Small Businesses Could Lose $40 Billion in Productivity this Year Because of Internet Downtime

Having a reliable Internet connection is a must for business success. According to Flexera, 72% of small to midsize companies have at least some of their processes in the cloud, which means doing everything from payroll to invoicing and collaboration requires a connection with consistent performance and maximum uptime. Without that connection, emails can’t be read or responded to, customer and company data may be inaccessible, and staff can be left scrambling in a virtual void. Clients then get frustrated, especially if they can’t connect to your site or get the customer service they need.

If delays happen too many times, they’re likely to take their business elsewhere. This isn’t just theoretical. U.S. small businesses are projected to lose $40 billion in productivity because of Internet outages in 2020, according to Independence Research. That research also shows that the brunt of the loss will be felt by the smallest businesses that overwhelmingly do not have Internet backup solutions in place. These businesses will lose $22 billion in productivity— the equivalent of just over $4,500 per year per business establishment. Add in reputational costs — customers could see an interruption as a sign of sloppiness — and lost profits could be well into the tens or hundreds of thousands for small companies. Fortunately, there is a backup solution to help should these kinds of outages ever occur.

Learn how to prevent Internet downtime and keep your business running.