I’m writing this blog post in Notepad rather than our blog administration interface, because our Internet connection is down. It’s a BT problem affecting just the local exchange, but it’s knocked our operations sideways.
Given that our core services revolve around Web, Email and IT systems, it hits us in a particularly hard way – however, Internet downtime is likely to impact your business no matter what sector you work in.
Despite limited connectivity, our office is still open and we remain productive. So how have we done it, and how can you make sure you can work through Internet downtime?
Telephones
VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol – or phone calls over the Internet) is proving increasingly attractive to businesses looking to reduce telephony costs and increase flexibility in how calls can be handled.
However, Internet problems at your local exchange would render your VOIP system useless.
VOIP should never be used in complete isolation. You should always have a traditional PSTN telephone system as a backup. This isn’t just to avoid the inconvenience of Internet downtime, but also to allow you to make emergency telephone calls during this time.
Modern office telephone exchange systems will allow you to integrate both PSTN and VOIP technology, so you will always be reachable to the outside world.
Backup Internet Connections
It may not be cost effective to permanently maintain 2 Internet connections to your office, especially since a local telephone exchange would knock-out both connections! However, if you do need two connections, consider both an ADSL and a cable connection. If one goes down, you will be able to use the other.
3G dongles, which allow you to use the Internet over a mobile telephone network, could prove to be a valuable back-up for your office. Again, you may not be able to justify maintaining an expensive monthly contract, but data packages are available on a pay-as-you-go basis, which you can use just in an emergency.
The 3 network even provides a dongle with a built-in wireless router, which would allow 2 or 3 users to use the connection for light Email/Internet browsing.
Remember that backup connections are likely to be slower and more costly to run than your regular connection. Make sure that only priority work is carried out over the temporary connection.
Offline Work
Although the Internet is now an essential part of all our working lives, there’s still lots that can be done offline!
- If you have an email to send, you can still draft it (either in your email client if it allows you to save locally, or in a text editor).
- I’m writing this Blog post offline, with a view to posting online later on.
- Customer proposals can be completed.
- Online files can be worked on if you have synchronised offline copies.
- You can make courtesy calls to clients you haven’t heard from in a bit, or chase that late-paying client.
- Boring yet important tasks such as going through that pile of papers on your desk can finally be prioritised.
…and so on.
Of course, this does rely on you having the relevant applications available offline, and serves to act as a reminder of the limitations of online ‘cloud’ services, which typically require an Internet connection.
Our customer database is stored offline, for example, so we can still contact clients – we aren’t reliant on an online CRM.
And finally…
The best time to plan what you’d do in the event of Internet downtime is when you have an Internet connection – don’t wait for your operations to grind to a halt!
Establish a redundancy plan for when the worst happens. Who (or what) should have priority for backup Internet connections? Can work continue without an Internet connection?
Call Fish.Net’s systems and networks team on (01457) 819600 to discuss the best ways that your company can stay connected via phone, email and Web, even if your main connection has dropped.
