Tips to Find the Right Networking Partner for Your Small Business

Follow These Tips to Find the Right Networking Partner for Your Small Business

The network infrastructure for your business is a crucial investment, one that shouldn’t be taken lightly. See how to find the best partner to support your business. 

As you grow your small business, you need to know that your telecommunications and networking infrastructure can grow with your business. When you hire new staff, expand the services that you’re offering or make other shifts in your business, every day that you’re waiting around for IT updates can cost you money — and opportunities. Choosing an IT services provider who is not able to fully meet your needs or support the shifts in your business may be one of the biggest challenges for organizations today. Find just the right partner to help drive your business growth when you follow these proactive tips.

Find an IT Services Provider That is Familiar With Your Business Model

While it would be unusual to find networking or infrastructure partners that have worked with a business that’s exactly the same as yours, look for IT services providers that have worked with similar businesses. For instance, a veterinary office seeking a new networking partner who can also install telephones might look for a service provider who has worked in the healthcare industry. While it’s not exactly the same as a veterinary office, it’s similar enough that your prospective partner can leverage their knowledge on your behalf.

Make Sure Your Networking Partner Understands Your Technology

Finding just the right partner becomes easier when you look for organizations that have worked with the platforms or systems in your current stack. That could mean everything from whether you are working on-premise, cloud or hybrid cloud to Macs versus PCs. Don’t be afraid to ask your potential partners plenty of questions to ensure that you’re finding the best possible fit for your organization. The most valuable partner is one that will tell you when they can’t fulfill all of your needs — and makes a recommendation that helps move your business forward anyway.

Your IT Services Partner Should Take Time to Listen to Your Needs

If you are listening to several proposals from potential partners and realize that they’re not tailored to meet your unique needs, it may be time to keep looking around! Some IT services providers come into an engagement with a set series of recommendations that may or may not relate to your business. Steer clear of anyone who shows up and pretends to fully understand your business without first listening. As with any technology project, your service provider’s recommendations should be unique to your organization and based on the size and scale of the effort required to support your business.

Keeping your infrastructure intact starts with your business network and telephony, and this long-term investment will pay off for your business in terms of improved customer experience, more productive staff and a better cost structure. Learn more about one of the region’s premier solutions providers, ICS, today by calling 844-735-7643 for a free initial consultation. You can always see our various offerings online or request an estimate by filling out our quick online form.