As technology has become one of the main components of a business’s growth and stability, it is always a good idea to take time and evaluate it to see what is a must upgrade for your business. If any portion of your business is affected negatively by outdated technology, especially if exposes you to cyber security risks or causes loss of productivity, efficiency and business revenue, it may be time to upgrade.
Here are nine tech upgrades that can help you run your business more safely, easily and efficiently, without breaking the bank.
- Put security first – There is not a day that goes by without hearing that a small or a large business got hacked or breached. Protecting your business data, is one of the top responsibilities of any business owner. Perform regular IT risk assessments to find out vulnerabilities and weak links in your network. Create security policies and assign a security officer to protect your network and data.
- Upgrade hardware and software. Replace outdated software (legacy software, old applications & third party software). Keep antivirus software updated. Purchase a reliable switch and firewall. Make sure all Windows systems are upgraded to Windows 10 and your Windows 2008 Server is also upgraded. Old and outdated technology is likely to become slow and waste valuable time and money.
- Online Backup and Disaster Recovery- Online backup has become very affordable and considering the proliferation of cyber security attacks and ransomware, it has become a necessity. You want to make sure you have an hourly snapshot of you data, as well as available virtual spin off of your server and two locations where your data is saved.
- Consider Office 365. Cloud is the way to go and Office 365 is one of the main players. Microsoft offers many products as part of Office 365 and they bring many potential benefits for small businesses. These features and benefits reduce costs, streamline processes and increase operational flexibility. You may want to consider the cloud for your data storage. Microsoft OneDrive comes with 1000 GB of storage as part on any of its subscriptions.
- Upgrade your business broadband – If your internet connection is slow and unreliable, consider upgrading it to superfast fiber . A faster Internet speed can improve efficiency, user experience and enable connectivity of a greater number of wireless devices.
- Install SD-WAN-Our dependence on internet can cripple our business when the service is not available. It is wise to think of redundancy by having a second internet service from another provider. SD-Wan is a device that switches over if there is an internet outage caused by one of the providers.
- Mobile Friendly Website- Smartphone ownership and usage are increasing and more than half of the searches are done on the smart phones. If you want to grow your business in the mobile market, you should optimize your website for mobile traffic to avoid missing sales. When updating or creating a new website, be sure to follow mobile web design best practice.
- Optimize for search – All businesses needs new leads. Search engine optimization is the main part of your digital marketing. Visibility is the key to online success. The higher you rank in search results, the more visible you will be. This means more visitors and potential customers, arriving at your website. If you haven’t yet, you should optimize your website and content for search engines. The organic search engine takes longer but paid ads are effective and can produce faster results, though they are more expensive. Each keyword has a cost and the popular ones (based on your industry) are more pricey
- Upgrade your Phone system- Old phones using PBX are a dying breed. Voice over IP phones are affordable and have many features that can be integrated into your operation. These types of lines can easily be extended from your office to your mobile phones. With this configuration, you will have the freedom to be wherever you want to be. Unified Communication is the name of this new technology that combines, phone, faxes, internet connection, etc. and allows you to take your office anywhere
If any of the above upgrades seems overwhelming, let us assist you in implementing them. CEO Computers has been assisting many businesses in the Southern California with their technology needs and our partnership has brought productivity and success to our clients.
About Us:
CEO Computers is a Los Angeles IT Support & Cloud Solutions company. For over 31 years, CEO has assisted many small businesses located in the Los Angeles area in various industries to implement compliance policies, to secure their network and protect their data. For a free network security analysis or for any additional questions, please call us at 818-501-2281 or visit our website www.ceocomputers.com.
We serve Los Angeles, CA or any of the surrounding areas such as, Arcadia, CA, Burbank, CA, Chatsworth, CA, Culver City, CA, Downtown LA, Encino, CA, Glendale, CA, Hollywood, CA, Los Angeles, CA, North Hollywood, CA, Pasadena, CA, San Fernando, CA, Santa Monica, CA Sherman Oaks, CA Tarzana, CA Universal City, CA, Van Nuys, CA, West LA, Woodland Hills, CA and more.
