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Starting a business may seem simple, but running one has its costs. For a business to run efficiently, there must be necessary resources. IT equipment is one such resource, and it must be updated regularly to keep up with the pace of technology. Additionally, purchasing equipment is costly, and most businesses are now opting for […]

2016october6_hardware_bStarting a business may seem simple, but running one has its costs. For a business to run efficiently, there must be necessary resources. IT equipment is one such resource, and it must be updated regularly to keep up with the pace of technology. Additionally, purchasing equipment is costly, and most businesses are now opting for Hardware-as-a-Service, or HaaS. Read on for a comprehensive review of the benefits of HaaS.

Upfront Capital

The main benefit of HaaS is that it enables businesses to conserve on upfront capital expenditures. By replacing these high costs with a lease structure and low monthly payments, resources can be redirected toward other budget items. As a result, the business will have more resources that it could have otherwise used to purchase the computers.

More modern hardware

For businesses with outdated equipment, HaaS is an easy workaround for them to upgrade their IT hardware. A service provider can supply the latest equipment at a lower monthly cost, and when their client’s machines age, upgrades can be provided without fear of incurring additional costs. By choosing this route, SMBs won't have to deal with disposing their old equipment. The service provider will take full responsibility for that.

Taxes and accounting

When it comes to tax payments, businesses that opt for HaaS are also at an advantage. Equipment will be listed as a service from a vendor rather than a capital expense -- thereby decreasing their tax liability. SMBs will enjoy all the benefits of cutting-edge equipment, without the taxes that usually accompany it. HaaS allows companies to get the equipment they need without running the risk of incurring more debt. Having a balance sheet with less debt is beneficial to the business, as it provides the business with secure financial services to expand.

However, when it comes to HaaS, it is important to consider what sort of technology the business needs. For example, if there is a substantial need for equipment, the best option is to choose HaaS rather than incur debt from purchases. For more information on managed IT solutions and outsourcing your technology difficulties to the experts, contact us today.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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VoIP acts as a bridge between traditional landlines and our internet-centric lives. By unifying communications under a single system for voice, data, and video converged networks, many businesses are realizing unprecedented savings and improvements to their workflow models. If that sounds like something your SMB could benefit from, you’ve come to the right place. Fax […]

2016october5_voip_bVoIP acts as a bridge between traditional landlines and our internet-centric lives. By unifying communications under a single system for voice, data, and video converged networks, many businesses are realizing unprecedented savings and improvements to their workflow models. If that sounds like something your SMB could benefit from, you’ve come to the right place.

Fax

Modern VoIP does more than just make calls, it also receives faxes. Why would a business be interested in this seemingly outdated service? A significant portion of businesses, government bodies, and medical facilities still use some form of fax service to send and receive physical documents. If a customer or vendor prefers to send you a fax, most VoIP solutions are equipped to receive and convert fax documents into a PDF file.

Interactive Voice Response

The new VoIP feature allows businesses to route their calls to the correct client’s or staff’s number. This feature helps to reduce the use of mass cold calling and unwanted calls, saving the businesses' time and money, and enhances proper service delivery to your clients. VoIP systems promote minimal routing calls, increasing your employees' ability to work well.

Spam Call Filter

It’s election season and that means robo-calls. If you hate them as much as we do, VoIP is one of the best services to eliminate them. Spam filters combine several different pieces of caller data to help you differentiate between potential customers and annoying telemarketers. About as effective as the spam filter protecting your email inbox, this feature is not something we could live without.

Telemarketer Block

Automatic filters are never perfect, and some telemarketers may be able to slip through the fence your filters have erected. Depending on the scope of your VoIP system, you may want to input blocked numbers manually. If you have specific times that your spam filter and blocked call list would become prohibitive, they can be turned off with the flip of a switch.

Network Down Forward

One of the biggest concerns for VoIP solutions is their bandwidth requirements. Users in areas without a robust or reliable internet connection may think they can’t reap the rewards of a internet-based communications service. Modern VoIP systems have a feature called ‘network down forward’ to overcome these hurdles. When turned on, network down forward allows you to send calls to your signal-based mobile devices when your internet is down -- thereby guaranteeing customers can always get a hold of you.

VoIP technology has opened up entirely new avenues of what businesses can achieve with their communication systems. Beyond just making and receiving calls over the internet, users can block unwanted callers, receive faxes, and design pleasant hold menus. For any VoIP inquiries, call us today -- we’re always available.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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When it comes to SEO for businesses, most people focus on getting organic results based on keywords centered around those used in their industry. Unfortunately, those keywords don’t focus on your brand identity. That means Google search results are severely limited because users may not know about a specific brand. There are methods a business […]

2016october4_webandcloud_bWhen it comes to SEO for businesses, most people focus on getting organic results based on keywords centered around those used in their industry. Unfortunately, those keywords don’t focus on your brand identity. That means Google search results are severely limited because users may not know about a specific brand. There are methods a business can work around this, and we’ve listed our favorites here.

One of the ways you can improve your branded search visibility is by ensuring your brand name is mentioned multiple times throughout your site. Make sure to link the brand name to the homepage of your website, include the brand name in descriptions of the company, and add meta descriptions to the site.

Because Google’s site indexing service is completely automated, just about anyone should be listed in the results. The goal isn’t getting listed, it’s getting listed first. Little things like placing your sitemap in an easy-to-find location, including descriptive titles, and always filling out meta descriptions to increase the chances of your brand links appearing on the search pages.

Social media may technically be a different story, but it works hand-in-hand in today’s search engine optimization efforts. These pages are very likely to be listed when customers are making ‘brand’ searches. Make sure you maintain profiles at every “big” social media site, and add as much information as you can concerning your brand identity. Because the ultimate goal is to drive traffic to your site, link to your website in every field that allows it.

Lastly, Google business reviews are more important in getting branded search results than most people realize. Claim your business on Google My Business and frequently encourage your top customers to leave positive reviews concerning your brand. The more positive reviews your website has, the higher your site will appear in the rankings.

SEO is important for business, but so is creating a brand identity. An intersection of these goals may seem difficult, but not impossible. For more information on SEO, branded search results and anything related to your Google search rankings, get in touch with us today.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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Costs are a major concern when it comes to IT solutions, and the healthcare industry has its struggles trying to keep up with the latest technology on the market. Thankfully, cloud solutions and increased storage availability mean hospitals and clinics finally get some relief. Although most of the biggest cloud providers are pushing their data […]

2016october3_healthcarearticles_bCosts are a major concern when it comes to IT solutions, and the healthcare industry has its struggles trying to keep up with the latest technology on the market. Thankfully, cloud solutions and increased storage availability mean hospitals and clinics finally get some relief. Although most of the biggest cloud providers are pushing their data analytics solutions on businesses and corporations, many are targeting the medical industry. Read on to find out how this popular trend can help your facility.

Business intelligence (BI) software truly lives up to its name. At its core, BI is all about data analytics, and it is able to accept overwhelming amounts of data in short periods of time to use advanced analysis algorithms to search for trends that even the most experienced statistician cannot find.

By swapping out customer fields such as previous number of purchases, order size, and order frequency, in favor of patient fields such as income level, English proficiency, housing conditions, and community resources, hospital administrators can provide extra care that will help prevent expensive readmissions.

By combining socioeconomic data with electronic medical records (EMR) in a BI software environment, hospitals and doctor’s offices can easily create patient profiles that will predict how likely they are to require readmission, even before care is provided.

For the context of this article, readmission is when a patient returns for more care within 30 days of the original hospital stay. Cases like these usually stem from conditions immediately following the initial visit, such as mismanagement of the original condition, improper self-medication, and not enough access to proper medical services and medications in their community.

For practices looking for methods to reduce readmissions by three percent or greater, predictive analytics allow doctors to ensure that certain types of patients can totally avoid readmissions with proper initial care.

With effective implementation of these solutions, hospitals can save a lot of money. After reducing the incidence of readmissions by 6,000 patients annually, one particular practice was able to save $72 million on medical services, avoid $4 million in Medicare penalties, and boost its reputation by leaps and bounds.

Big data isn’t only for big business. BI software can deliver your practice unprecedented levels of care and efficiency, and we’re the ones who know how to get it done. Whether you want to lower readmission rates or ensure your EMR compliance, call us today to partner with a trusted IT expert.

Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.

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