Business owners know that using the latest technology to increase revenues and provide excellent customer service is essential to success, and they are willing to spend a great deal on it. In fact, the amount spent on worldwide IT is “on pace to total $3.7 trillion in 2014, a 2.1 percent increase from last year,” and “expected to increase 3.2% by 2018,” according to Gartner’s Worldwide IT Forecast. But what if you are working with a tight IT budget? The good news is…
You can reduce your business IT costs and still compete with these four tips.
Review IT Costs.
This may be obvious, but when was the last time you reviewed your entire, IT budget? Before you can cut costs, you need to know exactly what is being spent and how your technology is used. And most important, it’s essential to understand which IT services are actually helping your organization to succeed.
Once you know the facts about your current situation, you can look at making changes to reduce costs.
Explore the Opportunities.
You may think you are stuck with antiquated, legacy systems and stop there in sheer frustration.
But by taking the time to learn about the latest Cloud solutions and developing a strategy to integrate the old with the new, you can improve processes and the bottom-line.
Today, technology exists that can literally tie together all of the hardware and software components within your organization. It may cost more to make initial changes to your IT architecture, but the amount saved over time will be well worth the effort with increased productivity, services and new revenues.
Ask Important Questions.
How much could you lose if your current systems are breached?
If outsiders or competitors gain access to your company’s intellectual property and customers’ private data, your business could end up in damage-control mode with massive legal expenses, a PR nightmare and even bankruptcy.
Private cloud solutions with customized hardware, data storage and network performance designed for you can assure high levels of security. Plus, you can relax with a redundancy system that keeps your data up and running at all times even if a server, network switch or firewall fails.
Related: How to Reduce Your IT Spending Trends in 7 Steps
How much does maintenance and compliance cost you?
When it’s time to perform maintenance on your current system, how much does it disrupt your business and decrease the amount of sales being generated? Also, how easy is it for you and your team to comply with PCI, HIPAA, Sarbanes Oxley, and other data requirements?
With a solution that is highly configured to match your needs and schedule, downtime is minimized and it’s much easier, faster and less expense to meet compliance requirements.
Test.
Once you discover new IT solutions for your business situation, schedule a test period before committing to full changes. This way, you can see if the new services offer the results you are looking for (and are scalable for future needs) before wasting resources. Plus, you’ll be able to share this information with team members to prove long-term savings.
Use Fresh Thinking to Cut IT Costs.
Taking advantage of the latest IT solutions is essential in order to compete in today’s fast-changing business world. But it doesn’t have to ruin your budget. Current solutions can significantly reduce the cost and complexity of running an IT department and maintaining compliance requirements. Plus, it’s possible to configure new solutions that take ideas and turn them into revenue in a matter of weeks, without a large, upfront capital expense.
If you’ve been making excuses to upgrade your IT system due to budget restraints, it’s time for fresh thinking. Review your current situation, research what’s available and test it accordingly. You’ll wonder why you waited so long to make changes!
What are you going to do today to help cut IT costs for your business?
To discover more ways to cut IT costs, click on this link or contact us here.
