What are managed IT services?

With the rise of technology, cloud infrastructure, and more and more in house teams of technical support, the need for managed IT services has only been reinforced.

While nearly everyone these days needs some sort of managed security services, there are different kinds of IT services offered.

So, we’ll cover what managed IT services are, the different types of them, and why you need a service level agreement to offer your clients the best level of support you can!

What are managed IT services?

Managed IT services means that you, as a managed service provider (MSP)MSP can deliver a list of well-defined services on an ongoing basis, with well-defined “response and resolution times” for a fixed rate or a flat fee to your clients which typically will be small and medium businesses.

The list of services can include a range of options including 24/7 monitoring of servers, 24/7 help desk support for daily computer issues, remote monitoring tools for troubleshooting software related problems via remote desktop connections and even on-site visits by a technician when issues cannot be resolved remotely. Services can also focus on gathering metrics about your client’s environment and using them to diagnose potential issues or to sell equipment or other services as needs be.

Support your clients successfully

Atera offers you complete visibility and control for hundreds of networks from any device so that you can provide instant, first-class IT support services to your clients no matter where you are. In addition, Atera’s PSA is a seamless part of the All-in-One platform, enabling you to organize all of your customer information in one place, including all relevant RMM and PSA information in one view: Contacts, Contracts, SLA, Devices, Tickets, encrypted password repository and miscellaneous attachments.

All these Managed IT Services and more enable you to support your clients and run a successful MSP business.

Importance of a well-defined SLA

In a typical managed IT services arrangement, the MSP takes responsibility for the functionality of the IT service, and the client pays a regular fee for receipt of the service. A managed IT service comes with a service-level agreement (SLA), which is the contract between the MSP and the client.

The SLA identifies what services the MSP will provide and how successful delivery of services will be measured. Atera offers not only a default SLA but the opportunity to create a new SLA for each one of your clients, thereby providing that special bespoke touch. Also, Atera offers many diverse types of contracts so that you can find the right one for your client. You can have multiple contracts for each client and bill accordingly.

One example of a contract that Atera offers is the Block hours contract which allows the client to purchase a number of hours upfront at an agreed price. The premise behind this type of support is that your client has purchased a fixed number of hours to use either per month or year. This allows them the flexibility to use the hours as they please without doing the paperwork and enduring the hassle of paying multiple bills.

Install your agents on a break/fix client

In addition to this regular arrangement, MSPs can also work on a break/fix model where the MSP provides on-demand services and bills the customer only for the work done. Atera recommends installing an agent even for clients with a break/fix model. This will enable you to solve their problems quickly, and increase the possibility of them staying loyal to you and turning into flat fee clients.

Managed services popular business model

According to IT industry trade association CompTIA’s Fifth Annual Trends in Managed Services study, Managed services comprise the second-most popular business model in the channel today. Three-in-10 MSPs surveyed by CompTIA ranked managed services as the leading generator of revenue in the previous 12 months, second to the 44 percent that pointed to IT solutions (such as projects incorporating hardware, software and services), but ahead of other business model choices like value-added re-sellers (VARs), IT support, and help desk and consulting services.

Atera is specifically designed for MSPs and IT Support Companies no matter the size. Atera’s software is the only All-in-One platform that combines Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM), Professional Services Automation (PSA), Cloud-based Remote Access and integrated Cloud Services in a single simple to use platform. Using Atera, the MSP can support their clients, manage their workstations, seeing to problems before the clients are even aware of them, and troubleshooting any problems that pop up during the average work day.

The most common repairs that MSPs use Atera for are computer virus and spyware removal, computer optimization, Windows Registry repair, device driver issues, and Windows security updates.

Use reports to track your metrics!

Atera also enables you to measure and track your client’s networks, assets, health and performance using reports and gaining clear visibility on the IT environments you are maintaining. The Atera Reporting Suite includes a wide range of different reports that help you set data-driven goals and track the right metrics.

Because the reports can be scheduled and sent to both technicians and clients – it represents a seamless ongoing communication between you and your client, thereby improving transparency and building up loyalty and trust. Atera empowers MSPs and IT professionals to improve their business practices through its RMM software, services, and security. Its unmatched technology provides users with the Business Intelligence (BI) they require to succeed with its unique pricing model and a transformative billing dashboard that includes real-time statistics from The Benchmark.