The cost of running a small business in the Central Coast can be quite high. We are always looking for ways to cut cost of running our business, and a good place to start looking is with managed services.
MSPs can talk a big game, but the reality is that, if they can’t save you money, they’re not worth their salt. And while some companies will tell you that it’s a case-by-case situation and it’s impossible to predict how exactly managed services will save your business money, they should be able to give you an idea of how they’re going to try. If they can’t do that, run the other way, and find yourself an MSP who can.
But how do you know if they’re pitching ideas that will work? Here at Coast Networx, Inc., we believe that an informed client is the best client; we don’t like to keep our customers in the dark. So here are four ways that your MSP should be looking to save you money:
- Increased Uptime.
This could also be read, of course, as decreased downtime. When you look at the various causes for downtime — viruses, load capacity, employees surfing the web or FaceBooking, etc. — you can see clearly where MSPs should be inserting themselves. After all, it’s supposed to be a part of their services: antivirus protection and patching, load testing, and more. But if your MSP can’t point to these services as money-savers and give a clear strategy as to how they will be carried out, move along.

- Improved Security.
Security can play into uptime, but it’s far more than that. Investing in security is a hard ROI to measure, because you can’t predict the value of a security breach until it happens. But you can look at what cleanup costs statistically. For companies of all sizes, $5.5 million was spent in 2011 cleaning up after data breaches. That number is much higher today! Your MSP should be able to point to your industry and business size to give you an amount that you could avoid spending by stepping up your security game through managed services.
- More Productivity.
Measuring the cost advantage of productivity for your business is not a new concept. More difficult, however, is attaching that number to managed services. Your provider should be able to illustrate just how much time its tools and services will save you and translate that time into money.
- Better Investments.
Your company’s technology investments are important for your business, and your MSP should be serving as an advisor to deciding which technologies to invest in. A decision that big could be a horrible mistake, or it could take your business to the next level. Your MSP can give insights into industry trends and technology advancements and provide counsel as to the financial and technological ramifications of adopting them.

At the end of the day, most business decisions boil down to cost efficiency. And managed services is a cost efficient choice, but only if you go with the right provider. If your provider can’t articulate the clear cost benefits outlined above, then it’s time to demand numbers or look elsewhere.
Here at Coast Networx, Inc., we’re happy to detail the cost advantages of our managed services program. We believe that saving your company money is an important part of helping you achieve your business goals, and we are committed to making those savings a reality. For more information about Coast Networx, Inc. managed services solutions and other IT services, give us a call at 805-357-4646.