The Hidden Cost of IT Downtime for Small Businesses
Experiencing a company’s downtime is frustrating and time-consuming, but we don't often stop to consider the damage it could cause. Unfortunately, IT downtime costs are substantial and can negatively impact small businesses for years to come.
Understanding The Severity of IT Downtimes
IT downtimes can bring all business operations to a full stop, and even temporarily (or permanently) reduce your business’s clientele! It's critical to understand the long-term impact to fully comprehend how to survive and overcome it.
What Causes Downtimes?
Many unfortunate events can cause these downtimes, leading to a lack of access to your business’s critical systems. Some prominent causes include software glitches, bugs, networking equipment malfunctioning or failing, or human error, from developers or administrators.
The Current Monetary IT Downtime Cost
Your small business can suffer an immediate financial loss during an IT downtime, especially if your company relies heavily on online orders/services. The average IT downtime cost has recently reached between $5,000 and $9,000 per minute for larger organisations - but even as a small business, you could be losing thousands in revenue.
Other ‘Costs’ of Downtimes
While the financial hit is substantial, your company might endure additional ‘costs’ during these times.
Wasted Employee Time
During downtime, when your systems are down, employees are unable to complete tasks, leading to wasted work hours. Productivity drops, and those wasted hours do add up; your company still accrues payroll expenses without the work output to match.
Loss in Customer Trust and Satisfaction
One of the most substantial IT downtime costs for small businesses in particular is loss of customer trust and satisfaction. Even an isolated incident can cause your clients to doubt your reliability and turn them towards local competitors.
Legal Implications
Most companies, big and small, must adhere to legal regulations, and if downtime causes a data breach, it can lead to hefty fines and/or legal action. While laws may vary per state, there are typically legal uptime requirements that result in financial penalties if you fail to meet them.
Your Small Business IT Support, Roanoke
It is possible to get an educated estimate of the total IT downtime cost for your small business, but you will not see the full impact until after the event happens. The best way to quickly calculate the cost is to add up compliance penalties, recovery costs, and lost revenue and productivity, both multiplied by the downtime duration.
It's quite a scary situation for your small business, but it’s possible to overcome with the right people to guide you through it. You need someone in your corner who is well-versed in small business IT support in the Roanoke area; if you are unsure how to properly handle IT downtime or have just recently experienced one, give AesirTech a call for more information on how to move forward.