10 IT Mistakes to Avoid in the Journey of Small & Medium Sized Businesses (SMB): A Path Revealed (Part 1)

Today I am writing the first of a 2-part blog series concerning the most common technology issues encountered while running your Small and Medium Sized Business (SMB).

I will present to you the top 10 common IT misfortunes to befall the small business owner, presented in reverse order.

10) Spam Email – Most small businesses don’t realize that at least 50% of all email they receive is spam email (which is annoying but can also be dangerous). This costs in time, productivity and money. The following is a real example of how an Antispam program can help you save time AND money (the example illustrates a 6 month period).

You can see how running Mantralogix Antispam has saved this company from headaches.

9) Spyware – Spyware is a downloaded program that produces many annoyances on your computer. Spyware will change your default homepage, create pop-up ads when trying to navigate to webpages, and the more severe malware, will prohibit website access altogether. Spyware can cost productivity, and in some cases, is known to hold your data for ransom; this is appropriately known as Ransomware. Don’t let your business be controlled by outside forces. Malwarebytes Free Edition is a simple tool to help combat this.

8) Viruses – Viruses have been around almost as long as computers and they still continue to be used every day to cause havoc. Viruses, like malware, can be injected by hackers into websites, through links, files and just by visiting a website. The downtime caused by viruses can be critical to any small business and antivirus is one piece of software that should never be neglected when establishing your network infrastructure. It is very important to doing business work at the office, and casual web browsing and socializing at home.

7) Backup Solutions – Backing up your data has never been more at the forefront in the news.    Companies are experiencing data breaches where information gets compromised. Having a backup solution in place affords you the luxury of being able to replace any lost, stolen or deleted data from your business servers and desktops. There are several options and costs vary depending on the size of data being backed up, and the extent of granular backups that you wish to have. There is a 50% probability a business will fail immediately after a critical data loss.  After 2 years of a critical data loss that percentage jumps to 90%. The average number of days lost in productivity due to data loss is 19 days. It is imperative that the right data be backed up and that the system be checked regularly to ensure continuous and successful backups occur.

6) Data Security – In this day and age, people all around the world have access to computer technology that can perform automated 24/7 scans and checks for weak systems and networks that can be exploited. High profile businesses are no longer the primary targets as any system that can be accessed with relative ease are easy pickings for anyone with malicious intent, hoping for that “big score”, and bragging rights with their fellow conspirators.  Identity theft is very much a concern and should not be taken lightly with any business owner, as there is more than your data at stake, such as your reputation with your clients. Bad press is never good for any organization.

Please stay tuned for the Top 5 IT mistakes commonly made by small businesses.  If something you read struck your fancy and you would like to know more, give our team a call at 1-866-320-8922 and we would be pleased to speak with you about the right options available to you to secure your business data today.

A thank you to my colleague Kris Szabo for his inspirational title. Check out some of Kris’ IT blogs here.