Every day, businesses increase their utilization of the internet for a myriad of activities. With this increase in the number of tasks being performed (including emailing, video conferencing, customer service management, research functions, e-commerce solutions, and communication with customers and internal teams), it’s vital that the ISP (internet service provider) you select can keep up.
The need for speed, performance, and reliability are directly related to the management of the network to ensure you’re taking advantage of its maximum capability. The consequences of not overseeing your network’s performance in a constant, proactive fashion will undoubtedly create downtime which in turn can lead to loss of revenue. Your IT team member(s) who are directly responsible for your “at work network”, focus on ensuring all the devices utilizing your network have the fastest, most secure, and most reliable connection possible. Further, they must monitor new needs resulting from business growth which can expand the type of functions necessary and increase the number of devices and software applications being used. This overall monitoring, enhancing, and optimizing is collectively known as Network Optimization.
By proactively improving the performance of your network before problems arise, money and time spent fixing issues can be dramatically decreased yielding higher productivity and thereby, increased revenue. Not only will your staff members benefit from network optimization, but customers will also have improved online experiences that are smoother, faster, and easier.
So how can your IT team ensure they are getting the highest network optimization possible? Here are a few tips to help increase and optimize your internet in your office:
- Reboot your modem and router. Sometimes something as simple as unplugging the main router and modem, waiting a couple of minutes, plugging it back in and waiting for everything to reboot can improve the speed of your internet. Try doing this every few months.
- Run regular virus and malware scans. Malicious software and viruses can cripple your business. Make sure to install a malware monitoring software program and train your teams to run these programs at least once a week. Since many of these scans can be scheduled in advance, they can be programmed to run during slower work periods.
- Perform an internet speed test. Use Fision Work’s free online internet speed test to assess the actual speeds you are getting. Remember speeds can vary with the time of day and the amount of traffic on the network. Therefore, it is important to run speed tests at different times of day to get the full picture. If these tests reveal lower speeds than what you’re paying for, call us right away for troubleshooting.
- Check devices on your network. Sometimes, unauthorized devices are accessing your network and utilizing the bandwidth you are paying for. If you find out that is the case, delete these unauthorized devices for an instant boost to your service.
- Purchase new computers, a new modem, and/or a new router. Processors and smaller memory can affect computer performance. Older hardware won’t be able to process faster internet speeds or perform as well as newer models can. If your plan includes rental of the equipment, you may be able to replace it for a nominal fee, or possibly for free.
- When possible, wired connections work best. Very simply, everything will work better when they’re hard wired to the internet. Use hard wired connections when available and you should see an immediate difference in speed and connectivity.
- Clear your cookies and browser cache. Because your browser cache stores files that help to quickly load web pages you visit often much faster than opening them each time, these pages running in the background can overload your system decreasing its effectiveness. It’s a good practice to clear the cache and cookies on a regular basis.
- Upgrade your Hotwire Communications Service. A brand-new Internet plan may be just what you need. Our state-of-the-art technology solutions are custom tailored to suit your needs, with a full suite of telecommunications services packages all on a scalable network with no data caps. From design to installation and 24/7 support and maintenance, we remove the need for on-site IT management. To hear about the plan that is right for you and your business, contact us today!