If you’re looking for a cost-effective way to keep your technology up-to-date, knowing the different pricing models managed IT services offer can help. Using managed IT services helps you streamline your business’s technology so you can have more time to run your business.
It can also protect your company from cybersecurity threats, which have jumped 400% with the increase in remote work and higher reliance on technology.
However, with so many different managed IT services packages out there, it can be hard for business owners to choose the right one for their company.
This detailed pricing guide will walk you through how to price IT managed services as well as give you access to an ROI calculator that will help you decide whether or not the service is worth the cost.
Managed IT Pricing
There are many factors to consider when it comes to calculating your overall expense—from initial setup costs to ongoing maintenance costs. In general, small businesses choose managed IT services when they want more control over their infrastructure or don’t have internal resources available.
Prices vary widely depending on these factors and others, but there are some guidelines you can follow as you shop around. As with most contracts, service providers will typically negotiate fees based on three key criteria: length of the contract, size of the network, and level of site support/administration required by the customer.
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Understanding Service Level Agreements
Service Level Agreements (SLAs) determine what levels of performance should be met. This could be in regards to availability, or response time.
If your managed service provider is going to guarantee you 99% uptime, they need a contract in place detailing exactly how they’ll deliver on their promise, and when penalties will take effect if they don’t meet your required level of performance.
When deciding which managed services providers to do business with, make sure you understand not only their pricing models but also what penalties there are for failure to live up to expectations. You can always ask about SLAs during a sales call as well as read through any documentation provided by your MSP before signing on the dotted line.
What Do Managed IT Services Cost?
Managed IT services rates can be based on a variety of pricing models. Each has pros and cons, but before you can choose, you have to figure out which is best for your company. Before you do that, here are some things to consider. First off, no pricing model is best in all situations. Secondly, your pricing model may be unique to your business.
Finally—and most importantly—you need to know what works for your employees and customer base and stick with it. Here’s a breakdown of common managed IT services pricing models.
- Monitoring services only: provides monitoring on things like anti-virus systems, data backups, and cybersecurity for a flat fee. The beauty of paying for monitoring as a separate service is that it allows companies to spend as much or as little as they need without having to buy access to additional services
- Per-device: a fee based on the number of devices in use
- Per-user: based on the number of users, no matter how many devices you have in use.
- Tiered pricing model: This type of managed hosting is particularly useful for companies that need to scale up over time. With tiered managed services plans, clients choose specific levels or types of service, then upgrade if and when they feel comfortable doing so. These will typically offer an unlimited amount of support in select areas for a fixed monthly fee.
- A la carte: pay according to the number of times you request support.
- Block pricing: pay for a block of time or block for IT managed services at an hourly rate.
- Fixed-fee optimum models – fixes the budget of your service for a predictable IT budget each month.
Managed IT Services Pricing Calculator
You’ll need to gather multiple quotes and compare your managed IT services price list to find the best value for your business. However, you’ll need to know your needs before you compare providers and find out how much each managed IT services cost.
However, with managed IT services cost, comparing different services has to account for everything you are paying for. If you find a bargain but don’t have access to on-site visitor remote support for break/fix when you need it, it will be harder to make a return on your investment.
If your company relies on stored data to continue operations, you will need to find services including routine backup and a disaster recovery plan to ensure continuity.
Once you’ve gathered your quotes, you can determine how much each will cost your company per month. For most pricing models, you need to know either how many devices you have or how many users there are each month unless you choose an hourly rate model.
Managed IT Services ROI Calculator
Companies pay for managed services so they can focus on their core competencies, not technology. That means you and your team can improve your business without having to worry about managing the day-to-day hassle of your IT infrastructure.
Outsourcing your IT can pay for itself through the cost savings offered by managed IT services. Once you have identified your expected budget with a managed IT services calculator you can use an ROI calculator to find the true value of your investment.
Now that you know how much managed IT services cost, how can they save you money?
- Salary: Using an MSP means you don’t have to hire employees. IT experts with credentials in cybersecurity can easily cost six figures per year, and the work to hire and keep one on your team costs even more. With an MSP, you have a whole team of experts at your service.
- Flexibility: If you choose to handle your own infrastructure, you’ll need to make capital investments in hardware and other infrastructure. With an MSP, you can transition to an operational expense and pay for only what you need. They can cut hardware costs with cloud migration and virtual machines. They can also help you optimize your IT spend on the items you do need by ensuring you don’t overpay for something you don’t need.
- Efficiency: An MSP can improve load times, reduce wait for technical support, and help your company operate with higher productivity using proven software solutions for your industry.
- Security: Your MSP can monitor the threat landscape and prevent breaches before they happen. More importantly, they can help you implement a recovery plan so you can keep your business running in the worst-case scenarios. These can save you thousands of dollars, if not millions, in the long run.
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While it can be hard to put a dollar value on some things, like preventing data breaches, you can use a basic Cash-to-Cash ROI formula to evaluate an MSP’s value in dollars and cents. You simply compare the annual cost of your MSP with your projected annual savings.
Once your annual savings exceed your investment, you’re seeing a return that translates into more spending power for your company.
Partner With Accudata Systems, A Converge Company
At Accudata Systems, A Converge Company, we offer nearly 40 years of experience helping businesses keep their IT running at peak efficiency. We have a proven process in all areas of IT and the ability to tackle any IT challenge, large or small – with a capacity to service enterprise-level clients with more than 10,000 seats.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your business stay agile with our IT solutions.