Published on December 8th, 2015 | by Guest

How to avoid internet downtime within your business

When your business’ internet connection goes down, unsurprisingly, your company can face substantial and costly disruption. If the problem is not resolved quickly, the impact it can have on your bottom line can be devastating.

Research suggests the average total cost of downtime for SMEs is approximately £27,000 per hour. The figure can be even higher for businesses that rely on e-commerce, considering their customers may be unable to purchase their products or services online.

Here’s our guide to minimising the likelihood of internet downtime and ensure everything runs smoothly:

Check your old router

If your company relies on wireless internet, the position of your router can have a substantial impact on your signal strength. If possible, position if close to your computers, rather than leaving it in the corner of the office.

Also remember that the newer the router, the more reliable it’s likely to be when it comes to strong wireless signals, security and faster downloads. If your router is more than five years old, it may be time for an upgrade.

Prepare for poor weather

Now that it’s winter, businesses should be protecting their internet against the impact of poor weather. A heavy snow storm, torrential rain and even powerful winds can wreak havoc on your business’ internet connection. If you’re concerned about weather conditions in your area, it could be worth contacting an IT support company to see if they can implement any strong weather defences. The development of new technologies such as Last Mile Wireless, which doesn’t rely on traditional cables can be a great way of reducing the chance of downtime.

Protect your data

If your computers become infected with malware or viruses, not only is your data at risk, the speed of your devices could also be affected too. Protect your data and internet connection by installing quality security software and ensuring it’s updated regularly.

Update your technology

If your business uses old fashioned technology such as old copper telephone lines, your company’s digital communications could be significantly slower than they would be if you were to upgrade your technology. Upgrading may sound expensive, but if it boosts the quality of your communications, you could see a reduction (perhaps even elimination) of downtime and a growth in employee productivity. It’s likely to be a significant investment.

Internet connection problems can often be resolved with the help of experienced IT and network experts, but prevention is of course far better than cure. By planning ahead and doing everything you can to minimise the chances that something could go wrong, you could save your business a considerable amount of time and money.

This blog post was created by Synextra, a cloud computing and IT support company with years of hosting and telecom experience.

Tags: avoid, business, downtime, how, how to