There are a number of buzzwords out there that you may have heard in the cybersecurity world, and one of the most important for many businesses is the firewall. Serving as one of your top forms of defense against various online threats, firewalls have evolved over the years right along with the kinds of risks they're meant to prevent, and remain a highly effective cybersecurity method that businesses should be taking advantage of.
At Onward Technology, we're happy to provide high-quality cybersecurity services to clients throughout Utah, and firewalls are just one of many tools we may help you utilize here. What are firewalls, why are they important, and what types of firewall might you need to know about? Here's a basic primer.
From a broad perspective, a firewall is a term that refers to any kind of system that's meant to act as a barrier between two networks. When it comes to cybersecurity, this usually refers to a hardware device or software program that's designed to protect a private network from outside users who might try to gain unauthorized access.
Firewalls can be used to filter incoming traffic and block anything that appears malicious, essentially acting as a barrier between your network and the rest of the internet. In many cases, they'll also be able to monitor outgoing traffic and prevent sensitive data from being leaked outside of the private network.
In today's day and age, it's a sad reality that there are many threats and malicious actors lurking online waiting to take advantage of businesses who aren't prepared for them. Whether it's phishing emails, ransomware attacks, or an infiltration through one of your systems that allows hackers access to the entirety of your network, these kinds of breaches can result in huge losses and even put you out of business.
As such, firewalls have become an essential part of cybersecurity for businesses of all sizes. By protecting your network from unwanted traffic and malicious actors, you can help to ensure that your data and systems stay safe and secure.
Now that you understand a bit about what firewalls are and why they're important, it's worth taking a look at some of the most common kinds of firewalls out there:
For more on firewalls and how they work, or to learn about any of our cybersecurity or other managed IT and IT consulting services, speak to the team at Onward Technology today.
There are certain modern technological services that are useful across a huge swath of industries or business types, and a great example here is the realm of Wi-Fi location analytics. Referring to programs that allow you to evaluate everything from foot traffic to other customer insights, Wi-Fi location analytics can be used for numerous businesses in varying different ways.
At Onward Technology, we're happy to offer the best Wi-Fi location analytics services available, helping you understand how your customers are interacting with your various digital products and properties. We track a huge range of metrics, including customer counts, foot traffic, dwell time, repeat customer percentage and more. There are several industries that provide great examples of how beneficial our services can be, and one of the most notable is the restaurant and food industry. How can Wi-Fi location analytics and similar services play a major role in improving restaurant business and efficiency? Here are several basic ways that will help you understand the value of this service in general, even if you're not a restaurant owner or manager.
One major area where Wi-Fi location analytics is particularly useful is in understanding what drives business.
For many restaurants, the ideal scenario is to understand what customers are doing on their mobile devices when they're in-store. Are they interacting with your digital apps and properties? How long are they staying? Are there certain items that are of more interest to them than others? Wi-Fi location analytics is a great tool for answering these questions and many others, helping you improve your customer experience and understand how to guide them toward the items they're most interested in.
In addition, many restaurants will launch specific ad campaigns or other marketing initiatives, and Wi-Fi location analytics can help you understand the effectiveness of these campaigns. Are customers coming in as a result of your marketing? What sort of interactions are they having with your digital products? This data is invaluable in understanding how to adjust and improve your marketing strategy going forward.
As we just touched on, one of the major benefits of Wi-Fi location analytics is the ability to understand and refine your marketing campaigns.
For example, let's say you're a restaurant that's running a ad campaign targeting potential customers who live within a certain radius of your location. With Wi-Fi location analytics, you can track how many people are coming in as a result of the campaign, what types of interactions they're having with your digital products, and even how long they're staying. This data is invaluable in understanding whether or not the campaign is effective, and if it's not, how to adjust it going forward.
In addition, Wi-Fi location analytics can help you understand which marketing channels are most effective for your business. Are customers coming in as a result of your online ads? Your social media campaigns? Your email marketing? By understanding which channels are driving the most business, you can focus your efforts on those channels and save time and money in the process.
Return business is a huge factor for restaurants everywhere, and Wi-Fi location analytics is a great tool in helping to understand how repeat customers work. With this information, you can focus on creating marketing campaigns and other initiatives that will encourage people to return more often.
In addition, by understanding the way your customers are returning (are they coming back for the same thing each time? Are they coming back at certain times of day or week?), you can alter your products and services to better accommodate what customers are asking for.
Target audiences work a bit differently for restaurants than for most other businesses, but they're a vital part of the process nonetheless. Wi-Fi location analytics is especially useful for understanding what resonates with your target audience.
For example, you can use this information to improve and refine your customer experience, making sure that you're catering to the needs of those who are visiting your restaurant most often or spending the most time there. By focusing on what's important to your target audience, you can create a better experience for everyone involved.
In addition, Wi-Fi location analytics can help you understand what types of marketing campaigns are most effective with your target audience. Are they responding well to online ads? Social media posts? Email newsletters? By understanding how your target audience prefers to be reached, you can focus your efforts on the marketing channels that are going to be most effective.
Restaurant owners care not only about how many people enter their establishment, but also about how long those people stay. This metric, known as "dwell time," is a key indicator of customer satisfaction and can be used to improve the overall experience for everyone involved.
In addition to dwell time, there are other related metrics that can be tracked with Wi-Fi location analytics. For example, you can see how often customers are coming back, what times of day they're visiting most often, and even which areas of the restaurant they're spending the most time in.
This information is invaluable in understanding what's working well and what needs to be improved. By tracking these metrics, you can make adjustments to improve the customer experience and encourage more return visits from your target audience.
As you can see, Wi-Fi location analytics can be a huge help to restaurants in many different areas of their business. From marketing campaigns to customer experience to dwell time and beyond, this powerful technology has the potential to give you valuable insights into how your customers interact with your restaurant and what you can do to improve both your on-site management and your advertising programs.
For more on the value of Wi-Fi location analytics for any business, or to learn about any of our managed IT solutions or related services, speak to the team at Onward Technology today.
In a number of fields that involve the outsourcing of outside vendors, including IT and tech support areas, the use of what's known as an SLA, or service-level agreement, is common. An SLA lays out all the expectations of the vendor, including any metrics that will define their performance, plus what will happen if these expectations are not met in the proper ways.
At Onward Technology, we're proud to offer a wide range of managed IT and support services to our clients throughout Utah, with programs provided to schools and numerous other organizations. We regularly utilize SLAs as part of our agreements with clients, ensuring you're protected and have legal documentation of our partnership. What are the elements of an SLA our clients should be aware of, and what are some common metrics often included in them? Here's a basic primer.
Typically, there are four sections to a standard SLA:
As we noted above, an SLA will include certain metrics that help track the performance of the provider. Within the world of IT support and managed IT, here are some of the important metrics to consider including:
When determining the specific metrics and KPIs (key performance indicators) to include in an SLA, it's important to be as specific as possible -- without creating confusion regarding what you expect. For example, if you state "time-to-repair will always be less than four hours," what is the basis for that measurement? If we're tracking time from when a user calls in and then gets an answer on their support ticket, that's three different metrics: time to open a case, time to resolve a case, and time to first response.
The goal is always to link back specific SLA performance metrics to the areas of value they're creating within the business. Over time, you should be able to link back your SLAs to these specific benefits, making them invaluable for both you and your provider.
The primary driver of whether your SLA process will be smooth and simple or perhaps more arduous: The vendor you're working with. A quality vendor with a good reputation and a long track record in the industry will allow for a nice, easy process, where you can work together to determine the metrics and KPIs most important to your business.
A provider that has little experience in the IT industry or doesn't have an understanding of what is specific to your organization may not be able to meet that need with ease. If you're experiencing troubles with your current SLA process, it's likely due to issues with the company or entity you're working with -- and you should consider upgrading.
For more on service-level agreements within the IT and tech support world, or to learn about any of our managed IT solutions, speak to the staff at Onward Technology today.
