Analytical software is an indispensable tool for any businesses; it helps you understand how well your website is performing and how do you stack up against your competition. Many companies turn to Google Analytics as a means of tracking and monitoring their site’s statistics. But when you’re faced with analyzing so many complicated statistics and reports filled up with numbers, taking it all in can be quite overwhelming. Not to worry, though. We’ll make things easier by giving you an overview of Google Analytics and the key metrics you need to pay attention to.

What exactly is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is a free website analytic product offered by Google. It is an application that collates visitor data from your website and provides basic statistics and analytical tools for search engine optimization (SEO). The data is used to generate reports that give you insights as to how your visitors are engaging with your website.

With Google Analytics, you can analyze your traffic to discover whether your target market is finding your website, how they’re finding it, and if they’re taking the actions you expect them to take while on your site. By tracking and analyzing your traffic you can increase the engagement and enhance your marketing strategies.

Google Analytics’ Key Metrics

Navigating Google Analytics can be mind-numbing, since you are likely to get lost in its many features, variables, and settings. Check out these basic key metrics that will help you analyze your website traffic.

Unique Visitors
Most people tend to confuse this metric with “Visits”. The Unique Visitors metric can give you an accurate number as to how much real traffic you receive on a daily basis because, unlike the Visits metric, it doesn’t solely rely on cookies to count. This means any of your visitors would be counted once, even if they cleared their computer of cookies.

Pageviews
The Pageviews metric should increase in direct proportion to the numbers shown in Unique Visitors. This metric represents how deep your unique visitors go into your website pages. If the percentage is low, your content may not be engaging enough to encourage visitors to explore the your website further than the home or landing page.

Bounce Rate
The Bounce Rate metric will tell you the percentage of visitors who left your website after viewing only one page. High bounce rates can mean that your website is not appealing to visitors in certain aspects such as the design, content, navigation, and so on. Tracking your website’s bounce rate will quickly help you identify things that are not working well on your website, so you can fix the problem accordingly and ensure you grab visitors’ attention from the first click.

Traffic Sources
This metric shows which sources drive the most and least traffic to your website. Generally there are four types of metrics: Referral, Direct, Organic Search, and Social.

• Referral traffic – These visitors found your site via your off-page marketing efforts, such as backlinks and blog articles on other websites.
• Direct traffic – These visitors are highly targeted, since they type your URL directly into their web browser.
• Organic search – These visitors discover your site after searching a keyword in a search engine, usually from Google.
• Social traffic – These visitors came from social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

These are the metrics that matter to tracking your website’s visitors. They consist of basic numbers that are easy to understand and interpret. Once you get a handle of these metrics, you can make your way to more advanced metrics that provider deeper level and more accurate insight.

For more tips on how to utilize your business data with Google Analytics, contact our specialists today.

In today’s competitive business world, it’s imperative that you have a thorough understanding of who your visitors are and what are their expectations. If you’re looking for a powerful analytical tool for your company’s website, Google Analytics one of the best options in the market. Yet trying to understand Google Analytics and its strategic use can make your head spin. If you’re just starting out, here’s an overview of Google Analytics and its key metrics that are noteworthy.

What exactly is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is a free website analytic product offered by Google. It is an application that collates visitor data from your website and provides basic statistics and analytical tools for search engine optimization (SEO). The data is used to generate reports that give you insights as to how your visitors are engaging with your website.

With Google Analytics, you can analyze your traffic to discover whether your target market is finding your website, how they’re finding it, and if they’re taking the actions you expect them to take while on your site. By tracking and analyzing your traffic you can increase the engagement and enhance your marketing strategies.

Google Analytics’ Key Metrics

Navigating Google Analytics can be mind-numbing, since you are likely to get lost in its many features, variables, and settings. Check out these basic key metrics that will help you analyze your website traffic.

Unique Visitors
Most people tend to confuse this metric with “Visits”. The Unique Visitors metric can give you an accurate number as to how much real traffic you receive on a daily basis because, unlike the Visits metric, it doesn’t solely rely on cookies to count. This means any of your visitors would be counted once, even if they cleared their computer of cookies.

Pageviews
The Pageviews metric should increase in direct proportion to the numbers shown in Unique Visitors. This metric represents how deep your unique visitors go into your website pages. If the percentage is low, your content may not be engaging enough to encourage visitors to explore the your website further than the home or landing page.

Bounce Rate
The Bounce Rate metric will tell you the percentage of visitors who left your website after viewing only one page. High bounce rates can mean that your website is not appealing to visitors in certain aspects such as the design, content, navigation, and so on. Tracking your website’s bounce rate will quickly help you identify things that are not working well on your website, so you can fix the problem accordingly and ensure you grab visitors’ attention from the first click.

Traffic Sources
This metric shows which sources drive the most and least traffic to your website. Generally there are four types of metrics: Referral, Direct, Organic Search, and Social.

• Referral traffic – These visitors found your site via your off-page marketing efforts, such as backlinks and blog articles on other websites.
• Direct traffic – These visitors are highly targeted, since they type your URL directly into their web browser.
• Organic search – These visitors discover your site after searching a keyword in a search engine, usually from Google.
• Social traffic – These visitors came from social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

These are the metrics that matter to tracking your website’s visitors. They consist of basic numbers that are easy to understand and interpret. Once you get a handle of these metrics, you can make your way to more advanced metrics that provider deeper level and more accurate insight.

For more tips on how to utilize your business data with Google Analytics, contact our specialists today.

Understanding how your visitors are using your website is one of the most important things you can do to optimize your online presence and generate more leads and revenue. Google Analytics remains the top analytic tool, allowing you to keep track. Yet many companies tend to focus on the overall performance without taking the time to understand other key metrics that contribute to the end result. Here, we’ve compiled a list of Google Analytics’ metrics that are worth knowing about.

What exactly is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is a free website analytic product offered by Google. It is an application that collates visitor data from your website and provides basic statistics and analytical tools for search engine optimization (SEO). The data is used to generate reports that give you insights as to how your visitors are engaging with your website.

With Google Analytics, you can analyze your traffic to discover whether your target market is finding your website, how they’re finding it, and if they’re taking the actions you expect them to take while on your site. By tracking and analyzing your traffic you can increase the engagement and enhance your marketing strategies.

Google Analytics’ Key Metrics

Navigating Google Analytics can be mind-numbing, since you are likely to get lost in its many features, variables, and settings. Check out these basic key metrics that will help you analyze your website traffic.

Unique Visitors
Most people tend to confuse this metric with “Visits”. The Unique Visitors metric can give you an accurate number as to how much real traffic you receive on a daily basis because, unlike the Visits metric, it doesn’t solely rely on cookies to count. This means any of your visitors would be counted once, even if they cleared their computer of cookies.

Pageviews
The Pageviews metric should increase in direct proportion to the numbers shown in Unique Visitors. This metric represents how deep your unique visitors go into your website pages. If the percentage is low, your content may not be engaging enough to encourage visitors to explore the your website further than the home or landing page.

Bounce Rate
The Bounce Rate metric will tell you the percentage of visitors who left your website after viewing only one page. High bounce rates can mean that your website is not appealing to visitors in certain aspects such as the design, content, navigation, and so on. Tracking your website’s bounce rate will quickly help you identify things that are not working well on your website, so you can fix the problem accordingly and ensure you grab visitors’ attention from the first click.

Traffic Sources
This metric shows which sources drive the most and least traffic to your website. Generally there are four types of metrics: Referral, Direct, Organic Search, and Social.

• Referral traffic – These visitors found your site via your off-page marketing efforts, such as backlinks and blog articles on other websites.
• Direct traffic – These visitors are highly targeted, since they type your URL directly into their web browser.
• Organic search – These visitors discover your site after searching a keyword in a search engine, usually from Google.
• Social traffic – These visitors came from social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

These are the metrics that matter to tracking your website’s visitors. They consist of basic numbers that are easy to understand and interpret. Once you get a handle of these metrics, you can make your way to more advanced metrics that provider deeper level and more accurate insight.

For more tips on how to utilize your business data with Google Analytics, contact our specialists today.

You might have a website but nowadays that is no longer enough. It is vital you have a website that looks good and has features that reflect well upon your business. A cheap looking, unappealing website is just about the fastest way to scare off new clients and make current customer reconsider their decision to do business with you. We have compiled a few things you can do to make your website really stand out.

Your website is most likely to be your first, and in most cases only, chance to make an impression on people. It used to be that a customer would come visit you in person or call you but that isn’t the case anymore. Today they will search for your business on Google and head directly to your website. If they don’t like what they see, they leave without a trace.

That’s why it is imperative that your website is not only visually appealing but has content to engage visitors and help drive them to your business. While there are loads of features that can help you accomplish these, we’ve picked three of our favorites that we think can really help your website standout.

Contact Forms

You could have the most convincing sales pitch on your website that makes every person who visits want to buy what you’re selling immediately, but if you don’t have a contact form for them to fill out, most will never actually follow up with you. Even if you have your phone number and email prominently displayed throughout your website, most won’t put in the effort to get in touch.

That’s why a simple contact form can be a great way to help convert leads into sales. This is also a way to get people to signup for other services you offer such as email newsletters or free promotional material. Just make sure you don’t over do it on the contact forms. Having too many on a given page can confuse readers and make it seems as if you’re desperate to get their information.

In-house videos

While you may not believe it, people who visit your website want to see and hear from you. Having videos from other sources is a good start, but at the end of the day, it’s your business and you should be representing it. Thanks to innovative technology and the rise of smartphones, it is now easier than ever to shoot and edit videos.

Don’t worry about the need to produce slick, five-minute promotional videos with graphics and Hollywood-caliber lighting. Most people won’t ever watch it in its entirety anyway. Instead, come up with a 30-second introduction video welcoming visitors and giving them more background information on what you do. It may seem simple but it can really connect with visitors who stop by your website.

Get customers involved

One of the best ways to improve your website is by incorporating user-generated content into it. There are quite a few ways to do this and most of them don’t require that much work on your end. The easiest method to get customers involved is to feature testimonials on your website. Words from clients can resonate more with visitors than claims you make about yourself as readers are more likely to identify with these testimonials.

If you’re feeling a bit brave, or don’t mind visitors seeing honest and possible negative feedback, several review websites like TripAdvisor and Foursquare offer plug-ins that allow you to feature the reviews they have collected about your business on your website. There are, of course, pros and cons to doing this and if you have a lot of negative reviews, sticking with the testimonials is probably a safer choice.

Want more pointers on how to create a dynamic website? Need to learn how to better market your business online? Get in touch and we can show you how it’s done.

Having a website is no longer enough to be successful. You must have a website that not only presents your company in a positive light but also offers a good experience for users. While this may seem like a time consuming and maybe even expensive process, it’s actually simpler than you may realize. Here are three things you can incorporate into your website to help leave visitors impressed.

Your website is most likely to be your first, and in most cases only, chance to make an impression on people. It used to be that a customer would come visit you in person or call you but that isn’t the case anymore. Today they will search for your business on Google and head directly to your website. If they don’t like what they see, they leave without a trace.

That’s why it is imperative that your website is not only visually appealing but has content to engage visitors and help drive them to your business. While there are loads of features that can help you accomplish these, we’ve picked three of our favorites that we think can really help your website standout.

Contact Forms

You could have the most convincing sales pitch on your website that makes every person who visits want to buy what you’re selling immediately, but if you don’t have a contact form for them to fill out, most will never actually follow up with you. Even if you have your phone number and email prominently displayed throughout your website, most won’t put in the effort to get in touch.

That’s why a simple contact form can be a great way to help convert leads into sales. This is also a way to get people to signup for other services you offer such as email newsletters or free promotional material. Just make sure you don’t over do it on the contact forms. Having too many on a given page can confuse readers and make it seems as if you’re desperate to get their information.

In-house videos

While you may not believe it, people who visit your website want to see and hear from you. Having videos from other sources is a good start, but at the end of the day, it’s your business and you should be representing it. Thanks to innovative technology and the rise of smartphones, it is now easier than ever to shoot and edit videos.

Don’t worry about the need to produce slick, five-minute promotional videos with graphics and Hollywood-caliber lighting. Most people won’t ever watch it in its entirety anyway. Instead, come up with a 30-second introduction video welcoming visitors and giving them more background information on what you do. It may seem simple but it can really connect with visitors who stop by your website.

Get customers involved

One of the best ways to improve your website is by incorporating user-generated content into it. There are quite a few ways to do this and most of them don’t require that much work on your end. The easiest method to get customers involved is to feature testimonials on your website. Words from clients can resonate more with visitors than claims you make about yourself as readers are more likely to identify with these testimonials.

If you’re feeling a bit brave, or don’t mind visitors seeing honest and possible negative feedback, several review websites like TripAdvisor and Foursquare offer plug-ins that allow you to feature the reviews they have collected about your business on your website. There are, of course, pros and cons to doing this and if you have a lot of negative reviews, sticking with the testimonials is probably a safer choice.

Want more pointers on how to create a dynamic website? Need to learn how to better market your business online? Get in touch and we can show you how it’s done.

How’s your website doing? For a lot of business owners, the answer is simply up and running. While having a website is a good start, it must also be appealing to visitors. A poorly designed website can drive away both potential and current customers who don’t want to be associated with a brand that doesn’t present itself well online. Don’t fret if your website isn’t perfect. Here are a few tips to improve it.

Your website is most likely to be your first, and in most cases only, chance to make an impression on people. It used to be that a customer would come visit you in person or call you but that isn’t the case anymore. Today they will search for your business on Google and head directly to your website. If they don’t like what they see, they leave without a trace.

That’s why it is imperative that your website is not only visually appealing but has content to engage visitors and help drive them to your business. While there are loads of features that can help you accomplish these, we’ve picked three of our favorites that we think can really help your website standout.

Contact Forms

You could have the most convincing sales pitch on your website that makes every person who visits want to buy what you’re selling immediately, but if you don’t have a contact form for them to fill out, most will never actually follow up with you. Even if you have your phone number and email prominently displayed throughout your website, most won’t put in the effort to get in touch.

That’s why a simple contact form can be a great way to help convert leads into sales. This is also a way to get people to signup for other services you offer such as email newsletters or free promotional material. Just make sure you don’t over do it on the contact forms. Having too many on a given page can confuse readers and make it seems as if you’re desperate to get their information.

In-house videos

While you may not believe it, people who visit your website want to see and hear from you. Having videos from other sources is a good start, but at the end of the day, it’s your business and you should be representing it. Thanks to innovative technology and the rise of smartphones, it is now easier than ever to shoot and edit videos.

Don’t worry about the need to produce slick, five-minute promotional videos with graphics and Hollywood-caliber lighting. Most people won’t ever watch it in its entirety anyway. Instead, come up with a 30-second introduction video welcoming visitors and giving them more background information on what you do. It may seem simple but it can really connect with visitors who stop by your website.

Get customers involved

One of the best ways to improve your website is by incorporating user-generated content into it. There are quite a few ways to do this and most of them don’t require that much work on your end. The easiest method to get customers involved is to feature testimonials on your website. Words from clients can resonate more with visitors than claims you make about yourself as readers are more likely to identify with these testimonials.

If you’re feeling a bit brave, or don’t mind visitors seeing honest and possible negative feedback, several review websites like TripAdvisor and Foursquare offer plug-ins that allow you to feature the reviews they have collected about your business on your website. There are, of course, pros and cons to doing this and if you have a lot of negative reviews, sticking with the testimonials is probably a safer choice.

Want more pointers on how to create a dynamic website? Need to learn how to better market your business online? Get in touch and we can show you how it’s done.

Passwords such as “Password123”, “Mycomputer” and the classic “123456” can pose a very real threat to small and medium sized businesses everywhere. Easy to crack and hack, if your staff are logging in to company accounts with over simplified passwords, they are putting your business at risk. Adding to the danger, phishers also know that people are always the weakest link in a security chain. To address these issues, Google is trialing a new way of logging in, but what is it and how does it work?

So what exactly is Google’s master plan for squaring up to malicious phishing attempts and the perils caused by easy-to-crack passwords? The tech giant is currently trialing a new login option for Google account users. This will let anyone who has enabled the option to log in using their smartphone, completely eliminating the point at which you would normally enter a password. The system uses your phone to verify your identity by sending you an alert that gives you the option of whether or not to log in to your account.

During the trial stages, Google have invited what they are terming “a small group of users” to test out the potential password-free function on their personal Google accounts. The method appears to be easy to use and, if the trial is a success, could offer a far more secure way of accessing an account. By authorizing your phone to let you log in, you are effectively removing the need for a password.

To initiate a log in, the testers type in their email address on their PC or Mac. This will be followed up with a notification on their phone asking them whether they wish to log in to their Google account. All they then do is click the “yes” option and the computer will log them in automatically. For anyone concerned about not being able to log in due to their phone having a flat battery, being forgotten at home, or worst case scenario lost, there is no need to worry for the option remains to log in the traditional way by clicking a link saying “Use your password instead” at the bottom of the page.

Should the trial go ahead and password-free smartphone authentication becomes the norm, the advantages from a security perspective are clear. As stated above, simple passwords simply don’t protect accounts properly. Should someone – whether a hacker, a dishonest employee with an agenda, a recently fired employee with a grudge, or a competitor – put their mind to it, figuring out poor passwords is really not that hard, especially if they have insider knowledge about the user. Date of birth, favorite football team, an unfortunate obsession with Justin Beiber – these are all things that can be used to crack a password. And let’s not even get started on Password123.

The other thing of significant importance is the fact that should password-free log in go ahead, it will stop phishers in their tracks. The phishing ‘business’ is a booming one and those unscrupulous people who contact end users and attempt to extract personal information from them by pretending to be from a trustworthy source could find that their days of stealing passwords are numbered. If the phone becomes the means to log in, the phisher is rendered impotent. There is no password to hand over and of course the phisher doesn’t have access to the phone to click the “yes” button.

Google have made a few facts clear to their guinea pigs which have become public knowledge. The first of which is that the trial works on both the iOS and Android platforms. Users can still log in with their existing password should they desire and Google’s “unusual sign-in” policy remains in place should they detect anything suspicious and need the user to complete an extra step as proof it’s really them.

Should password-free, smartphone login be launched it would be a massive step in the right direction towards plugging the security holes that are caused by human error or carelessness. Setting a password such as “123456” might seem kind of dumb, but it’s amazing just how many people do! At the other end of the scale, phishers can be frighteningly convincing and are able to con even the most tech savvy or diligent users out of passwords, credit card details and more.

If you’d like to know how we can help you ensure that you are operating in the safest possible security environment, give us a call today.

Google have recently enrolled a number of their users in a trial to road test a new way of logging in to their Google accounts. The method aims to stamp out the increasing amount of phishing attacks, as well as the issues caused by people (who likely include some of your employees) from using passwords that are all too easy to crack. So if you have a sneaking suspicion your staff members might be logging in to company accounts with “Password 123” and the like, read on.

So what exactly is Google’s master plan for squaring up to malicious phishing attempts and the perils caused by easy-to-crack passwords? The tech giant is currently trialing a new login option for Google account users. This will let anyone who has enabled the option to log in using their smartphone, completely eliminating the point at which you would normally enter a password. The system uses your phone to verify your identity by sending you an alert that gives you the option of whether or not to log in to your account.

During the trial stages, Google have invited what they are terming “a small group of users” to test out the potential password-free function on their personal Google accounts. The method appears to be easy to use and, if the trial is a success, could offer a far more secure way of accessing an account. By authorizing your phone to let you log in, you are effectively removing the need for a password.

To initiate a log in, the testers type in their email address on their PC or Mac. This will be followed up with a notification on their phone asking them whether they wish to log in to their Google account. All they then do is click the “yes” option and the computer will log them in automatically. For anyone concerned about not being able to log in due to their phone having a flat battery, being forgotten at home, or worst case scenario lost, there is no need to worry for the option remains to log in the traditional way by clicking a link saying “Use your password instead” at the bottom of the page.

Should the trial go ahead and password-free smartphone authentication becomes the norm, the advantages from a security perspective are clear. As stated above, simple passwords simply don’t protect accounts properly. Should someone – whether a hacker, a dishonest employee with an agenda, a recently fired employee with a grudge, or a competitor – put their mind to it, figuring out poor passwords is really not that hard, especially if they have insider knowledge about the user. Date of birth, favorite football team, an unfortunate obsession with Justin Beiber – these are all things that can be used to crack a password. And let’s not even get started on Password123.

The other thing of significant importance is the fact that should password-free log in go ahead, it will stop phishers in their tracks. The phishing ‘business’ is a booming one and those unscrupulous people who contact end users and attempt to extract personal information from them by pretending to be from a trustworthy source could find that their days of stealing passwords are numbered. If the phone becomes the means to log in, the phisher is rendered impotent. There is no password to hand over and of course the phisher doesn’t have access to the phone to click the “yes” button.

Google have made a few facts clear to their guinea pigs which have become public knowledge. The first of which is that the trial works on both the iOS and Android platforms. Users can still log in with their existing password should they desire and Google’s “unusual sign-in” policy remains in place should they detect anything suspicious and need the user to complete an extra step as proof it’s really them.

Should password-free, smartphone login be launched it would be a massive step in the right direction towards plugging the security holes that are caused by human error or carelessness. Setting a password such as “123456” might seem kind of dumb, but it’s amazing just how many people do! At the other end of the scale, phishers can be frighteningly convincing and are able to con even the most tech savvy or diligent users out of passwords, credit card details and more.

If you’d like to know how we can help you ensure that you are operating in the safest possible security environment, give us a call today.

It seems Google is taking the issue of online security increasingly serious as they have recently unveiled their latest attempt to stem the tide of phishing. Trialing a password-free login option, they also aim to curb the dangers caused by ineffective and over simplified passwords – something that every small and medium sized business needs to be paying attention to. In simple terms, the function uses your smartphone to log in to your Google account – so how will it work?

So what exactly is Google’s master plan for squaring up to malicious phishing attempts and the perils caused by easy-to-crack passwords? The tech giant is currently trialing a new login option for Google account users. This will let anyone who has enabled the option to log in using their smartphone, completely eliminating the point at which you would normally enter a password. The system uses your phone to verify your identity by sending you an alert that gives you the option of whether or not to log in to your account.

During the trial stages, Google have invited what they are terming “a small group of users” to test out the potential password-free function on their personal Google accounts. The method appears to be easy to use and, if the trial is a success, could offer a far more secure way of accessing an account. By authorizing your phone to let you log in, you are effectively removing the need for a password.

To initiate a log in, the testers type in their email address on their PC or Mac. This will be followed up with a notification on their phone asking them whether they wish to log in to their Google account. All they then do is click the “yes” option and the computer will log them in automatically. For anyone concerned about not being able to log in due to their phone having a flat battery, being forgotten at home, or worst case scenario lost, there is no need to worry for the option remains to log in the traditional way by clicking a link saying “Use your password instead” at the bottom of the page.

Should the trial go ahead and password-free smartphone authentication becomes the norm, the advantages from a security perspective are clear. As stated above, simple passwords simply don’t protect accounts properly. Should someone – whether a hacker, a dishonest employee with an agenda, a recently fired employee with a grudge, or a competitor – put their mind to it, figuring out poor passwords is really not that hard, especially if they have insider knowledge about the user. Date of birth, favorite football team, an unfortunate obsession with Justin Beiber – these are all things that can be used to crack a password. And let’s not even get started on Password123.

The other thing of significant importance is the fact that should password-free log in go ahead, it will stop phishers in their tracks. The phishing ‘business’ is a booming one and those unscrupulous people who contact end users and attempt to extract personal information from them by pretending to be from a trustworthy source could find that their days of stealing passwords are numbered. If the phone becomes the means to log in, the phisher is rendered impotent. There is no password to hand over and of course the phisher doesn’t have access to the phone to click the “yes” button.

Google have made a few facts clear to their guinea pigs which have become public knowledge. The first of which is that the trial works on both the iOS and Android platforms. Users can still log in with their existing password should they desire and Google’s “unusual sign-in” policy remains in place should they detect anything suspicious and need the user to complete an extra step as proof it’s really them.

Should password-free, smartphone login be launched it would be a massive step in the right direction towards plugging the security holes that are caused by human error or carelessness. Setting a password such as “123456” might seem kind of dumb, but it’s amazing just how many people do! At the other end of the scale, phishers can be frighteningly convincing and are able to con even the most tech savvy or diligent users out of passwords, credit card details and more.

If you’d like to know how we can help you ensure that you are operating in the safest possible security environment, give us a call today.

When people think of the causes of downtime and the need for a Business Continuity Plan (BCP), they tend to think big. Powerful storms, massive blizzards, fires and floods are usually what springs to mind when business continuity is mentioned. And while these disasters can disrupt your business, a small power outage can be just as problematic if you’re not prepared. Here’s what to do to make sure your company isn’t halted when a power outage occurs.

Power outages are one of the only disasters that can strike just about anywhere in the United States. If you are in Seattle chances are tropical storms are not going to be an issue and if you’re in Miami you aren’t going to fret over a blizzard, but losing power can occur anywhere, at any time and without warning.

A Department of Energy report noted that power outages cost American businesses nearly $150 billion in 2014 and added that increasing demand for energy coupled with an aging infrastructure could see the number of blackouts increase. While weather-related events are the most common cause of power outages in the U.S., it is far from the only thing that can disrupt energy service.

Since this is a problem that will continue to plague businesses, especially those ones that are unprepared, it’s important to be ready should a blackout strike. Here are a few things you should consider when it comes to power outages.

Power outages hurt in more ways than you think

The most notable issue a business faces when a power outage occurs is an inability to work. Employees often times sit around unable to do anything until the power is turned back on. Once the power does return, additional time is needed to safely turn everything back on and to check if all your files are still there.

There are also numerous indirect consequences that your business may face either during or after a power outage. These include a loss of revenue from potential sales, a decrease in customer satisfaction and a drop in your company’s reputation. The more your company is prepared for a power outage, the better continuity you will see and the less damage will be done. While it may be impossible to completely avoid issues caused by blackouts, you can minimize their impact.

Be ready in case of an outage

One of the biggest sources of frustration for employees during a blackout is losing files they had been working on. Autosave features do help prevent this but sometimes you’ll still lose that one important note or sentence you didn’t have the chance to save. Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) are one way to buy your employees a little extra time should the power go out. You’re able to plug your computer into these devices and they will operate as a battery when the power goes out. The life of these power stations is anywhere from ten minutes to an hour for some models which should give you enough time to save your work and properly shutdown your computer.

If you want to stay in business during a power outage, a standby commercial generator can help. These normally run on propane or natural gas and immediately switch on as soon as your main power supply goes out. If you aren’t concerned about the lights but want to keep your employees productive, equipping them 4G enabled devices with Office 365 or Google Apps will let them continue to work on files that have been saved and stored on the cloud.

Always test your outage plans

Regardless of what your company’s plans are during a power outage, you will need to test them on a regular basis to ensure everything runs smoothly when the real thing does happen. If you utilize a UPS or standby generator, you will want to test these out every six months at the very least to make sure they function properly. If your business has special plans for what employees need to do during a power outage, you should run a practice drill on a yearly basis to ensure everyone is up to speed on their duties.

They key to business continuity is preparation. Let our team of experts help prepare your business for anything thrown its way in 2016 and beyond.

There is nothing worse than having a productive day at the office become undone due to a power outage. Losing power for even a single minute can have far reaching effects on your company’s operations as you need to make sure everything is running properly and all data is accounted for. While power outages can be a nuisance, with proper preparation you’ll have no trouble in persevering when the lights go off.

Power outages are one of the only disasters that can strike just about anywhere in the United States. If you are in Seattle chances are tropical storms are not going to be an issue and if you’re in Miami you aren’t going to fret over a blizzard, but losing power can occur anywhere, at any time and without warning.

A Department of Energy report noted that power outages cost American businesses nearly $150 billion in 2014 and added that increasing demand for energy coupled with an aging infrastructure could see the number of blackouts increase. While weather-related events are the most common cause of power outages in the U.S., it is far from the only thing that can disrupt energy service.

Since this is a problem that will continue to plague businesses, especially those ones that are unprepared, it’s important to be ready should a blackout strike. Here are a few things you should consider when it comes to power outages.

Power outages hurt in more ways than you think

The most notable issue a business faces when a power outage occurs is an inability to work. Employees often times sit around unable to do anything until the power is turned back on. Once the power does return, additional time is needed to safely turn everything back on and to check if all your files are still there.

There are also numerous indirect consequences that your business may face either during or after a power outage. These include a loss of revenue from potential sales, a decrease in customer satisfaction and a drop in your company’s reputation. The more your company is prepared for a power outage, the better continuity you will see and the less damage will be done. While it may be impossible to completely avoid issues caused by blackouts, you can minimize their impact.

Be ready in case of an outage

One of the biggest sources of frustration for employees during a blackout is losing files they had been working on. Autosave features do help prevent this but sometimes you’ll still lose that one important note or sentence you didn’t have the chance to save. Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) are one way to buy your employees a little extra time should the power go out. You’re able to plug your computer into these devices and they will operate as a battery when the power goes out. The life of these power stations is anywhere from ten minutes to an hour for some models which should give you enough time to save your work and properly shutdown your computer.

If you want to stay in business during a power outage, a standby commercial generator can help. These normally run on propane or natural gas and immediately switch on as soon as your main power supply goes out. If you aren’t concerned about the lights but want to keep your employees productive, equipping them 4G enabled devices with Office 365 or Google Apps will let them continue to work on files that have been saved and stored on the cloud.

Always test your outage plans

Regardless of what your company’s plans are during a power outage, you will need to test them on a regular basis to ensure everything runs smoothly when the real thing does happen. If you utilize a UPS or standby generator, you will want to test these out every six months at the very least to make sure they function properly. If your business has special plans for what employees need to do during a power outage, you should run a practice drill on a yearly basis to ensure everyone is up to speed on their duties.

They key to business continuity is preparation. Let our team of experts help prepare your business for anything thrown its way in 2016 and beyond.

Even a single second of downtime at your business can cause a ripple effect that sees operations become unhinged. While most Business Continuity Plans (BCPs) take into account longer power outages, short ones can be just as dangerous to your company. It is important that you and your employees be prepared should a power outage strike. We’ve prepared some information to help you do just that.

Power outages are one of the only disasters that can strike just about anywhere in the United States. If you are in Seattle chances are tropical storms are not going to be an issue and if you’re in Miami you aren’t going to fret over a blizzard, but losing power can occur anywhere, at any time and without warning.

A Department of Energy report noted that power outages cost American businesses nearly $150 billion in 2014 and added that increasing demand for energy coupled with an aging infrastructure could see the number of blackouts increase. While weather-related events are the most common cause of power outages in the U.S., it is far from the only thing that can disrupt energy service.

Since this is a problem that will continue to plague businesses, especially those ones that are unprepared, it’s important to be ready should a blackout strike. Here are a few things you should consider when it comes to power outages.

Power outages hurt in more ways than you think

The most notable issue a business faces when a power outage occurs is an inability to work. Employees often times sit around unable to do anything until the power is turned back on. Once the power does return, additional time is needed to safely turn everything back on and to check if all your files are still there.

There are also numerous indirect consequences that your business may face either during or after a power outage. These include a loss of revenue from potential sales, a decrease in customer satisfaction and a drop in your company’s reputation. The more your company is prepared for a power outage, the better continuity you will see and the less damage will be done. While it may be impossible to completely avoid issues caused by blackouts, you can minimize their impact.

Be ready in case of an outage

One of the biggest sources of frustration for employees during a blackout is losing files they had been working on. Autosave features do help prevent this but sometimes you’ll still lose that one important note or sentence you didn’t have the chance to save. Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) are one way to buy your employees a little extra time should the power go out. You’re able to plug your computer into these devices and they will operate as a battery when the power goes out. The life of these power stations is anywhere from ten minutes to an hour for some models which should give you enough time to save your work and properly shutdown your computer.

If you want to stay in business during a power outage, a standby commercial generator can help. These normally run on propane or natural gas and immediately switch on as soon as your main power supply goes out. If you aren’t concerned about the lights but want to keep your employees productive, equipping them 4G enabled devices with Office 365 or Google Apps will let them continue to work on files that have been saved and stored on the cloud.

Always test your outage plans

Regardless of what your company’s plans are during a power outage, you will need to test them on a regular basis to ensure everything runs smoothly when the real thing does happen. If you utilize a UPS or standby generator, you will want to test these out every six months at the very least to make sure they function properly. If your business has special plans for what employees need to do during a power outage, you should run a practice drill on a yearly basis to ensure everyone is up to speed on their duties.

They key to business continuity is preparation. Let our team of experts help prepare your business for anything thrown its way in 2016 and beyond.