Business continuity is something that we do not think about until a disaster strikes. It’s usually only when something goes badly wrong and you see that your company did not have the right infrastructure to react appropriately, that you start thinking about continuity.
When it comes to computer data and virtual systems, it is even more important to have a continuity strategy because there are so many issues that can arise. From viruses to system failures, so much can go wrong. Here are six reasons why data backup solutions will help improve your company’s continuity strategy.
- Loss of Data – What is the Impact?
We think of data that is lost as being nothing more than files and documents that are recoverable. But the reality for most businesses is that nothing is recoverable unless a proper backup strategy is in place. Whether it is a hard drive or server crashing, or something happening with your VPS solution, we can never plan for failure. Even with the best cheap windows VPS hosting plan, you are liable to lose data if you are not coordinating a backup strategy with your VPS host. Loss of data can lead to being without a working website, company files, customer data and other vital information.
- Data Loss Means Time Loss Too
Ask any business owner and they will tell you the saying “time is money” is so important. No business will remain profitable if things are moving in an inefficient way. Businesses rely on doing things quickly and efficiently, which allows them to make profit on their activities. But if your company has to spend ages recovering from data losses, such efficiency will cease to exist. Even one or two data loss events a year can cripple your company, unless you have a continuity plan.
- Find a Full Data Backup Solution
As a business owner, you have to think beyond the basics of how to backup data. You have to think about the entire backup structure. If your system fails, how can you get your site up and running within minutes? If the place where you store vital customer data is compromised, do you have a backup? Do you have a second backup, in case there is a problem with the first one? How quickly can you access your backups? The answers to these questions will determine if your business is ready to handle data loss events.
- Seamless Operations Inspire Confidence
A company’s reputation is all that it has. And reputations can be made or broken in single moments. If you have a relatively new online business, and you find that your website is down for an entire day, is that going to inspire confidence? It is not. Potential customers will try to visit your site, but get an error. In most cases, they will forget about you and complete their business elsewhere. You cannot afford to have such things occur. That is why you need a complete backup solution that ensures you can keep running operations smoothly, even if your infrastructure or cloud setup takes a hit.
- Recovery from Natural Disasters
Not every company has a cloud setup, with many businesses sticking with the old fashioned option of using hard drives and servers to store data and run operations. If you look at FEMA statistics, you would see that around 40 percent of businesses do not open after a natural disaster, with 25 percent failing within the year. With a proper data backup solution, it is one less headache for your company. You may have to relocate, but at least you are not starting from scratch. Your data is ready to access, and you could be up and running within days instead of months.
- Avoid Financial Losses on Big Days
Running a business often means going through peaks and troughs. It is especially true if you have an online business. Say you are selling products from an online site. There will be weeks where you get a lot more traffic than others. It is those high traffic weeks where a data loss event can happen, whether it is through a system failure, or because of a hack or DDoS attack. If you do not have a seamless backup solution, you will be shut down for hours, which can cost you enormous amounts of money.