Efficient Networking For Small Businesses
As your business grows, it walks a delicate balance between lower residential building needs and the needs of a large enterprise's headquarters. The world of Information Technology (IT) is precarious, because although there are many ways to do more with less as a built in feature of modern computers, some things simply get faster with stronger computing. To understand the tech needs of the average small business, here are a few IT services and projects needed to stay connected to the growing business world.
How Much Internet Do You Really Need?
Small businesses often need to send important files with legible quality over what used to be standard mail delivery or fax. With higher quality comes higher file sizes, meaning a faster upload speed that isn't always prominently advertised by Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
To measure your upload speed, you need to know how much traffic is being sent out on a regular basis. In addition to sending files via email or file sharing programs, does your business also use Voice over IP (VOIP) services such as Skype, Oovoo, Google Voice, Slack, or Discord to communicate? Voice communications are internet traffic as well, and voice quality can drop if the upload and download speeds are too low.
To determine download speed, consider the tasks that all employees need to complete. Are internet video or audio streams a part of your business? Does your current internet take too long to load basic websites? You may need to increase speeds, but keep in mind that average internet speeds are around 54mbps (megabits per second) and shouldn't cost more than $40 or $50 for internet service alone.
If you're at that tier or paying more, be sure to consider both your business computer speeds and your current payment package as you look at other services. You may need to repair/clean or replace workstations and look for internet connections closer to your speed and budget needs.
Network Arrangement For Full Coverage
Wireless internet is convenient, but not consistent. A network professional can cover the business area with wireless internet for convenience and quick research with mobile devices, but if your business needs a connection that doesn't drop as many packets as wireless, make sure to work with a network consultant to plan your building's network layout.
Network design means more than running a few cables along the walls. Cables can be efficiently placed within walls in a way that doesn't require full wall breakdown for the first installation or future upgrades by performing precision breaches at specific areas and adding maintenance panels.
In addition to proper placement, cables data cabling services professionals can bring in different types of high speed cables depending on business need. You could create an entire business backbone on fiber optics to keep everything as fast as possible, but depending on how often employees may push and pull on their workstation areas, you may want something a little more sturdy like a lower speed Ethernet cable for some workstations.
Contact a networking and general IT design consultant to discuss network needs and cable placement. For more information, contact companies like DO Communications.
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