If Your IT Resource Can't Explain ROI in 60 Seconds, It’s Time to Look Elsewhere

You see it everywhere, again and again: how much return an investment into proper business technology will bring, with little to no context behind these claims. We want to fix that.

Let’s examine why so much information about modern IT options can be less than helpful, and see if we can’t clarify what it means. Simplifying tech for the businesses we work with is one of our primary goals, after all.

Why is It So Hard to Get an Estimated Return on Investment?

There are a few communication hurdles that can often get in the way. For instance:

A Lot of Providers Turn to Jargon to Sound More Impressive

Have you ever encountered corporate speech that uses a lot of words to convey nothing of substance? This is particularly prevalent when discussing IT and its advanced features, rather than focusing solely on the value that can be passed to the business. Communicating in this way is actively counterproductive to a business’ goal, as it creates another barrier for a prospect to overcome.

Some Providers Can’t See the Benefits of the Features Offered

Relatedly, it can be too easy for many providers to fail to contextualize what they offer, rattling off a list of features without communicating how and why their products and services will functionally help the business. 

It Can Be Hard to Prove a Negative… Like Prevented IT Issues, for Instance

When a preventative service works, it appears as though nothing is being provided. This puts the onus on the provider to communicate. Insurance providers experience this whenever one of their subscribers goes months and months without needing to use their coverage. Similarly, its value only becomes apparent when it is suddenly necessary, making it hard to clearly communicate the ROI of managed services and the like.

Many Businesses are Playing Catch-Up as It Is

It is only too common for modern businesses to chase their IT requirements, which means that it usually takes a costly issue for these conversations to start. Alternative approaches, such as the proactive monitoring and maintenance of the managed IT services we provide, accelerate the ROI that a business can achieve by allowing its team to anticipate and address these issues.

How to Evaluate Your Prospective IT Provider in One Minute

Most people know what an elevator pitch is—it’s the argument that you could make within the duration of an elevator ride that would convince someone to give your product or service a shot. A good elevator pitch typically has certain qualities. Primarily, it needs to be succinct and crystal clear. If someone can’t communicate the value of what they’re selling within the 30-to-60 seconds the elevator takes to reach its destination, there’s a good chance they aren’t as familiar or confident with their services as you want and need them to be.

However, let’s say they can. In that case, there are a few details you’ll want to listen for that relate to the ROI you can expect to see.

Listen for Details that Apply to Your Goals and Projected Outcomes

There are a few key talking points that a trustworthy IT provider, such as JensenIT, is more likely to focus on:

• Impact on efficiency/productivity. Ensure your potential IT provider can provide you with reasonably attainable metrics, along with their strategy for achieving them.
  
  “By automating these processes, each member of your team will save about three hours each week, allowing that time to be reallocated.”
  
  
• Cost reductions/savings. Any provider you consider working with should have your business’ success in mind to some degree, and so will help you get the most value out of their services possible.
  
  “By switching to cloud-hosted services, your operational costs could decrease by 20% annually.”
  
  
• Risk mitigation/reduction. One of the most critical goals of an IT provider is to protect your business from the multitudinous threats out there. The more detailed a prospective provider can be while answering these questions, the better prepared they likely are to keep your business safe.
  
  “Adding multi-factor authentication to your processes can help prevent as many as 96% of phishing attacks.”
  
  
• Encouragement of business growth. Of course, most businesses aspire to grow their operations, and yours is likely no different. A good prospective provider will help make the connection between what they offer and positive outcomes for your business.
  
  “Using a customer relationship management platform can help boost your sales forecast accuracy by about 42%, allowing you to better stay on target.”

Our Services are Designed to Optimize Your ROI

During our time working in Illinois, we’ve noticed that the most effective way to deliver the most value to our clients ultimately comes down to the processes we subscribe to. For instance…

• Our proactive approach enables you to invest in your continuity, saving on downtime costs, repair expenses, and maintaining a better business reputation.
• We keep you up-to-date on the state of your IT through regular reporting, and we’re always ready to discuss strategies with you.
• Rather than implementing the same IT across the board, we take the time to get to know your business and its specific needs, ensuring that your unique challenges are addressed.
• Working with us is a partnership, built on openness and mutual growth.

Reach Out to Us to Get More Out of Your IT Investment!

We’d love the opportunity to sit down and discuss the current state of your business technology, exploring how our IT support and consulting services can help make it work better for you. Reach out to us today at (847) 803-0044 and take the first step toward maximizing your return on your business technology investments.