Your business can be vulnerable to the internet. Especially if your business relies on digital operations and communication, you don’t want your technology to fail and halt transactions. From hackers to natural disasters, here are some tips on how you can prevent your business from going offline!
1. Have a Disaster Recovery Plan
When you put all your business data and equipment in one building, it’s less likely that things will go wrong because everything is centralized. Unfortunately, disasters can strike anywhere and anytime — even the most secured buildings. Having a well-thought-out plan on what to do if such events happen will help lessen its impact on your business. This includes knowing how to back up data and where to store them.
2. Have a Business Continuity Plan
A disaster recovery plan only covers the damage that happens in one branch or office of your company. A business continuity plan, on the other hand, is what you need when there’s a disaster that affects multiple locations such as when a storm causes power outages in multiple branches. It’s not enough to have backups of data because you also need to make sure that employees are safe, the supply chain is uninterrupted, and that customers are still taken care of. The plan should cover what needs to be done during emergencies by different teams in your business, including IT.
3. Have a Power Backup Supply
Power outages can happen even when you’re in the most unexpected times. That’s why it’s important to have a backup for your power supply. A server room UPS unit, which stands for uninterruptible power supply, is what you need if there are frequent power outages in your area. It allows you to keep your system working until the electricity comes back or until you can find an alternative.
4. Have a Stable Internet Connectivity
The truth is, there are times when your internet connection is out of order for days even if the storm hasn’t hit your area yet. If you’re in this situation, make sure that you have an internet service provider with reliable fiber-optic lines. Fiber-optic cables are far more superior to copper ones, especially when it comes to high-bandwidth activities such as hosting a website or communicating through the internet.
5. Reduce Dependency on Digital Systems and Communication
As much as possible, you need to reduce your risk of going offline by cutting back some of your business operations. Data backups are important but you also need to make sure that it doesn’t limit you from doing physical activities. If there’s an urgent task that requires the use of paper, go for it instead of relying on a digital process.
6. Have an IT Support Team Ready for Any Problems
There are times when we can’t do anything about a problem we encounter, and that’s where having an IT support team to rely on comes in. This is why you need to make sure that your business is partnered with a reliable IT service company that will respond as soon as possible to whatever issues you’re facing.
7. Have Hardware Upgrades for Your Digital Systems
To prevent the risk of your business going offline, you need to have access to advanced hardware. The right servers can handle more requests without slowing down your operations, even during high traffic hours. If there are any issues that arise due to certain requirements, upgrading your systems will give you peace of mind knowing that it can still run smoothly even when there are too many things happening at the same time.
8. Partner With a Reliable Cloud Services Provider
As mentioned above, fiber-optic cables are far more superior to copper ones when it comes to transferring data. That’s why you need to partner with a reliable cloud server company that offers high bandwidth packages on an “as needed” basis. There are times when it’s less expensive to use the cloud for your storage needs rather than investing in servers on your own.
9. Invest in Cybersecurity
There are times when your business can go offline because it’s been hacked. That’s why you need to make sure that the systems you use in your company are highly secured against unauthorized access, data theft, and other internet-based threats. You can do this by investing in a cybersecurity consultant to keep your systems secure at all times.
In conclusion, it’s important to have a plan for your business in the event of an emergency. This could be as simple as having spare batteries and flashlights on hand or planning ahead with an IT support team before anything happens. No matter what type of disaster you’re preparing for, there are steps you can take now that will help keep your business running smoothly even when things go wrong.
