In the era of big data, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are discovering how to turn the digital information generated by everything from email marketing to inventory management into money.
Whether they outsource their information technology support and analytics or keep those operations in-house, SMEs are mining their data to make better decisions, more quickly, and with higher levels of confidence.
Data-based decision-making drives significant competitive advantages by enabling business leaders to:
- Reduce costs and increase efficiencies
- Spot opportunities for operational improvement
- Innovate new products and services
- Improve the customer experience
- Ensure regulatory compliance
SMEs typically outsource their data and IT support. Vendors generally price their services according to need, saving their clients the start-up and operational costs of an internal IT department. Outsourcing also ensures access to different talents according to need.
It is not possible to overstate the value IT systems and analytics deliver. A purpose-designed system provides digital support where needed and integrates data collection, organization, and storage across the business.
There is money in your data, and IT services provide the solutions that can help you.
Managing Data Effectively
Think of all the data your company generates daily: HR operations such as employees’ income, performance reviews, and policy and compliance information; sales operations such as goal setting and monitoring and pricing; inventory management to track the flow of products and vendor relations.
An effective data-management strategy involves handling, sorting, and analyzing the daily flow of information. It also requires the development of disaster recovery and contingency plans involving the regular migration of data to secure servers.
Solving Complex Problems
A business proverb states, “A number always beats an opinion.”
Good ideas and theories, of course, are part of the process of coming up with a solution to a nagging problem, whether in marketing, customer service, or any other operation.
Data not only helps pinpoint the problem—customers aren’t opening the emails you send them, for instance. It also provides opportunities to model proposed solutions before locking them in. Data management and the systems that support it create almost infinite possibilities to test email lines to find out what will improve that email open rate.
Outsourced IT and data allow you to concentrate on running your business while your vendors maintain and scale the hardware, software, and storage systems that ensure you have access to the information you need, when you need it.
Accelerating Decision Making
Various categories of data analytics—once the domain of large corporations—are within reach of SME. The analytics categories include:
- Descriptive analytics uses historic data to provide a snapshot of what your business has done. You can’t know where you are going unless you know where you’ve been.
- Diagnostic analytics helps locate why something has happened and requires integrated datasets. Did better email open rates (marketing) drive sales.
- Predictive analytics crunches numbers to model the impact of a proposed improvement. A 1% increase in open rates will drive a .5% in sales.
Prescriptive analytics suggest plans. If the chance of gift-giving seasonality has historically increased open rates by 2%, increase email marketing to maximize revenue during those periods.
With IT advancements, digital marketing tools that are more data specific have been designed and put into operations. This software, such as Google Analytics and Microsoft CRM Dynamics, helps the company track development and progress.
Securing Systems and Data
Cybercrime is a multi-billion-dollar business, and hackers can attack hardware and software from anywhere to steal or corrupt data.
A good technical team provides access to advanced cybersecurity measures that can spot and close vulnerabilities in your data infrastructure.
In the past, several companies such as ASCO, Capital One, and Dropbox have fallen victim to ransomware and malware attacks by having their security and business websites compromised by unexpected breaches. Having reliable IT support helps maintain a strong wall of defense against destructive computer viruses. This will assure you long-term protection while saving you time and money simultaneously.
Optimizing Customer Support
IT support services offer customers multiple communication channels, including chatbots, email, text, and telephone, to connect with businesses.
Integrating those channels ensures that data generated by them is available to decision makers so they can spot opportunities for improvement. Moreover, making customer experience data available to other departments will help them refine their operations. For instance, the shipping department needs to know that 20% of yesterday’s customer contacts involved late deliveries.
This helps boost customer satisfaction, and the company benefits from data analytics on customer behavior collated through frequent interactions.
Monitoring Internal Processes
IT and data management support improvements in the supervision through logistics, facilities planning, and quality control, especially for companies with internal auditing and manufacturing sites. It is mandatory to have comprehensive monitoring for companies offering online services to prevent their products and customers from being jeopardized.
Streamlining Workforce and Human Resources
Analog paper-based documentation is no longer practical and efficient. Recordkeeping is now a simple, digitized process that can be tailored from one company to the next depending on its unique needs and structure.
Companies use secure intranets to circulate internal memos and in-house communications. Employee can access their job description, employment contract, reviews, make changes to retirement and savings plans, and more through the intranet.
Don’t Miss Out on Outsourcing Technical Support this Financial Year!
Without technical support, businesses would have a challenging environment to expand their network, progress, and attain success. IT systems encompass simplified arrangements for achieving results efficiently, from simple record keeping and data input to keeping customers protected and satisfied. You can hire an internal technical team or outsource IT services. IT systems will offer your company close business monitoring and enhance the overall decision-making process.