Do You Need a
Managed Network Service Provider?

2020 taught us the importance of preparing for uncertainty. Regardless of where your business is located or what industry you operate in, business continuity remains a top priority. Partnering with a Managed Network Service Provider will allow you peace of mind as you move forward into an uncertain business landscape. s2s is dedicated to ensuring all partners have the ability to operate, communicate, and grow despite any unforeseen challenges. Our team is prepared to implement the right solution for your business and stand by you whenever assistance is needed. If you have questions or need support, we have people – real people – prepared to help every day of the year. 

THE SITUATION

Monday morning and the internet is down — again.  Even if it doesn’t stay down for long, it’s still an inconvenience.  And when it’s up, it can take forever to download a file. Sometimes, it isn’t worth waiting for a page to load.  Then, there’s the daily slowdown around 3:00 pm. If your business has multiple locations, internet issues can increase exponentially.  Different providers. Different terms and conditions. Different billing cycles. It’s difficult to keep the ISPs straight. That’s where a Managed Network Service Provider can help.

It’s not like you have a dozen providers in every location.  But maybe you have more options than you think. Here’s what a Managed Service Provider can do for you.

WHAT DOES A MANAGED NETWORK SERVICE PROVIDER DO?

If you’re connected to the internet, you use an internet service provider (ISP) who provides the connection between your business and the internet.  That’s it. You hear from them when there’s a rate increase, but other than the occasional email, you don’t hear from them — ever.

Managed Network Service Providers serve as the connection between your business and the internet, but they also monitor that connection to ensure it runs smoothly.  They are not tied to one provider, so you have options when it comes to your internet service. They also help find the right connections for your business. 

Every Managed Network Provider is different, but here are a few benefits of working with one.

THE RIGHT CONNECTIONS

As your business grows, so do your internet requirements.  You need a faster internet connection and more bandwidth for the massive data files that are being sent.  But you don’t know how much faster. You don’t want to underestimate the speed, but you also don’t want to pay for more than you need. 

You also cannot tolerate downtime. If your primary internet connection goes down, you need an adequate connection to failover to. 

Managed Service Providers work to match your internet needs with available connectivity.  If your business has multiple locations, providers can also help find the best solution for each one.  It doesn’t have to be a one size fits all. Why pay for more bandwidth than you need?

A Managed Service Provider offers flexibility in connectivity options with the ability to scale as your business demands.  Besides providing the right fit, they can also reduce expenses by making sure service bills are paid on time and service cancellations are submitted if/when your location moves or closes.

THE RIGHT NETWORK

The internet is one piece, your network devices are the other. Your employees and your customers require internet, this means your WiFi network must be top notch. And while they are on the network, you need to make sure security is tight. 

There are various options on the market and you may not know what would be best for your business. That’s where the Managed Network Service Provider comes in. Certified network engineers review your business and your needs and determine which brand makes the most sense and what the architecture should look like. 

Once deployed, the Provider monitors and manages the network for you to ensure uptime and security. 

CONSOLIDATED BILLING

How much is your ISP charging?  Does that question make you cringe?  Not because of the cost, but because of the time it takes to answer the question?  With multiple locations and multiple providers, you have to add up those bills before you can begin to answer the question.  

Then there’s the bill itself.  Each one is different, and no company uses the same terms.  It’s frustrating and time-consuming to sort through multiple invoices to determine if you are being billed correctly.  You have better things to do.

Managed Network Providers deliver you a consolidated invoice that accurately reflects the charges of all of you ISP connections.  They review your bill and dispute charges that are billed in error. After all, a MISP talks the language of an ISP.

MONITORED CONNECTIVITY

What do you do when the internet goes down at work?  If you are the business owner, you call your ISP. If you have an IT staff, you call them, and they call the ISP.  The point is someone calls the ISP. That takes time away from what you and your employees should be doing.  

A Managed Internet Service Provider monitors your internet connections and alerts you when they go down.  If providers cannot restore service with basic troubleshooting, the MISP works with the ISP to get the connection up and running as quickly as possible.  They keep you informed as the ticket progresses through resolution.

Because Managed Internet Service Providers have people dedicated to keeping the connection functioning, the time to repair or restore can be much less.  Let’s face it. All those back-and-forth phone calls take time, especially when they were not a planned part of your day.

FOCUS ON YOUR BUSINESS

Managed Network Service Providers allow you to focus on running your business.  Your employees can concentrate on doing their jobs and you no longer have to worry about the internet.  A MISP will work with you to ensure that your network scales with your company’s growth. They even help with installation and configuration of your network. 

All these services save you time and money as your business grows.  Those savings include all the time you’ll save when you let a MISP handle the invoices.  And then there’s the peace of mind you have when you know your internet connectivity is being monitored and managed by a 24x7x365 help desk.  

BEING A PARTNER

s2s is a Managed Network Service Provider positioned to grow with your company.  s2s can help you with:

• Internet options.  Primary and failover, including cellular options, for 100% uptime.
• Network equipment.  We procure and install the right equipment for your network.
• Network maintenance.  We proactively monitor your network and make adjustments as needed to ensure optimal uptime and security. 
• Scalability.  Our solutions scale from a single location to 100s of locations across the United States and Canada.

At s2s, our team is motivated to keep your business growing.  We want your business to perform at its best, so we make sure your network is operating at peak performance.  If you have questions or need support, we have people — real people — to help every day of the year.