In today’s economy, businesses don’t have the money, resources or time to rely on OEMs for low-cost and quick support on their IT solutions. Software and hardware constantly need upgrades and bills continue to flow in, but there’s nothing you can do because it’s your only option to support your IT equipment, right?
Wrong. With third-party IT maintenance, organizations can actually limit their service expenditures without compromising uptime or performance. A recent XS International blog post explores some of the most common myths about choosing IT support from third-party vendors and whether or not they are the best choice for your business needs.
Low cost does not mean low quality. Third-party IT maintenance providers tend to be a lot cheaper than OEMs because they do not have to allot for research and development costs or encourage new sales for new equipment. Alternative IT maintenance providers like XS International can offer up to 20 to 40 percent cost savings.
Another major myth in need of debunking is that companies won’t have access to software support. Third-party IT maintenance provides technical help desk support for most major operating systems if the firmware, patches and upgrades are publicly available. If not, they will help you procure and install them. Technical support is often subdivided into tiers, or levels, in order to better serve a business or customer base. The number of levels a business uses to organize their technical support group is dependent on a business’ need, want, or desire as it revolves around their ability to sufficiently serve their customers or users. The reason for providing a multi-tiered support system instead of one general support group is to provide the best possible service in the most efficient possible manner. XS International provides support for U.S.-based Tier 1 to Tier 3 Technical Assistance Center, as well as Tier 4 escalation to the OEM if necessary.
Image via XS International
An added bonus about support services from third-party providers is support past OEM-declared End-of-Life (EOL) or End-of-Service (EOS). There are many reasons why OEMs such as Cisco, IBM (News - Alert) and HP declare products EOL or EOS. Once a product is declared EOL, the manufacturer will only provide software support for another one to five years, but hardware support will not be covered. Not only can businesses continue using end-of-life equipment, they may even find it is much less expensive in the long run than purchasing replacement equipment. A few options for IT pros looking for ways to support their EOL switches and routers include using alternative maintenance and replacement services, getting low-cost spares and utilizing both maintenance and spares.
A third myth is that opting for a small alternative maintenance provider will not offer the same response times and support as OEMs. Third-party IT maintenance providers can offer worldwide support and often times have better response times on 24/7 and 8x5xnbd support. Not only can they maintain your equipment, but they can put all our your networking maintenance under one contract for multi-OEMs, multiple SLAs, new & EOL/EOS, hardware, software support and depot repair.
Edited by Jamie Epstein