DALLAS, Nov. 28, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- E-mail is the backbone of business communication, but many companies have not taken the first steps toward protecting e-mailed data, storing e-mails, filtering spam and blocking viruses. With disaster planning, business continuity and back-up plans as top-of-mind concerns, small businesses should now turn their attention to maximizing the potential of e-mail for increasing efficiency and productivity.
"E-mail has revolutionized the way businesses communicate, store data and organize contacts, but without proper security, data archiving and back-up, a small company can suffer a total disruption of business if e-mail service is lost or data is compromised," said Russell Morgan, president of the nonprofit Information Technology Solution Providers Alliance (ITSPA). "We all e-mail, but many small businesses are not adequately protecting company e-mail from potential threats or data loss."
Logicalis, a worldwide technology integrator and consulting company, sees evidence of this lack of preparation as businesses continue to rely more heavily on e-mail. Questions about configuring, protecting and maintaining e-mail operations now comprise 50 percent of Logicalis' help desk calls. Logicalis and other solution providers work with their clients to evaluate current e-mail needs and help plan for the future so that e-mail programs are able to grow with small businesses and accommodate steadily increasing e-mail volume.
"When we ask clients about their biggest business concern following a disaster like 9-11 or Hurricane Katrina, nearly all will say getting their e-mail up and running again," said Eric Linxweiler, vice president of consulting for Logicalis. "We're anticipating that in the next three years the number of total daily e-mail messages will triple, and small businesses in particular will need to make sure their e-mail programs and servers are prepared, backed-up and able to recover in the event of a disaster or disruption."
In addition to protecting e-mail programs from viruses or information theft, it's also important to have an efficient system in place to organize messages and ensure a prompt response to every e-mail. Creating a message filing system where e-mails are organized according to client, task or priority can help businesses keep track of e-mails so none fall through the cracks.
Tips for Getting Started: Here is a quick guide from ITSPA to protecting and maximizing e-mail services.
1. Know your size and set a limit. Some businesses are more likely to need large capacity e-mail programs, especially with images, graphics and multimedia. Adequate memory and a fast server can help accommodate the transfer and storage of larger files. Setting a limit for the capacity of your company e-mail inboxes and asking employees to clear out their stored e-mails on a regular basis will help ensure that your e-mail continues to run smoothly.
2. Get organized. Most e-mail programs allow users to create folders for filing messages by topic, client and task. Create a system that makes it easy to keep track of unanswered messages, high priority requests and response deadlines. A technology consultant, or service provider, can give you suggestions for managing your business e-mails and efficiently responding to client and employee messages.
3. Protect against worms and viruses. While e-mail is now a staple of nearly all business, it's also the easiest way for hackers and information thieves to infiltrate computer systems. The good news is that there are a number of programs available to protect your business from crippling worms, viruses and data theft. It's important to be vigilant about updating these e-mail security programs to be sure that you stay a step ahead of potential threats.
4. Keep the good, filter out the bad and the ugly. In addition to blocking viruses and worms, it's important to create comprehensive e-mails filters that sift through your incoming e-mail and deliver only the messages you want to see. While some spam is harmless, it still slows down your program by clogging the system with unwanted and large file-size e-mails. A spam filter will do the sorting for you so you only see the messages you need.
5. Archive and back-up. For many businesses, e-mail programs house the data most crucial for day-to-day activities. Contact information, product orders and client requests all come primarily through e-mail at many small businesses, and it's important to back-up this data regularly in the event of a disaster or disruption in service. A solution provider who knows and understands your business can help determine how often you should back-up and will make sure you can get to the information you need in case of emergency. For help finding a local solution provider, contact ITSPA at findapartner@itspa.net.
About ITSPA:
Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the Information Technology Solution Providers Alliance (ITSPA) is a national, nonprofit organization serving as an objective resource for businesses hoping to take advantage of the benefits of new technology. ITSPA is dedicated to helping small and medium-size businesses adopt technology and grow by using local solution providers to solve business challenges.
Information Technology Solution Providers Alliance logo is available at: http://www.primezone.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=1742