IT is a crucial part of any business, but managing IT needs can be complex and time-consuming. Fortunately, there’s no shortage of professionals out there who say they can help—but there’s a big discrepancy between the level of service they can bring to the table.
Let’s talk about it!
Tell me, what sounds like a better start to your day; a pre-made croissant from Walmart shipped halfway across the country and a gas station coffee, or a freshly baked artisan croissant from a small mom-and-pop bakery with a fresh-brewed steamed latte from a local joint that presses their own beans?
I’ll tell you what, I go for the local business every time.
The quality of the ingredients, the fact that you are sustaining a local business owner and their staff, and the end product are typically going to be on a whole other level compared to what you can get from a big box store or a chain.
IT consulting services work the same way.
There’s a growing trend in the IT industry right now where big nationwide tech companies are buying up smaller, local IT businesses and absorbing them. In theory, there could be some positives to this, because a larger IT company has more buying power for the extremely expensive enterprise-grade software and solutions that keep them running efficiently. You might think, “Hey, that’s okay, because now this small IT company has the backing of hundreds or maybe even thousands of talented technical gurus and all the resources they need to provide a great level of service!”
Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case in our experience.
When we see a local IT consultant get gobbled up by one of the big boys, it tends to lower the overall quality of their service offering. Suddenly, the work becomes less personal, as everything is shifted to a strict set of standards that don’t leave any wiggle room for good customer service.
Nationwide IT Company Horror Stories
I don’t want to name any names, because I’m sure some of these formerly-local IT companies have good people trying to man the helms, but we’ve brought on plenty of local businesses who had to “graduate” from their current IT provider because they just weren’t getting what they needed.
We’ve seen cases where critical network equipment is over a year out-of-date despite the customer getting billed monthly for maintenance.
We’ve come across situations where factory-default passwords were being used, which is a major risk.
We’ve rescued businesses that were tired of getting nickeled and dimed to death over things they thought were covered under their agreement.
This stuff is pretty basic, at least to us. Establishing a baseline of how you handle a network, how you treat it like your own, document it, and set everything up so maintaining the status quo is straightforward is the first chapter in the book of how to be a decent IT provider. We’ve found that with these baselines, we have a lot more room for the cooler stuff that businesses really appreciate. I’m talking about aligning technology with your business goals, helping you become more productive, and turning your expensive IT infrastructure into a profit center, not just an expense.
These big nationwide companies don’t seem to have the room for that, or maybe they just don’t care. Perhaps their goal is to continue to snatch up small IT businesses, grow on paper, and get so big they collapse inwards upon themselves.
Our goal at CoreTech is much different. Our goal is to be the small business owner’s trusted partner, your secret weapon. We are truly passionate about helping our clients grow because we know that your success results in a long-term relationship, and we’ll both succeed together.
Why Local IT Consultants are a Better Fit
- Someone is Actually Accountable - We jokingly refer to this as having one throat to choke when something goes wrong, but when a company gets too big for its britches, they are less likely to make things right when things go wrong, and the level of accountability just isn’t in your favor.
- We Take the Time to Understand Your Differences - Every business is a little different and has different needs. Sure, there are best practices that can be applied to almost every business, but you can’t get away with sticking a square peg into a round hole. Technology can be carefully aligned based on your specific needs and goals, and that makes it a much more worthwhile investment.
- Sloppy Oversight Can Lead to Huge Problems - Small issues tend to have a snowball effect when it comes to IT. A mismanaged piece of equipment or a network device that isn’t kept updated can open the floodgates to viruses, malware, and cyberattacks. This could happen without you having telltale signs of a problem, simply escalating until it’s too late to react.
- IT Budgets that Make Sense - In less-populated areas, services tend to cost a little less, and the cost of living and running a business is much different when compared to major metropolitan cities. If an IT consultant is charging big “New York City” prices here in Bowling Green, you are either going to pay too much or pay less and get a lot less value.
- A Hands-On Approach - While a lot of work can and should be done remotely, having a local presence makes a huge difference in the case when onsite support is needed. Call us old-fashioned (which might be a little strange since we are a tech company) but we see a lot of value in meeting and shaking hands with the people we work with. If your account manager is eleven states away and you are just one of the three hundred accounts they oversee, you are likely not getting the same level of service.
Learn Why More and More Local Businesses are “Graduating” to CoreTech!
We’re conveniently located in Bowling Green, but we serve a large portion of Kentucky and even work with businesses as far as Nashville. That being said, we have no intention to lose that grassroots, look-after-your-neighbor, local IT guru feeling that we’ve always had. Every single one of our clients means a great deal to us, and we treat every network we touch as if it were our own.
There is a massive difference between being a nameless number on a ledger and having a relationship with a partner who is actively trying to help you grow your business, and that’s been the CoreTech difference since day one.
Check out what some of our other clients have to say, and if you want to feel more confident in your IT, and actually use technology to drive your business forward, give us a call at (270) 282-4926 to set up an appointment.
