Technology Support Services and Solutions

We offer IT Support Tampa to schools, churches, medical, non-profits and businesses of all sizes in the Tampa, Florida area, all at a price you can afford.

We have many service options available:IT Support Services and Consulting, Tampa FL

From Servers and Networking to Firewalls and Computer Security we have the staff expertise and combined decades of experience.

If your office is looking for complete Managed IT Services Tampa, we would be honored to earn your business. We have competitive flat rates and the best customer service in our industry.

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In the modern business environment, you need a phone system that can adapt and meld with the software you use. As software and services grow in sophistication, your phone system should as well. The archaic phones using the cord and hardlines are not long for this world.

Old phone systems are not able to as easily meld in with the digital world in the same way that VoIP phone lines can. Luckily, Landon Technologies’ Tampa IT services can help you set up and switch to a VoIP phone quickly and easily.

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Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a service that provides the ability to make phone calls over the internet rather than in the traditional way. VoIP systems have become very advanced over the years and can emulate every aspect of a traditional phone as well as some additional benefits.

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VoIP phone systems have become less costly than traditional alternatives. Long-distance calls are a thing of the past and so are the other hidden and assorted fees associated with physical phone lines.

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VoIP systems can both replace, or work with, your older phone system. It is possible to route your calls into a digital database this way allowing you to handle aspects of the call anywhere in the world. This is great if you want to route calls to a different phone or an internet service like Skype while you are on the road with no need to change numbers.

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VoIP systems go well beyond simple voice and conference calls. With these digital systems, you can utilize video, share images, as well as a whole plethora of other unique features. These depend on which service you choose.

Getting your team streamlined on a service like this can increase your overall efficiency exponentially while also saving you money.

Another great benefit is that important documents no longer have to sit around and wait to be forwarded. On VoIP faxing is a snap.

Voicemail-to-text transcriptions also allow you another method of keeping on top of your communications. You will be able to get an easy to scan email rather than sit through multiple voice-mails, saving you time and providing clarity.

VoIP quickly goes well beyond a simple phone system and can transform the entire way your company communicates if you wish it too. From keeping sales reps in the loop to tasking out site repairs and receiving group status updates.  Everything from site management to comic book sales can benefit.

·         Fewer Equipment Requirements

It is possible for your entire phone system to now be contained within the devices you all already use. This can eliminate the need for a large amount of equipment in some cases and can free up quite a bit of room.

·         Patch and Improvements Don’t Require Hardware Upgrades.

In many cases, these systems can be self-updating and have a support network constantly managing them. Simply having companies like Landon Technologies make a quick visit will be all you need for physical devices.

·         Greater Reliability

If you take a look around you will see that many of the popular VoIP services tout the fact that they have had zero outages in however many months. There is a reason they can say this. VoIP systems are simply more reliable.

You will have less dropped calls and better service across the globe as long as you have decent internet access.

VoIP Phone Types

While all of these VoIP services are digital, there are a few different variations on how they operate.

·         IP Phones

IP phones or VoIP phones operate like your standard phone but hook up into a router instead of a phone line. This is a good option if you don’t want to have to use something very different from what you are used to.

IP phones allow you to digitize your communications while keeping the look and feel of classic phones.

·         Computer Software

This can be as simple as a 5-minute download or as sophisticated as having companies like Landon Technologies come out and set up a comprehensive communication suite.

Even the free programs give you the options for video calls, and you can still pay to call directly to a phone line.

·         ATA

Analog Telephone Adaptor (ATA) converts analog into digital signals. Like the IP phones, this syncs up an analog phone system with a digital phone system. Often this requires Tampa IT services or your local equivalent to come out and help with the set-up.

Integrate With Advanced Machine Learning Technologies

Every day more software and advanced data gathering and processing systems are released. When you use a VoIP system you are able to gather a much larger array of data touchpoints. This information is invaluable.

With a large amount of background data and the quality and outcome of your phone calls, and depending on your industry, you can employ an array of predictive and algorithmic software used to gauge everything from your pricing to your internal headcount.

The future of business efficiency (especially as you scale up) is in being able to gather, process, and react to large amounts of data. A VoIP system allows you a vast amount of data to work with.

Make the Right Decision For You

While this article has touted all of the benefits of switching over to a VoIP system, the final benefits ultimately come down to you and the needs you have for your business. There are many Tampa IT services that will push a product on you, but at Landon Technologies we believe in helping you – whatever that means.

In some cases, you or your customers may simply not respond positively to a switch to a VoIP phone. We can help you decide if this is a decision that your company should make and what the end result may be.

Weighing the positives against the negatives is key in any business decision and the basis of your communications is no small matter.

Are You Using Safe Messaging Apps?

Security is a constant concern in our technological world and perhaps no other aspect of our personal and business lives is more at risk, and more exploitable, than our personal communications. Over the last decade, messaging services have taken over; they are omnipresent.

With one or two (the average amount most of us use) messaging applications handling such a wide array of our communications, it is important to look at how they compare to one another -especially in terms of security. But, you should keep in mind that security statuses often change. With IT Support Tampa from Landon Technologies, the security status of your applications will be up to date and safe.

As of now, most of the major messaging apps have some form of encryption. New encrypted messaging programs are appearing every month and end-to-end encryption is being added to existing services. A messaging business model simply isn’t viable anymore if you can’t ensure some level of security. But the hackers are always improving as well.

So whether personal or business-related, it behooves you to ensure that the most secure messaging software is being used for your communications.

An Overview of Some Major Messenger Apps

The following are some of the most popular messaging apps. These all have varying degrees of security. Some are viable for business, some are definitely not.

1. Facebook Messenger

Facebook Messenger is Facebook’s sister app that handles the direct messages between profiles on mobile devices. It was separated out as its own app in the middle of ‘16. The status as Facebook’s direct messaging service has made Facebook messenger the second-largest messaging app in terms of users.

Messenger has long been a very insecure service but has recently added end-to-end encryption via Signal Protocol. This is standard though. To activate it you must turn on “Secret Conversation” manually and this isn’t available with group chats.

This application is not suitable for businesses and is mediocre for personal messaging. It is simply convenience from the popularity of Facebook that sustains it.

2. Signal

Signal is available on both Android and iOS and is a very solid messaging platform. It allows for voice calls, messages and group chats with full security encryption. It also has an Inspector Gadget like self-destruct option for messages.

Another advantage, and perhaps the reason well-known experts like Edward Snowden vouch for it, is the regularly audited encryption in place.

Even with all of this security, Signal is still an easy to use and fairly simple app that can handle a substantial percentage of your communication needs. Landon Technologies and other IT Support Tampa firms regularly suggest Signal as a secure message solution.

3.       LINE

While this popular app is mainly used in Asia and it may seem strange when an IT consulting services in Tampa begins suggesting it, the quality that LINE offers is above-average. While it probably isn’t suited for client uses – it is a fun and secure personal messaging service for internal office messaging or personal use.

LINE was built in Japan following the Tōhoku earthquake of 2011. It allowed the country to stay in touch as the infrastructure failed in the wake of the earthquake. This quick surge in popularity led to a larger investment in the platform and time spent providing increased functionality.

LINE has end-to-end encryption on the platform called “Letter Sealing” that must be turned on. It also has a huge variety of fun interactive elements that help you to better stay in touch and play with others.

4.       WhatsApp

WhatsApp is the largest messaging platform in the world with roughly half a billion users. It was recently acquired by Facebook but is still its own standalone service. This is a service also with end-to-end-encryption utilizing on Signal protocol.

WhatsApp has been successfully used by medium-sized businesses to stay in contact with employees and to organize and task out jobs. Remote workers and workers in the field often prefer WhatsApp though both it and LINE are often used for these sets of tasks.

WhatsApp goes a step further in the security aspect by offering a personal security code for a contact allowing you to verify an identity if needed. WhatsApp doesn’t store your messages so any data breaches will be compartmentalized and will be unlikely to affect your communications.

5.       Dust

Using AES 128 and RSA 2048 encryption Dust is a safe option for handling private communications with a variety of self-destruct features based on being read or on a timer. It also alerts users if a screenshot was taken. While the service isn’t very conducive for handling a large number of employees or group chats, it does allow for very private personal communications.

Landon Technologies recommends this as a niche option for some business services. Other IT consulting services in Tampa will rarely give you a through run of which messaging services are viable for which aspects of life and business.

Note: This App was previously called Cyber Dust

Avoid Vishing and Phishing Scams

No amount of encryption can prevent catastrophic user error. One of the most common scams that nefarious actors use to breach security is phishing. By pretending to be a trusted colleague or friend (or attractive individual of the opposite sex) scammers will attempt to gain access numbers or personal information which they can use to breach your security.

Vishing is the new voice variation of this. Scammers can now emulate voice calls. They read from a script and pretend to represent agencies like the IRS. Always ask for some form of verification and try to test them to see if they are using a script. Ask questions an IRS agent should know (if that’s the con).

Sometimes they will even simply ask you questions like “can you hear me?” to prompt a “Yes” reply out of you. This reply may then be used to bypass some form of voice verification you have elsewhere for your business.

Always be on the lookout and maintain your guard in your communications.

Landon Technologies specializes in investigating and advising our clients on the most secure ways to handle their business in the digital realm. We will make sure the digital side of things is covered so you can focus more on running your business the way you want.

How Is Artificial Intelligence Changing Business?

As technology continues to boost the efficiency and efficacy of employees and their tools, more services are looking to employ the most cutting-edge options. Artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly making many previous pillar realities of business a thing of the past. From hiring and firing, to R&D itself, AI is set to make dramatic changes to the business world.

Payroll, policies and talent acquisition are all areas that have already seen AI be used to varying degrees of effectiveness. Costs are already being cut and time saved across the board. Sophistication will only grow and it stands to reason these changes are inevitable for nearly every industry at some point.

Landon Technologies has increased their small business IT support Tampa and other locations because smaller companies are taking advantage of these sophisticated methods.

How long do you think before self-driving delivery trucks and drones are seen multiple times on your morning walk?

Machine Learning Will Grow in Power

As more industries benefit from the power of AI, the investments will increase. The more these AI tools are used, the more data that is collected, the more data that is collected, the better the machines can optimize themselves – and so on. Like predictive pricing software, those who do not adopt the technology will be left on a lower plateau of viability.

While AI in a basic form has been around since the ‘50s, there are a few factors that allow it to be so much more useful today:

  1. The ability to compute huge amounts of data effortlessly.
  2. The ability to collect huge amounts of data.
  3. The sophistication of algorithm implementation.

The machines today can collect and process immense amounts of data. Based on certain parameters they can then process and evaluate this data. This informs a complex set of decisions that the machine can make. The machine evaluates the results of these decisions and uses it to make a better decision the next time and so on. This is a very basic rendition of what machine learning entails.

It grows in accuracy and efficiency over time.

AI Used in Business

There is perhaps nothing more personal in the business world than the act of choosing who will have employment and who will lose employment. It is someone’s livelihood and to see that lose the human touch is justifiably worrying to many.

Many major companies are already currently using automation in some way for managing headcounts. The headcount at IBM, for example, was cut by 25% in part due to the influences of AI and machine learning. While this is a grim outlook for many unessential workers, it also means that businesses that adopt these systems will have a significant advantage over those who don’t.

On the other hand, when it comes to customer-facing services, the results are not so clear cut. It seems that 32% of consumers would not want AI usage even if it led to better service and results. Public acceptance is expected to increase as time goes on and people begin to use more AI services in their personal lives.

A takeaway from many of these studies is that AI is not an effective augmentation to many traditional practices, rather it requires (in many cases) a fundamental restructuring of how services and systems are employed.

It effects, requires, and changes such a wide amount of factors that to best optimize and benefit from AI, you must change the way you do things. When this is done, the benefits are exponential.

Unless a company is willing to change its culture (and associated processes), no amount of AI investment is going to work. This is a double-edged sword and can provide opportunities to compete. IT firms like Landon Technologies have pioneered similar options and services while providing small business IT support Tampa, and demonstrates how these technologies are no longer simply in the purvey of large corporations.

How AI is Being Employed in Internal Business Structures

Understanding how AI is being employed by other businesses can help you to understand how you may best employ it yourself in the future.

Targeting and training employees

We touched on this a bit earlier. Many companies are learning just how drastic an effect utilizing AI can have on your payroll. Finding the best employee can be a time-consuming process but is absolutely necessary for success and growth. Many focus on the negative ‘inhuman’ aspect of AI but fail to realize that an AI will operate without bias, and can screen a much higher number of applicants fairly.

AI is beginning to move past keywords and beginning to be able to make connections and find patterns in qualified applicants. This growing ability coupled with the speed at which AI can process information means that businesses will be able to one-day source qualified and effective candidates almost immediately.

AI has also been utilized to monitor employee activities and skills. This allows managers to decide which employees are effective and which are not. Not only does this allow for better decisions when cuts need to be made, but also allows the AI to better find qualified candidates. Ai can look for workers based on the patterns and traits expressed by your already effective employees.

More accurate employee pay rates and communication

Soon pay based on title or experience may be extinct. AI can handle huge amounts of employee data and compare and contrast value based on activity. IT Support Tampa companies using these methods are able to pinpoint which employees are offering the most value and can allow them to compensate these assets further.

Chatbots and other AI have even been employed to help answer employee questions and to offer optimized career path advice. The response to this has been mixed of course.

Using AI in Your Business

While most CEOs say that they think AI will be integral to future developments, only around 11% say they have the technical know-how to implement such services. By hiring Landon Technologies for small business IT support Tampa (and elsewhere) you can ensure that your company is using the optimum software for your needs.

Now serving New Tampa and Tampa Palms. We are here to assist!

If you have questions regarding any of our services, feel free to call (888) 596-3998. Our normal hours are Monday-Friday 8am-6pm.

Does your business need IT help in multiple locations? We service the following Florida cities: Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Palm Coast, St Augustine, Ormond Beach, Orlando, Jacksonville and Tampa.