IT outsourcing services provide valuable support for your business. But if you’re a business owner, you may get lost in all of the terminologies.

For example, what is the difference between a managed service provider and offshore outsourced IT support?

In this article, we’ll break down the various terms used and discuss the different types of outsourcing.

What Are IT Outsourcing Services?

IT outsourcing services are a way for your business to get the very best IT support without having to invest in developing their own in-house solution.

Services will vary between providers. The most commonly found solutions will revolve around cybersecurity and IT support.

Sometimes outsourced IT support will work alongside an internal IT department. In this instance, it may be referred to as co-sourced support.

Some companies opt to work with one IT outsourcing company, while others may work with several.

Managed Services

One of the most common forms of IT outsourcing is managed services. A managed service provider is an external IT company that will provide full network management for your business.

This may include:

  • Setting up virtual private networks
  • Managing firewalls
  • Monitoring activity across the network
  • Installing VoIP and other communication software
  • Providing disaster recovery support.

Managed IT services take the stress out of maintaining your IT infrastructure. 

Offshore IT Outsourcing

Offshore IT outsourcing means that your remote IT support will be based overseas. Typically, this will be in a politically stable country such as China or India.

This type of outsourced IT allows businesses to take advantage of tax savings and the lower running costs associated with an overseas workforce.

Because the wages are relatively low in the countries that provide offshore outsourcing services, you can quickly scale up your support as your business needs grow.

Nearshore Outsourcing

Nearshore outsourcing means that your IT support will be based in a nearby country.

There may be some tax savings involved in outsourcing your IT support in this way.

The benefits of nearshore outsourcing are that there is often no major difference between timezones. This makes it convenient to get the support you want at the time you need it.

With this type of outsourcing, there may be less of a language and cultural barrier than you might experience with offshore outsourcing.

Onshore Outsourcing

Onshore outsourcing makes use of local companies that provide services within the same country as your business is based. Although this type of service is generally more expensive than offshore and nearshore IT support, there are some benefits.

Your onshore IT support company will speak your language. You’ll find them much more accessible than services based in other countries, they’re easier to control, and they are in the same time zone.

Choosing Your IT Support

When choosing your IT outsourcing services, do plenty of research. Make sure that you are happy with the services that they are offering.

Find reviews of the IT service provider that you are interested in using, and make sure that they have a high rating.

For professional and reliable US-based outsourcing, get in touch with Inception Network Strategies today.