The time and money lost during a network outage go beyond inconvenience. For many businesses, a serious outage can inflict a blow that they might never recover from.
The Gartner Group estimates that the average cost for a single minute of downtime is around $5600. In this post, we’re going to look at five ways downtime can impact your business operations.
- Productivity Losses
Every business today relies on online communications and services. Whether it’s email, virtual chat, or customer support, losing network access can put a stop to business. If you rely on cloud applications, you can be left waiting until service is restored. The bottom line is that salaries, rent, and other costs need to get paid even when your network is out.
- Missed Opportunities
If you conduct your business online, loss of service means your customers can’t find you to purchase your services or products. If your business relies on being online, downtime makes it impossible to conduct business.
- Damage to Your Brand
Downtime doesn’t just affect operations. It can also impact brand awareness and your reputation. Losing network access can cause immediate pain, lost productivity, and lost opportunities, along with long-term damage to your brand. If your customers have frequent issues with server outages, they won’t just stop buying from you; they’ll tell their friends.
- Data Loss
Any server outage carries the potential for data loss. Files could be damaged or corrupted, and network failure can open the door to a cyberattack that can compromise data. Even losing just a portion of your data due to system failure can cripple your business.
- Service Level Agreement Payouts
Some companies provide assurances that customers will have access to products and services when they need them. SLA uptime contracts provide protection and carry specific language regarding payments in the event of an outage. You’ll receive compensation for the downtime, but it doesn’t repair the damage to your brand in your customer’s eyes.
Downtime can seriously impact your business. If you’re looking for a solution, give us a call. We have the expertise to reduce the chance of an outage and ways to make sure your business can recover quickly if one does occur. Contact us today to learn more.
