We used to bill just like lawyers, by the hour. There were several drawbacks to this method of charging for your IT support. For starters, our goals were not aligned with our client’s goals. Although we (as technology support providers) wanted our client’s networks to be up, however, we benefited when this was not the case, and even more so, the bigger the problem. Communication was the second gap this structure created. Clients would wait to call until a problem was much worse, or more likely, they would ignore their own businesses for a day or two to try to resolve technical issues. It reminded me of life before remote support services, like WebEx or LogMeIn. When we had an hour on-site minimum, and no remote tools, we would constantly find clients waiting until they had a full hour of work.
Enter the new world of Flat-Rate IT support. We charge a monthly fee per person in a company. Now our goals are aligned: We and are clients both want issues resolved as quickly as possible. It also opened the lines of communication, as clients would call us as much as they desired. We, as techs, can not only catch problems when they are in their infancy, and quicker to resolve, but also we would have a more comprehensive view of technical issues from their inception. The Result : we’ve aligned our goals with those of our clients; we’ve increased communication with our clients, and, most importantly, our clients can turn over their technical headaches to us and focus more on driving their business. For more information, check out our website: www.allmountaintech.com , or give us a ring 970-748-8880