Your Business Requires Technology, But Technology Shouldn’t Be Your Business

Businesses today are faced with fierce competition. Keeping your small business afloat, much less making a profit, takes your full attention. This, coupled with an increased reliance on complex technology can put un-do pressure on you and your employees.

Whether you want to compose a sales presentation or proposal, keep track of inventory, or communicate with your employees and clients, you can’t do this efficiently without working computers, a properly functioning network and a reliable connection to the Internet.

And technology it isn’t always dependable. With network outages, Hard drives that crash, and computers, routers, switches, servers, printers that eventually fail, your business productivity can come to a halt.

Doesn’t it always seem like technology fails you when you need it most?  When this happens it’s imperative that you resolve these problems and resume normal business operations as soon as possible—Time is money. It can be precarious to be so dependent on technology, but without it you just can’t compete today.

Few small businesses have either the required skills or the time to maintain and repair computers, networking equipment, or other technology. And, they can’t afford to hire dedicated, full-time employees to deal with IT maintenance.  Even if they could, there isn’t enough need for a full-time expert. 

So, what do they do? They try to “fix” things themselves. They find the most tech-savvy employee to double up on their duties and deal with hardware procurement, software licensing, and day-to-day IT troubles. 

Trying to resolve and keep up with inevitable technology failures is no longer a simple matter. And as your business has grown, you’re probably using computers and network equipment from a variety of dealers. So, getting the support you need is more difficult.

Plus, you have to manage warranties, support contracts, and deal with finger-pointing between vendors when problems occur. Doing this on your own can be like a volcano waiting to explode. Below the surface are IT issues and vulnerabilities that can cause big problems down the road.

Do you rely on your non-IT employees to deal with technology problems? If so, it’s best to let them stay focused on their duties, and enlist the aid of expert IT support. The time and resources dedicated to managing technology problems can negatively impact employees, their stress levels, and ultimately, your customers.

The smart thing to do is to outsource your IT support to a company that makes sure all your technology stays up and running.  They should be experienced in maintaining and troubleshooting desktops, laptops, servers, and network hardware. And they should have the knowledge and skills to keep things running smoothly and securely.

Large enterprises address this problem by hiring the right people for the job. They rely on experts for what they need: marketing, accounting, legal services and more. They know to leave the technical responsibilities to the experts.

If you’re worried about the cost, don’t be. The cost of outsourcing IT service and support will pay for itself because your tech issues will be addressed quickly and correctly so you can continue to focus on meeting your customers’ needs and growing your business.

Plus, you can get all your IT support and management for a fixed monthly price. A fully managed program is the best solution for small businesses, and provides the most reliability, security and quality of service.  You’ll have 24×7 access to IT assistance from technicians who will provide both remote and on-site support with guaranteed response times to prevent downtime and ensure your business stays up and running.

All aspects of your network will be monitored and maintained: security, data protection applications and hardware. This optimizes your network’s performance, so it will work at peak efficiency to meet the demands of your business.

Your IT provider should also act as your CIO and Trusted Technology Advisor by helping you with:   

  • Technology Planning
  • Solutions that align with your budget and increase your operational efficiency
  • Business Continuity and Disaster Planning
  • Expert Security Planning
  • Cloud Solutions that save you money, eliminate storage issues, and can be scaled to meet your specific requirements
  • Spam and Email Protection
  • And more.

Your time is important. You have more important issues to deal with than IT problems. Outsourcing your IT support and service allows you and your employees to focus on your duties, and grow your business.  

Imagis Managed Services

Our Fully Managed IT Service is the ideal solution for small businesses like yours. We know how hard you work to afford your technologies, and we’ll ensure you get the most from them. We’ll offer the value you need, and protect your technology investments. 

Just ask our clients: We provide the utmost in network reliability, security and quality service.

IRS Section 179

Looking for lower business taxes while getting the great technology your company needs to be competitive in today’s ever-changing landscape?

The federal government has a fantastic program that will let you write  off up to $500,000 when you invest in new information technology by the end of 2017. Yes, that’s a cool, half-million dollars you can save.

Section 179 of the IRS Tax Code is designed to get you to invest in new technology.  Why?  The feds know that using up-to-date technology will help your company grow, and keep our economy growing.

We all know that computers and technology aren’t going anywhere. The companies that invest in the right information technology often benefit from double, and sometimes triple-digit growth.  Those that don’t, typically lag behind and struggle to stay in business.

Make a note on your calendar: Section 179 is only available to U.S. companies until the end of the calendar year.

What to take part in Section 179 this year?  Great! Now’s the time to meet with one of our IT professionals and plan for your new technology and upgrades. 

Please don’t delay. 


In order to qualify for Section 179, systems must be purchased, invoiced and put into place before December 31st in order to qualify.

Imagis is your trusted IT partner.  We’ll ensure you get the right advice, and your business has the technology solutions to fuel your growth in 2018.

We Honor and Support Those Who Have Defended Our Country and Our Freedom

Veterans Day will be observed on Friday, November 10th, a date that’s approaching fast. The Imagis team intends to honor the brave men and women who have selflessly served our country and risked their lives to protect our freedoms.

To show our appreciation, we’d like to donate $500 to your favorite veterans’ charity for any referrals you send to us during the month of November. All you need to do is to send your business friends to us, and we’ll do the rest. 

These donations are important to the many organizations that work to support our veterans, but they’re far from the only thing you or I can do to show these amazing men and women we have their backs.

Here are a few more ways we can all support our veterans this year:

  1. Visit a wounded veteran in your local VA hospital.
  2. Offer your home repair skills to a veteran.
  3. Create an online neighborhood group to share information with veterans about community activities, recommend reliable repair companies, find babysitters or caregivers, and more. 
  4. Volunteer your financial, legal, or career expertise via MilServe.
  5. Deliver meals or care packages to veterans.
  6. Help a veteran tell their story through a project like the Veteran’s History Project. You can download a VHP field kit from the Library of Congress website.
  7. Volunteer with an organization, such as Canine Companions for Independence, that provide therapy dogs to veterans.
  8. Offer a vet a ride by volunteering with the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) organization that provides free transportation to men and women who are unable to travel to VA medical facilities on their own.
  9. Visit serve.gov and use the keyword “veterans” to find more opportunities to serve our nation’s veterans.
  10. Say “Thank You” to a veteran.

In addition to our donations, the Imagis team will be taking part in a few of these activities. Simply put, it’s the least we can do to show our appreciation for their dedication and their service.

However you’ll be marking this important day, keep this in mind – even the smallest gesture can make a huge impact. No contribution goes unnoticed or unappreciated.

Regards,

Sam Shargo
Executive Director/Veteran of the NY Army National Guard
Imagis Innovations

10 Ways To Stay Safe Online

Staying safe when online may seem overwhelming. Everything that connects to the Internet can get hacked. However, here are things you can do to mitigate your risk.

  1. Always update your operating system (OS) and other software. When companies discover vulnerabilities in their software they send out security patches to solve the problem.
     
  2. Download up-to-date security programs, including antivirus and anti-malware software, anti-spyware, and a firewall.
     
  3. Don’t use public WiFi. Protect your WiFi with an encrypted password, and refresh it every few years. Today’s routers make it easy to frequently change your password.
     
  4. Password protect all of your devices, including your desktop, laptop, phone, smartwatch, tablet, and IOT (Internet of Things) devices. Create difficult passwords and change them frequently. Don’t use the same password for more than one account. (Or use a password manager like LastPass.)
     
  5. Use two-factor authentication which requires you to not only enter a password but to also confirm entry with another item like a code texted to a phone.
     
  6. Practice smart emailing. Phishing campaigns still exist. Hover over links to see the actual email address of the sender. Don’t open attachments unless you’re 100% sure of where they came from.
     
  7. Practice smart browsing. Encrypted sites are the safest ones to visit. You know they are safe when you see HTTPS in the URL, and the lock icon on your browser. If you suspect a hacker, do a quick search on the Internet for the subject line.
     
  8. Log out of accounts when you’re done with them. Simply closing the browser window isn’t enough.
     
  9. Don’t link accounts. This allows services to get a lot of your personal information – for example when a site asks you to sign in with your Facebook account.
      
  10. Keep sensitive data off public cloud services. Very few cloud storage solutions offer encryption for data at rest.

Want more tips on keeping safe online? Or, better yet – do you need a partner that can help you build a more secure business? Contact Imagis today by emailing us at info@ImagisInnovations.com or calling 866.462.4474.