We are always surprised to see how many small and medium-sized business owners settle for IT care that isn’t as strong as it could be. In speaking with them, however, we often discover that they didn’t really have the right expectations in the first place.

That’s easy to understand, particularly when you consider that most business owners and executives aren’t technology experts. Many of them aren’t sure what they should be looking for in an outsourced IT vendor until they find the right fit.

To ensure you don’t make the same kinds of mistakes, let’s take a look at a few of the characteristics that help you separate a great IT vendor from all the others…

The Right Technical Training
If you’re going to help businesses to manage their technology you have to know the ins and outs of the major hardware, software, and device platforms they use. That doesn’t just mean being familiar with various apps or computers, but having the right certifications to show you are up-to-date and able to work within manufacturer’s warranties. You shouldn’t ever settle for an IT partner that can’t prove they have the right credentials to work on your systems.

Fast Response Times
When your outsourced IT team keeps you waiting, it costs you money. Every second that your problem is solved you could be losing sales, watching your employees wait for the tools they need or even be exposed to online security risks. A good IT partner will make answering your calls and requests their top priority, even if you need their help outside of the normal nine-to-five business schedule.

A Friendly Support Team
Far too many tech experts speak in jargon and complicated answers. Or, they talk down to clients who have questions about the service they receive. Obviously, that isn’t any way to treat the people who keep you in business. You should never get the sense that your IT partner would rather be doing something other than speaking to you or your employees.

Proactive Technology Care
Being reactive with IT is a prescription for setbacks and costly errors. The best technology problem is the one you never hear about because it doesn’t affect your business. A strong IT firm will know that and work proactively to identify and resolve issues before they ever get to the point of affecting you.

Personalized Service and Advice
While there are a lot of IT ideas and principles that translate across virtually all business situations, the best technology advice tends to be specific to the need or challenge a specific client is facing. For that reason, your IT vendor should get to know your business inside and out so they can provide you with the kind of advice you need to reach your goals, not just a set of best practices that may or may not fit with your plans.

Clear Billing and Contracts
If you aren’t sure what you’re paying for with your IT invoices – or worse, you have no idea how much those invoices will cost you from one month or quarter to the next – that’s a sign of trouble. It means that your outsourced IT team either isn’t taking the time to explain plans to you or may not be billing you in a transparent or ethical way. In either case, you should take your business elsewhere.

Are You Getting Great IT Support?
If you’re working with an outsourced IT partner who gives you all the advantages on our list, then we would encourage you to keep giving them your trust and your business. If you aren’t, though, it might be time to make a change.

If you want top-notch support for all of your hardware and software, call Southern California’s best technology team at Fantastic IT today!