Author: Casserly Consulting

Categories
Best Practices

Tip of the Week: Cover Your Assets By Properly Disposing of Your Old Computers

b2ap3_thumbnail_dispose_of_computers_400.jpg It can be difficult to think about replacing expensive hardware like desktops and servers without breaking your budget, much less having to deal with your old data. Thankfully, there are certain steps that you can take to make the transition to a new PC or server much easier, and it all starts with properly getting rid of your old technology.

Before we get started, though, we want to emphasize the importance of taking preventative measures. These keep you from getting into a situation where you don’t have the technology you need. In other words, if your desktop is outdated, then you shouldn’t wait until it completely breaks down before you replace it. This makes it imperative that you identify warning signs for your ailing technology before it suddenly stops working.

Warning Signs
To get started thinking about what to do when your computer breaks down, look for the following warning signs.

  • General PC slowdown
  • Freezing or even operating system crashes
  • Corrupted files or data loss
  • Random shutdowns
  • Startup errors

Keep in mind that these symptoms could be signs of other PC issues as well.

Understand When You Need to Replace Technology
Nothing your business utilizes can last forever, including technology like workstations and servers. If you suspect that your PC is reaching its limit, it’s crucial that you implement a strategy to properly replace it and dispose of the old one. If there’s no such policy to adhere to, you could be putting your business at risk of a data breach, and putting yourself at odds when the investigators look into whether it was your fault for failing to follow best practices. Gartner explains, “Best-practice PC disposal processes provide an audit trail documenting the serial-numbered inventory of disposed PCs, certification that proprietary and personal data has been removed and made unrecoverable, and transfer/reuse of software licenses, where applicable.”

Does your business have old technology that’s holding you back from moving forward? If so, contact COMPANYNAME right away. Our technicians can help your business completely wipe the data off of your old technology’s hard drives, or transfer it to your new, more recent hardware. Plus, we can recycle your business’s old devices so they won’t cause harm to the environment.

Our goal is to help your business make a smooth transition to new hardware solutions without putting your sensitive data at risk. To learn more about what we can do for your organization, reach out to us at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Technology

Microsoft “Slims” Down Windows 10 With New Operating System

b2ap3_thumbnail_windows_10s_interface_400.jpg Have you ever tried using a Google Chromebook for work purposes? While it might offer the ability to browse the web on a budget, the device is limited by the operating system’s lack of functionality. Microsoft has created a similar operating system in the form of Windows 10 S, which uses less processing power than the full version of their latest operating system.

Windows 10 S runs on less resources than laptops running Windows 10 Pro, which gives it a better loading speed. In fact, a laptop that’s running Windows 10 S can load a user profile up to 15 seconds faster. This is mostly thanks to there being fewer processes and applications running in the background.

The first audience Microsoft is targeting with this new operating system is educational institutions, like schools and college campuses. Unfortunately, Windows 10 S likely won’t be a good fit for an organization outside of education. While it might be helpful if you’re on a budget, it faces the same limits and inconsistencies as the Chrome OS. You get a passable experience, but what you can do will be limited.

It stands to reason that Windows 10 S will be found mostly on inexpensive laptops. Businesses that want to keep costs down have an option if they don’t want or need the extra power. Big names such as Dell, HP, and Acer have all chosen to produce laptops with Windows 10 S pre-packaged on them. This might be a great way to acquire a low-cost device for traveling or for meetings.

Most notable about this new operating system is that Microsoft is using this opportunity to upsell users on their Windows 10 Pro OS. Windows 10 S will be free, primarily because it’s already installed on the devices that will be using it. However, users can easily upgrade to the full version of Windows 10 Pro. While students can receive the full version of Windows 10 Pro for free, non-students must pay $49. This effectively gives businesses the opportunity to “test-drive” Windows 10 before going all-in.

Starting as early as this summer, Windows 10 S will be available. However, you still need to consider the repercussions of trying to save money by going with a cheaper device and lightweight OS. If you consult a professional IT technician, you’ll be able to iron out all of the details and understand exactly what you want and need before making a commitment, like purchasing a new device.

To learn more about how COMPANYNAME can help your business with its technology needs, reach out to us at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Security

3 Time-Saving Benefits to Outsourced Email Management

b2ap3_thumbnail_email_management_400.jpg You don’t have time to worry about managing your email solution, but it’s still a vital aspect of your business’s operations. You never know when someone will fall for a spam message, and you certainly can’t look over the shoulders of each employee to make sure they don’t. What’s the busy business owner to do? How can you get quality email management without it eating up too much time and effort on your part?

The answer, like many technological pain points of SMBs, is to outsource the responsibility to a managed IT provider. Managed IT is great for businesses that want to focus on their operations rather than spending time managing technology. We’ll discuss three of the ways that email management helps your organization stay on task and ahead of the game.

Strengthen Security with Spam Blocking
Spam is the favored vehicle for major online threats, including phishing and ransomware schemes, specifically because it allows hackers to spread their work in a way which allows them to target as many people as possible without devoting much individual work. Users can accidentally download attachments or click on links to malicious websites. Enterprise-level spam blocking solutions allow your organization to keep threatening or suspicious messages out of your inbox indefinitely, significantly reducing the risk of finding such messages in your email solution.

Hosting and Management
If you’re the one who has to constantly add new users or check to see that your email servers are working properly, you’ll find that you have less time to spend doing your actual work. Of course, nothing is more important than making sure operations proceed as intended. COMPANYNAME can manage your technology and free up incredible amounts of time to focus on building your company’s profitability. We can ensure maximum uptime and optimal mail flow so that you don’t have to.

Archive Messages for Future Viewing
Email archiving is a great way to ensure that your business retains a record of any incoming and outgoing messages for your business. This helps you keep a better track of who shares information with who, and more importantly, why information might be shared with those outside of your business. Furthermore, if an employee has recently left your business, but you weren’t privy to their reasons, you might find some clues in your email system that could strengthen retention and prevent turnover in the future.

If you want your business to flourish, managing email effectively is a great place to start. In the hands of professionals like those at COMPANYNAME, you can focus on operations without worrying about keeping mail flow from working as intended. For more information about email management, reach out to us at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
How To

Tip of the Week: Follow These Steps to Prevent Telemarketers From Calling You

b2ap3_thumbnail_block_phone_numbers_on_mobile_400.jpg Here’s a common scenario: you’re relaxing at home with friends or family and all of a sudden, your cell phone starts ringing. You don’t recognize the number; in fact, your phone lists it as an out-of-state caller, so you don’t pick up. The call eventually ends and you’re back to relaxing. But then, your phone starts ringing again and it’s that same pesky solicitor trying to sell you on the virtues of auto loan refinancing or a free Caribbean vacation. Caller ID and voicemail have helped to curb the suffering over unwanted phone calls in the past, but what if you could just block a caller entirely?

Regardless of the phone you have, for this week’s tip, we can show you how to block telemarketers, scammers, and stalkers from ever contacting you again. Telemarketing is completely legal, so it won’t be going away anytime soon. Blocking callers is the quickest and easiest way to deal with this issue. If they call you once, you won’t ever have to deal with them again, after you’ve followed these steps:

Android Users
For Nougat and Marshmallow:

  • Go to the Phone app.
  • Navigate to All Calls.
  • Select Call from Undesired Contact.
  • Tap Block/Report Spam.
  • Then you will be asked if you would like to report the call as spam. Check the box, if you do wish to report it.

For Lollipop (Samsung Galaxy S4, S5, S6, Note 4 users):

  • Go to the Phone app and tap the Call Log.
  • Select the phone number you would like to block, then tap More.
  • Next, tap Add to Auto reject list and you’re all set!

iPhone Users
To block a number on your iPhone, first select the Phone app. Next:

  • Select Recents (at the bottom of the screen).
  • Find the number of the caller you wish to block and tap the i icon on the right-hand-side of the screen.
  • Here you will see the caller’s information, as well as different options for creating a new contact, etc. Scroll to the very bottom of this page and you’ll see the words, ‘Block This Caller.’
  • Once you’ve selected that, a message will pop up, asking you to confirm this decision. Tap Block Contact to make it official.

If you’re receiving unwanted text messages from a stranger, iOS 10 requires that you add this person or bot to your Contacts list first. To create a new contact from your Messages app, click on the phone number at the top of the screen and select Create New Contact. Then simply follow the steps listed above. If you haven’t upgraded to iOS 10 yet, look for the i icon in the upper-right corner of your text conversation and select it. Then tap Block This Caller > Block Contact.

There, now you’re ready to block like some of the best centers in NBA history. But also remember that, with great power comes great responsibility; while telemarketers won’t know if they’re on your block list, “friends” and family members you find annoying might eventually catch on. For more technology tips and tricks, reach out to COMPANYNAME at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Business

Managed IT Can Help SMBs Tackle These 3 Common Challenges

b2ap3_thumbnail_smb_technology_challenges_400.jpg It’s only natural that new and improved technologies will be challenging for employees to embrace and become accustomed to using. These challenges tend to shape how businesses will make their decisions as time passes. A few industry research firms have released their projections as to what challenges businesses will face in the coming months of 2017.

While their reports were far from identical, there were a few consistencies in the findings that each firm came across. These consistencies can help the average small and medium-sized business adjust their approach in the coming months to optimize their ability to grow.

Both research firms found that, in varying order, the top three challenges that SMBs will face have to do with maintaining their current solutions, organizing restricted budgets and necessary costs, and increasing their security. However, one of the firms found that the concern over security was more focused on their mobile devices. Despite this minor difference, there is still a pattern to the priorities that SMBs will have throughout 2017 that enables us to establish what solutions will be in high demand.

Most notably, the companies who were examined as a part of this research were highly concerned about their finances–specifically, how to optimize their spending in order to receive the highest return on investment as possible for the least amount of capital expended. This considerable task becomes much simpler once a managed service provider is introduced into the equation.

The way things used to be, a company would (for the sake of their budget) assume that they wouldn’t encounter any issues and devote limited funds to resolving them, but when an issue was encountered, the company would end up spending their entire budget and then some, leaving them at a deficit the next time a problem surfaced. An MSP, on the other hand, will provide its services for a regular (and therefore predictable) cost, allowing your business to properly budget for its IT maintenance.

The studies also showed that many businesses were concerned about a few other factors that an MSP can help resolve. An MSP will take proactive steps to make sure that a company’s solutions don’t encounter issues that could throw its productivity into jeopardy. This can be accomplished by proactively monitoring the technology a company has in place. An MSP will also make sure your security solutions are maintained so that threats are less likely to make it onto your network in the first place.

An MSP can help to serve your business beyond these top three concerns throughout 2017 and beyond. For more information into what an MSP can offer, give COMPANYNAME a call at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Cloud

3 Reasons Why it’s High Time to Give the Cloud a Chance

b2ap3_thumbnail_cloud_concerns_400.jpg If you haven’t implemented cloud computing for your business yet… why? We understand that you can’t throw caution to the wind, but it’s really in your best interest to invest in the cloud. Doing so can allow your organization to experience unprecedented periods of enhanced operations and growth in the future. We’ll dispel three of the most common misconceptions about the cloud so that you can make the best decision possible for your business.

Misconception 1: Your Data Isn’t Secure in the Cloud
If you think that security is a problem for the cloud, we understand why you might think that way; especially in light of the many major hacking attacks suffered by organizations far larger than your own. However, in many cases, it’s actually safer to store data in the cloud than on your in-house infrastructure. In a study by Schneider Electric , it was found that 40 percent of participants host their security solution in the cloud, and another 45 percent of participants claim that they will move their security to the cloud in the near future.

Granted, you still need to be careful when you’re considering a cloud platform for your organization’s data. You, or a trusted IT consultant, should take the time to perform a quality analysis of the various risks versus the rewards–particularly in regard to the costs, opportunities, and risk factors. To get a second opinion about various cloud providers, you can look at vendors who might use their services. You’ll be able to see how great their services are from who they associate themselves with.

Misconception 2: The Cloud is Too Expensive
The cloud may have been a rather expensive investment in the past, but that’s not so much the case anymore. The cloud is so varied and commonplace in today’s workplace environment that you will likely encounter different rates for different cloud providers. Furthermore, since the cloud has grown much more common over the past few years, its costs have decreased, allowing more organizations to afford it than before.

There are still other expenses to keep in mind, though, including the cloud migration fees and any other costs associated with doing so. This includes opportunity costs, like time to market, disaster recovery savings, and customer satisfaction. You also need to consider just how much it will take to run an on-site cloud, as well as the maintenance that it would require, like resolving problems, installing new hardware, upgrading applications, and so on.

Misconception 3: You Can’t Get Flexibility from the Cloud
If you’ve made the decision to host data and applications on your in-house infrastructure, then you know that it takes a significant amount of time and resources to make this type of situation work for you. Usually an IT department would handle this responsibility, but it’s not always easy for small organizations to achieve the same level of care as larger enterprises. This is why a lot of organizations choose to host their network resources, like server/desktop infrastructures and data storage, in the cloud. This saves your organization a considerable amount of time and money, and all it takes is a talk with a trusted cloud provider like COMPANYNAME to make it reality.

Are you ready to invest in cloud computing? If so, reach out to us at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Miscellaneous

Tip of the Week: Netflix Now Lets You Download Videos for Offline Viewing

b2ap3_thumbnail_netflix_downloads_400.jpg The development of Netflix was revolutionary for its time, allowing users to stream a plethora of great television shows and movies on a whim. Nowadays, Netflix continues to innovate and create ways for users to take their services to places where they never thought possible. One example is taking Netflix on a flight, where the Wi-Fi is either completely unavailable, or too slow or expensive to be worth using. Netflix now allows users to download videos for offline viewing via its mobile app.

Keep in mind that this will only work if you have the official Netflix mobile app installed on your device. You can’t just download videos through the web browser on your smartphone or tablet. Also, keep in mind that not every video is immediately available for download, but the library is likely so large that you might not even notice. First, you’ll need to download the app.

If you want to filter the videos you see by availability to download, just tap or click the button in the top-left side of the screen. Next, select Available for Download. For the videos that are available for doing so, you’ll see the word Download.

If you just want to view the videos that you’ve downloaded in the Netflix app, click the menu and select My Downloads. Selecting this option will give you all of the details about the files, including how much space they take up on your device. This is important to know, especially since you’ll have limited storage space and you never know what you might run into while out of the office.

Deleting a video from your downloads is also quite simple. All you have to do is select the show and click the Downloaded button. This will present to you a window that lets you Delete Downloads. Once you’ve found it, you select the videos that you no longer want by checking the boxes in their corners. To finish the process, click on the trash can and delete your selected videos.

Where will you take advantage of Netflix’s download feature? Where else could you use this feature to save yourself from boredom? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our blog.

Categories
Business

What it Looks Like When an IT Provider Goes Above and Beyond

b2ap3_thumbnail_care_for_your_business_400.jpg Modern businesses have a lot more to worry about than organizations did over 100 years ago. Chances are that your organization has its hands full with operations, and the last thing that you want to worry about is securing data and hoping that your technology solutions work as intended. Thankfully, you can easily outsource the management of these systems to a managed IT services provider.

Of course, you can’t just leave the task of managing your IT to just any organization. You want to outsource to only the most reliable and trustworthy managed IT company–one that can provide only the best care that you would expect an in-house team to deliver. You can rest assured that COMPANYNAME handles our clients’ technology as if it were our very own, and provides solutions that keep your organizational downtime to a minimum.

The reason why you can trust our word? We are putting our reputation on the line. It’s just good business to take proper care of your technology, and by showing you that we care, we can develop a great relationship with your staff by keeping your technology working properly.

How We Protect Your Business
It’s extremely important to protect your business’s assets, including the most valuable one of all: your data. Cyberattacks have grown extremely sophisticated over the past few decades, and as much as we hate to say it, even protected businesses are at considerable risk. This is why enterprise-level security solutions are needed, as consumer-level security is inadequate for protecting something as important as your business. Furthermore, we compound this by providing comprehensive remote monitoring and management, as well as complete preventative measures to mitigate issues before they become large-scale problems.

You also have to worry about the risk of user error. Since your business is made up of employees–none of which are perfect–you need to plan for the day that a user will accidentally download the wrong attachment or click on the wrong link, allowing malicious entities access to your network. Granted, it’s impossible to take the time out of your workday to monitor each and every user while they work, which is why outsourcing this responsibility is often the ideal solution. COMPANYNAME can monitor your network so that you don’t have to.

How We Manage Your Technology
What if you were to experience technology trouble that completely takes down operations? If this happens, you need someone with experience leveraging continuity-minded technology to get you back on track. In situations like these, you can’t wait for a technician to arrive on site, so it’s more reliable and efficient to have the work done remotely by an IT provider.

The main benefit of outsourced IT is that you don’t have to worry about your technology any longer, and you’ll be able to spend more time focusing on running your business. Besides, the many benefits of managed IT eventually pay for themselves in the long run in the form of improved productivity, enhanced efficiency, and reduced downtime.

For more information about what COMPANYNAME can do for your business, reach out to us at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Technology

Webinars Take the Excuses Out of Missing Meetings

b2ap3_thumbnail_webinars_for_authority_400.jpg For today’s businesses, displaying your organizational authority is crucial to success. Whether it’s McDonald’s with fast food burgers, Chevrolet with cars and trucks, or Walmart for everything else, the message you put out there is seemingly as important as the services you provide. For small businesses, this becomes even more crucial. For example, if you run a hardware store, you likely can’t compete with the prices of the big box stores, but you can bring to the table something of greater value to the consumer: your knowledge.

In the past, companies would have seminars to introduce new concepts to anyone that had a vested interest, or to present their consumer base a new set of practices. These seminars were great marketing tools for companies to show the consumer that they, in fact, know about the products or services they were selling. As a result, they were great ways to build organic traffic into their stores. This is a classic example of how word of mouth is the best form of marketing.

Cut to today, people are busy, and with social media being what it is, it was inevitable that companies would have to start coming to the consumer, rather than having the consumer come to them. Nowadays, the webinar (obviously taken from the root words web and seminar) has allowed the modern business to interact with would-be customers over the Internet. The webinar is set up much like the seminar with a presentation or course followed by a full question and answers section.

A webinar can be an hour or two, it can be a half-hour, it can be five. There really isn’t any set amount of time, but you have to remember that even if you are constantly at the computer, some of the people you are trying to reach aren’t. Also, no matter how valuable you think the information you have packed into your five-hour webinar is, it doesn’t take much for people, interested or not, to be distracted away from what you are saying. In fact, that brings up one of the main benefits of the webinar, the ability for the user to listen at their leisure. So while you may hold an event at 7 PM on a Wednesday, you can distribute the webinar for anyone to download or stream for as long as you’d like. It’s best practice to keep it between one and two hours, and don’t waste your listener’s time with fluff. If someone gets bored with one of your webinars, the chances decrease substantially that they will ever go to another.

Along with their platform for distributing your company’s knowledge and authority in your industry, webinars have shown to be one of the best ways to close new customers. In fact, Buzzsumo has stated that nearly one-fifth of their webinar attendees turn into paying customers.

The technology used to conduct a webinar is readily available. There are literally dozens of free and paid applications designed to let you conduct webinars. Some of these include GoToWebinar, AnyMeeting, Google Hangouts, and Microsoft’s Skype platform. If you are curious about what it takes for you to educate potential and current customers with a webinar, contact COMPANYNAME’s professional IT staff at PHONENUMBER.

Categories
Best Practices

Tip of the Week: What You Should Do After You’ve Cracked Your Phone’s Screen

b2ap3_thumbnail_cracked_screen_400.jpg A cracked screen can happen to anyone at any time. All it takes is bumping into someone or your grip slipping off of your device, and boom–cracked screen. In cases, such as this, what’s the best way to move forward?

The first step is accepting that you may have made a mistake and dropped the phone, but this doesn’t help you fix it. Here are six ways that you can approach your cracked-screen scenario.

Just Leave it Be
If you really don’t want to get a new device or look into ways to fix your phone screen, well… just leave it as it is. This is certainly an option if the screen still works fine, but it might be a bit annoying to deal with. One thing you can do is patch up the screen with a screen protector so that it doesn’t fall apart, and hope for the best. However, if the crack is on the outside and you’re scratching your fingers on it, the next choice might be worth looking into.

Try to Find a Replacement
Since everyone and their brother owns a smartphone these days, and they are often replaced before the devices themselves are unusable, you’ll have an easier time finding a spare than ever before. It’s often the case that if you find a suitable device, all you have to do is move the SIM card from the old device to the new one. Just keep in mind that your replacement device needs to be on the same carrier (a Verizon phone, for example, can’t be used on a Sprint network). If you are the owner of a business that likes to provide phones to your workers, ensuring that you have insurance covering the phone can be the best way to mitigate the cost of one of your people inevitably cracking the screen on their company-issued smartphone.

Gamble on a DIY Repair
If a second-hand smartphone doesn’t sound like something you’d enjoy, perhaps you could attempt to repair the device yourself. While there are plenty of YouTube tutorials for do-it-yourselfers, you’ll be taking a risk that you might otherwise be better off without. Therefore, only attempt to fix it yourself if you’re aware of the consequences and committed to accepting the results, even if it doesn’t work out your way. You can probably find a replacement screen on the Internet from sources like eBay, but it might be more complex of a job than you’ve bargained for.

Have Someone Fix the Screen
If you’d rather not take any chances with your device’s maintenance, you can try to find someone who is willing to do the job for you. In most cases, this means finding a local company that you can hire for the repair job. Sometimes the service provider itself will handle this, but more likely they would have to send it out for repairs. You want to avoid going through the manufacturer (unless you’d rather foot a pricey repair bill), so it’s best to reach out to your internal IT department or a trusted IT provider.

Trade or Sell Your Phone
If you know that you’re just going to buy a new phone anyway, you might be able to get a little bit of value out of your old device before it’s gone forever. Try trading in your phone or selling it to someone who’s willing to pay a little bit of extra cash for it. Just make sure that you eliminate any data located on the device before handing it over. If you don’t know how to do this, just give us a call and we’ll be happy to assist you.

Look for a Better Price
If you’re just going to purchase a new device, you can find unlocked smartphones online–often at a better price than their designated commercial value. Even better is that these devices aren’t held back by contracts, so wireless carriers aren’t a problem either. However, it’s important that you find a device that actually works. Look for sellers who have a good reputation for providing quality used products. Remember, every time you purchase a used device, you’re dealing with at least some sort of risk.

With smartphones being extremely important for communications and remote productivity, every business should be cognizant of solid smartphone practices. If you are looking to manage the role smartphones have on your network security, or, if you’d like to expand the role smartphones have in your business, you should talk to one of COMPANYNAME’s IT professionals. We can present solutions like mobile device management, allowing your business to take advantage of a comprehensive bring your own device policy. We also have lines on innovative ways to affordably improve organizational smartphone deployments. Call us today at PHONENUMBER.