Losing data is always a conundrum, let alone how damaging it can be for a business. As a business owner, you are not responsible only for your staff’s data but also for your customers. This makes data loss or corruption a pitfall you must avoid at all costs.
Technology is a capricious thing; one moment, your systems may all be up and running, and the next, you might find that your local data copies have been lost. Luckily, creating another copy of your important files is not as hard as it sounds. Check out the following points to learn why backing up data is vital for businesses and how you can make the process a breeze.
Why Are Data Backups Important?
Access Files Remotely
Long gone are the days when employees had to be on-site to access business data. Nowadays, most people take work back home with them or rely on their smartphones to finish up tasks. This makes having a cloud copy of your company’s data a must, not only to improve workflow but also to allow employees to set their own work hours, which is extremely important in the COVID-19 era. So, if you want to have full control over your files even when you are not in the office, definitely invest in data backups.
Decide Which Files to Keep
Realistically, not every file is worth backing up. However, finding out which ones are can be challenging, especially if you have thousands of files to go through. Because the amount of data you want to create a copy of directly affects the cost of the process, particularly when it comes to cloud backup, you have to make sure that you are not just copying all the files you can find. To make the process a bit easier, ask the head of every department to find the data that is worth keeping. This way, you can keep important files protected without going over your budget.
Avoid the Woes of Power Cuts
Even if you have the best generators on the market, they may still not be enough to power up your systems during blackouts. This is especially the case if your business is based in an area that experiences wacky weather and frequent power cuts. Why go through all the trouble of finding a professional to retrieve important data when you can always be sure that your files are safe and sound? Creating backups can help you avoid the worst-case scenario and allow you to get some peace of mind.
Add an Extra Layer of Protection
To blindside you, hackers are getting increasingly craftier with the way they plan their attacks. They exploit any security loophole that your system may have to assume control of your data. By gaining access to sensitive files, they can also employ extortive means to sell them back to you for thousands of dollars. Because you certainly do not want to give these nefarious individuals that much power, backing up your data often will help you prevent these sticky situations from ever happening.
Free Up Space
If you own a startup, you may not have enough money to invest in expensive storage solutions, which makes destroying old data a necessity. However, by sacrificing this data, you may end up making things harder for your staff. After all, you never know when you might need to retrieve a certain file. Instead of continuously getting rid of files to free up space, why don’t you create another local or a cloud copy? Most solutions do not even cost that much, so you will not have to break the bank to keep your data protected.
Keep Customers Satisfied
Losing your staff’s data is one thing, but losing your clients’ information is a different story altogether. Customer satisfaction is always most business owners’ top priority, so it only makes sense that you may want to go above and beyond to keep your clients happy. This is particularly important if you have an e-commerce business where storing credit card information and other sensitive data is mandatory. Even if a power cut happens and you lose your local copy, you can ensure that your clients will never be cut off from your services as you try to fix the problem.
How Can You Create Data Backups?
Set a Budget
You can try many solutions if you want to create data backups for your business, but not all of them cost the same. This is why you need to set a budget before choosing a method. Generally speaking, the fewer data you need to back up, the lower the cost will be. However, this cost can go up if you decide to hire professionals to handle this process. For this reason, startup business owners who have enough tech knowledge or a strong IT team are advised not to seek a professional company when creating backups to keep the cost down.
Find a Method
As we’ve mentioned, you can choose from a plethora of options when it comes to data backups. The easiest way is to purchase a few external hard drives and USB sticks. Although this is usually seen as an outdated method, it still works pretty well, especially if you have a limited budget. Just make sure to keep these storage devices off-site in a safe place. You can also go for cloud storage. Yet, when picking a cloud storage provider, make sure that they have an intricate security system because you definitely do not want hackers to get to your data. Moreover, to guarantee that you will be able to access your business files anywhere, cross-platform support is a plus.
Follow a Schedule
Routine backups are very important. That said, you do not have to create one every day. Experts agree that backing up files once a week is usually enough. Nevertheless, if there is sensitive information you are afraid you might lose or your area experiences frequent power outages, it is best to incorporate this practice into your daily routine.
Business data loss is a nightmarish scenario. However, you do not have to spend thousands of dollars on fancy professionals who claim that they can retrieve lost files when you have a more straightforward solution at your disposal. By investing in creating several copies of important information, you can rest assured that your business remains on top of the food chain and give your customers the best possible experience.