No business that uses technology should go without IT support. When a computer has an error, when a program isn’t working right, or whenever an employee is struggling with software, the IT department is there to help.
However, with the growth of remote and hybrid work, organizations suddenly have to choose between onsite & remote IT support. Is it necessary to keep IT staff on-site in an office, or will they be more efficient working remotely?
It’s time to answer that question. Let’s take a look at onsite IT services vs remote IT support to see how they compare and why a business might choose one over the other.
What are Onsite IT Services?
Onsite IT services are, as the name suggests, technological support from an onsite team at a business or office. Here, IT agents are physically present to assist with troubleshooting, maintenance, and user support.
This is a common IT service, as it provides hands-on, in-person support. IT agents can see the device in question and manage it without needing to talk the user through each step over the phone. (It’s also the fastest way for agents to see when a computer isn't actually plugged in, which is why it’s not booting up.)
Key Benefits of Choosing Onsite IT Support
On-site IT support has several benefits that make it a popular choice for companies with room for an IT department. These include:
Hands-on troubleshooting: Having an onsite IT team means agents can troubleshoot and manage devices in person rather than having to ask for descriptions and guide users through step-by-step instructions.
Personalized service: When an onsite IT agent is helping a user, they’re there in the moment and can provide clear explanations and personalized support directly.
Quick resolutions: Managing devices in person makes the support process fast and convenient, and onsite IT agents can quickly get to in-office devices that need troubleshooting.
Physical maintenance and configurations: Some tasks just can’t be done remotely, such as setting up physical equipment or complex network configurations. In these cases, having an onsite IT agent is essential.
Challenges of Onsite IT Services
While in-person support can be helpful and convenient, it’s not without challenges or drawbacks. Challenges of onsite IT services include:
Higher costs: Onsite IT teams typically cost an organization more than remote teams, even when they have the same number of agents who are paid the exact same. Onsite teams can add to costs such as energy usage, physical space needs, hardware requirements, and so on.
Dependency on physical presence: While having an agent physically present is a benefit of onsite support, needing an agent to be physically present can also be a drawback. If no agents are available or in the office, employees must wait until one is free or can travel over, which can take extra time.
Travel: In-person IT support sometimes requires agents to travel to offsite locations. This can be a time-consuming process (especially during rush hour) and adds an additional expense.
Limits remote work: If a remote employee encounters a technical issue, what can they do? They could call IT and have someone talk them through the process or wait for an agent to travel to them, but neither is entirely reliable. If they work in a different timezone, this becomes even more difficult. As such, companies investing in remote or hybrid work will need an equally mobile IT team.
What is Remote IT Support?
On the other side of the coin, we have remote IT support. Remote support allows IT agents to work from anywhere with an internet connection just as easily as if they were there in person. It does this by remotely accessing the employee’s device, so they can troubleshoot and manage it directly even from miles away.
Splashtop SOS, for instance, is a remote support solution that allows IT agents to seamlessly connect to a user’s computer no matter what device they’re using or where they are. The agent and employee can chat over a voice call as the agent works, enabling them to walk through the troubleshooting with all the same benefits as in-person support, with none of the drawbacks.
Key Benefits of Choosing Remote IT Support
When IT agents are empowered to work from anywhere, companies can unlock several benefits. These include:
Improved availability: One of the biggest benefits of remote IT support is the ability to reach an agent anytime, anywhere. No matter where an agent is, they can access the employee’s computer and troubleshoot directly, and a distributed workforce allows agents to be available at different working hours throughout the day.
Reduced costs: Remote support solutions like Splashtop can be quite affordable and have a high return on investment. Combine that with the expenses associated with in-office IT teams and you’re looking at significantly lower costs.
Quicker response times: Remote support makes it easier to connect with IT agents when they’re needed quickly. Rather than waiting for an in-office agent to become available and make their way over, employees can connect with an available agent from anywhere, thus increasing response times.
A broader talent pool: Enabling remote support allows businesses to hire IT agents regardless of location. As a result, they can staff their IT team with top talent from around the country (or even the world) without worrying about their location or transportation, opening up a much wider pool of talent to hire from.
Common Challenges of Remote IT Support
Remote IT support does have its challenges as well. Organizations should keep these potential obstacles in mind when looking at remote support solutions:
Reliance on technology:
Remote support depends on technology to connect the IT agent and employee. As such, it will have trouble if the devices aren’t working or the internet connection is poor.
Security concerns: Remotely accessing devices can have risks if you’re not using a secure platform. Organizations need to ensure they’re using a platform that’s compliant with industry and government security standards, such as Splashtop, which includes multiple advanced security features to provide a safe connection.
Limited hardware assistance: remote support is fantastic for managing devices remotely, but it can’t manage hardware (or even human errors like “forgot to plug in the computer”). Companies with significant hardware investments will still need access to in-person support for related issues.
Onsite IT Services vs Remote IT Support: A Comprehensive Comparison
With both onsite & remote IT support defined and understood, we can begin looking at the two and see how they compare. In a head-to-head match of onsite IT services vs remote IT support, which one comes out on top?
1. Cost
Remote IT support has proven to be a cost-effective solution, providing a comparatively high ROI and reducing costs associated with onsite IT. With an affordable solution like Splashtop, companies of all sizes can benefit from remote support.
2. Accessibility
This is another area where remote IT support wins, as long as you have a good internet connection. Remote support solutions make it easy for IT agents to access employees’ devices for maintenance and troubleshooting no matter where they are, so it’s just as convenient (if not more so) than being there in person.
3. Response time
While one would assume it’s faster to reach someone in the same building as you, remote IT support typically has more rapid response times than onsite. This is due to the ease of accessibility and the increased talent pool remote support makes available — when you’re not limited to only IT agents available in person, you’ll be able to reach one more quickly.
4. Effectiveness
This is another area where the winner will differ depending on your organization’s needs. If you have a company with physical hardware that needs to be managed directly, onsite IT support will still be essential. However, for managing devices, troubleshooting, running updates, and other software-based IT needs, remote support continues to be just as fast and effective as in-person if not more.
Transforming Your IT Support Experience with Splashtop Remote Support
If you’re looking for a robust, powerful, and cost-effective remote support solution for your business, then Splashtop has what you need. Splashtop Enterprise and Splashtop SOS empower remote workforces and allow IT teams to connect to and manage computers from anywhere, on whichever devices they prefer.
Splashtop even has tools that allow remote IT support agents to help manage hardware remotely. Splashtop AR uses augmented reality to help users collaborate so IT agents can guide users through maintenance as if they were there in person.
Additionally, Splashtop has affordable pricing plans for businesses of all sizes, providing all the remote support capabilities of the competition at a fraction of the price.
Try Splashtop for yourself with a free trial:
