Should You Prepay For It Service Hours?

There are a lot of different kinds of IT agreements out there

, and probably just as many questions over what represents a good value and what doesn't. But when it comes to prepaying for billable technology hours, business owners arrive at a particularly interesting conundrum: They're likely to save money if they buy up front, but they also run the risk of purchasing technology help that they won't need or use in the near future.

So should your company prepay for billable IT hours?

The short answer, from our point of view, is it depends. And what it depends on is the arrangement you've worked out with your IT computer support specialist or IT services provider. If you're simply paying for a discounted "block of time&" that you can use within six months or a year, for example, then we're going to go against the grain and say it's not advisable. After all, that might be great for your business IT consulting provider's cash flow, but unless you are planning to have technology problems, then there's no way to be certain that expense is ever going to be of value for you. And if you are planning on having technology problems, then why not fix them now before they end up costing your business more money?

We aren't meaning to imply that your IT provider wants to take your money and run, but in such a situation, where is their incentive to go the extra mile for you? They've gotten their money, so it's up to you to think of something for them to do.

That being said, there is a second kind of "prepaid" arrangement that we would recommend: a managed services agreement. What's the difference? With IT managed services, you're paying the same thing to your IT provider every month whether you have a problem or not. Unlike purchasing a block of hours, this puts them in a position where they're responsible for keeping your company's technology working smoothly. Otherwise, it's only going to take more of their time and expense to get your business back on track. In other words, you aren't paying for the time, but for the completed job.

That's a subtle difference, but it's the difference between a great value and a potential waste of your investment. When it comes to paying for IT up front or at regular intervals, smart business owners will go for managed services every time. It might sound more constricting than just paying for a few hours, but it's also a much better deal.

by: Prasad Josh

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