VoIP uses your business? Internet connection, rather than telephone lines, to transmit your voice to the recipient, and it has the potential to completely change the way your organization operates. Here are six benefits that your business can gain from VoIP. VoIP Provides a Lower Cost per CallSince VoIP uses your Internet connection–or, rather, your IP address–to send calls, you?ll get more value out of your telephone network in the long run. This is especially true for long-distance calls. As long as your bandwidth can handle the additional strain, you actually save money by implementing VoIP. VoIP Offers MobilityWhen you implemented your office telephone solution, you installed lines that run directly to specific handsets for each of your employees. This makes changing numbers or moving offices a huge pain, as you would typically need to contact the telephone company to get your services transferred elsewhere. VoIP eliminates this issue entirely and provides your business with the freedom to move things around as you see fit. VoIP Has Dynamic FeaturesYou may have all of the traditional telephone services with your landline connection, but more advanced features are likely out of reach for you. VoIP offers plenty of features, such as voicemail transferring, video chat, instant messaging, and much more, so that you can spend your time wisely during a telephone call. VoIP Includes Simple Telephony SolutionsWhile VoIP provides great additional features that you can customize as your needs see fit, you still retain access to all of the basic services that make the telephone such a great solution in the first place. You?ll still retain access to conference calling and call forwarding the same as usual, so there?s plenty of room to grow and add services as your business needs change. VoIP Offers Great Client InteractionHave you ever had the phone ring in your office, but you?re simply too busy to answer the call? Well, with VoIP, there?s no excuses. You can have the call transferred to specific phones or devices if it?s not answered within a certain number of rings. This improves your business? reputation with clients. VoIP is Reliable When You Need it MostMore than anything, VoIP can be used on multiple devices. It can be accessed through mobile devices, or on a desktop or laptop. You can even use traditional handsets if you so desire. It?s a highly customizable solution that your business can leverage to its advantage. White Mountain IT Services can equip your business with a powerful, enterprise-grade VoIP solution designed to work for your business. To learn more, reach out to us at (603) 889-0800.

To help you and your business look toward the future of SMB IT, we?ve compiled a few trends and predictions for 2018 gathered from IT professionals in the US. Importance of Emerging Technology. Of those surveyed, security (81%), mobile device management (51%) and big data (49%) are going to play a big role in business echnology in the future.  What does that mean for the SMB? Considering the constant threat of hacking or data loss, it’s important to take security seriously. A proactive approach should be taken to keep your network as safe as possible. Since there has been a spike in the demand for mobile systems, part of your security should include mobile device management. Security. Security. Security. 70% say protecting and securing network data will be their top priority. What does that mean for the SMB? At its core, this statistic is basically an indication of how important network security is – and continues to be – for a business. Cybercrime is not going anywhere and nearly ? of your peers agree that it is a topic that can?t ignored. Balance Between In-house and Outsource Solutions. 54% of responders say that IT will be a mix between internal admin/support and external admin/support. What does that mean for the SMB? With the relatively small number of security experts compared to the extremely high demand, it?s going to be difficult for an SMB to recruit and employ a security expert. There are larger businesses with better benefits that will try to poach experienced security technicians. Not to mention, it’s unlikely SMBs would need a full-time security tech. For this task, businesses are looking for external support from a local business that can act as their Chief Information Security Officer and cyber security department. When it comes to managed IT services, outsourcing security means you have access to a team of trained, experienced professionals who you?re able to meet and confer with regularly without having to blow your budget on recruiting and training your own security technicians. Virtual Environment. It?s predicted there will be a 69% decline in installed applications on local machines, in favor of virtualization and the cloud. What does that mean for the SMB? Today?s digital climate doesn?t have room for complicated infrastructures, let alone the inability to scale alongside change in your workforce or business needs. Your infrastructure needs to be volatile enough to adapt to change–something that only a virtual environment can provide. By storing your data in a secure online location, you can easily add user access permissions, create new accounts, or scale services according to your business? specific needs. Software as a Service. 61% predict client applications will become largely browser based and the OS will become irrelevant. What does that mean for the SMB? Rather than installing, monitoring, and maintaining software programs and applications manually, software and applications can be accessed using a secure internet connection to access an application or program via their web browser. SMBs simply need to login and then use their software with all of the capabilities they?re used to. Once they?ve completed using the software, the user just logs out. These virtual environments are updated and maintained by the hosting company. Patches and updates are automatically applied as well. How does your business intend to take advantage of […]

Your technology is a gateway to productivity, and Microsoft has managed to put together a great way to use it with their latest operating system. In Windows 10, you can use Windows Ink to doodle or take notes on your screen while using a Microsoft application like Word, PowerPoint, or OneNote. You?ve probably seen the tablets that many artists use to create their thoughts and transfer them to their device. This is where Windows Ink gets its major idea from. However, the key difference between these art tablets and Windows Ink is that you don?t need a piece of external hardware or a USB connection. In fact, Windows Ink lets you use the touch screen on your device, along with specialized writing utensils, making it much less of a hassle to use. Since Windows Ink is a Microsoft product, it?s natural that it will work best when used alongside other Microsoft products. Some of its best features only truly shine when used in a Microsoft Office product, like Word or OneNote. Here are some of the best ways you can use Windows Ink to be more productive with Microsoft Office. Microsoft WordYou can use Windows Ink to mark up any documents that you?ve opened in Microsoft Word. You?ll be able to turn your stylus into a highlighter, delete unwanted words, or create sections of strikethrough. It?s just one way that your organization can use the latest technology to get even more out of Microsoft Word. Microsoft OneNoteOneNote can become a freehand calculator by using Windows Ink. All you have to do is write the equation in the space where you are working. The answer will instantly propagate. If you would rather turn off this feature and focus on keeping your math skills sharp, OneNote can take you through it step by step. Microsoft PowerPointWindows Ink comes with a built-in ruler that you can use to get more dynamic functions out of PowerPoint. A built-in Windows Ink feature allows you to be even more precise in your slideshows. Windows Ink can even replay the notes that others have made in its own PowerPoint file. Windows Ink can do a lot more, such as allowing you to write down a quick address on a sticky note or generate a map based on a destination’s? address. You can also use it to take screenshots on your device?s screen and take notes on them. Ultimately, Windows Ink is a really interesting option for any productivity-minded organization. You can use it to edit documents, simplify emails, and even provide an outlet for multiple employees to collaborate on a single document. You can think of it like an interactive notebook. How would your business use Windows Ink? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe for more great technology tips.

Accessible storage is a big deal. Often times, the success of a business can be tied to their ability to complete work efficiently; and, cloud computing has begun to give them options to not only perform tasks remotely, but also to give organizations answers to the data delivery and protection problems they?ve had in the past. A cloud file sharing platform provides the following four benefits for any organization that depends on access to data. AccessibilitySince the cloud is computing resources delivered over the Internet, the opportunity for an organization to gain the kind of accessible file sharing the cloud provides, at a price point that is extraordinarily friendly to the budgetary constraints that many businesses have, is a revelation. Essentially, the cloud has now provided remote accessibility to company files, on any device compatible with the file sharing platform that is deployed. This not only allows for access to information anywhere, it also provides an extra layer of value through collaboration. Workers can now work together on projects, from multiple locations, on multiple different devices. That kind of file and application access allows businesses to be more operationally agile, and can substantially build revenue streams where before, there was only cost. Maintenance and ProtectionAnother major benefit a hosted file sharing platform brings is redundancy. Since your file sharing system comes as a service, the provider will handle all the major management and maintenance the computing platforms used to store data need. This not only significantly reduces costs, it provides a reliable, secure, and continuously backed-up file sharing and storage platform that your organization can trust. Builds Efficiency and Saves TimeYou know the saying, ?time is money?? It?s true. For every hour your business is at work, your costs go up. By being able to access files easily via the cloud, a hosted file sharing system provides a construct to be used for operational efficiency, while still maintaining the security that every business needs from its data storage situation. The ability to access information and save it to an always-accessible storage facility speeds up tasks and promotes collaboration. Cost ReductionAs mentioned above, the public cloud is all about providing reliable and useful applications and storage. One of the biggest benefits of file sharing in the cloud is the major cost reduction that an organization can see. Traditionally, a company would have to outlay a significant amount of capital to build a file sharing platform, but with cloud computing the file sharing and storage solutions can be obtained for a scalable monthly cost. File sharing in the cloud is a great way to build a collaborative, productive workforce whether they work in your office or across the country. For more information about cloud computing and how it can work for your business, call the IT professionals at White Mountain IT Services today.

You can think of Software as a Service like renting a house. Sure, you could go all-in and buy it in one go, but it would be an immensely expensive up-front cost. In order to make it more affordable, those purchasing a home acquire a mortgage, or simply rent the home rather than attempting to purchase it outright. These smaller, more affordable payments provide shelter in a similar manner while making it more accessible for those on a limited budget. Here are four ways your business can take advantage of Software as a Service: CommunicationsCloud-hosted software solutions can be used to keep your organization connected via video or voice chat. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a perfect example. You can add new users and make changes to your service plan as your business grows, and you can access your telephone solution on any connected device with the application installed on it. Cloud-based messaging apps can also be used to similar effect. Cloud-Based EmailYour business can use software as a service for your email solution, as well. Using a cloud-based email provider like Gmail or Microsoft Outlook allows you to add or remove users to your email server quickly and efficiently. Furthermore, you can expand the service at any time to accommodate growth. Productivity SuitesThe most notable use of software as a service comes from productivity suites. You might notice how services like Microsoft Office 365 and Google?s G-Suite are designed specifically ?as a service.? In Microsoft?s case, you can purchase the entire Office suite at once, or you can purchase its individual parts. Better yet, you can pay for access to a cloud-based version of productivity software like Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, that is always up-to-date. This saves you plenty of money in the long run by providing continuous access to software solutions, without needing to update your license or take on additional capital expenses. VirtualizationBasically, software as a service is a great way to virtualize and turn just about any software solution into a more efficient, scalable, consumable, and affordable form. The sky’s the limit. How can your business benefit from Software as a Service offerings? To find out, reach out to White Mountain IT Services at (603) 889-0800.