trust you again with their issues.
