Data Net Blog

The most talented employees on your payroll are subject to a specific kind of tax, one that saps their productivity and makes them feel like expensive data-entry clerks. That’s the tedium task, which is levied against employees of small businesses that use multiple tools that don’t integrate well. Ultimately, what happens is that these businesses have employees manually connect these apps in various ways, all of which waste time that would be better spent doing meaningful work.

We talk a lot about Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and how it’s a game-changer for SMBs, but there are a lot of ways to muck up the implementation if you’re not careful. The reality of the situation is that VoIP is not a “set it and forget it” type of solution; it requires careful planning and precision to take full advantage of the value it brings without frustrating your clients and employees. Today, we want to cover three of the most critical VoIP implementation mistakes and what you can do to avoid them.

For most small businesses, the manual reporting cycle is tedious, involving numerous different websites and applications, exporting data, and then trying to consolidate it all into one single spreadsheet to determine how well (or how poorly) your business performed last quarter. It’s necessary to look at historical data like this to better run your business, but it’s not necessary to waste so much time doing it. By the time you’re done running reports and putting all the data together, you have no time or energy left to actually analyze it, and that’s a problem.

As an IT expert who has spent years under the hood of various professional service firms, I’ve noticed a recurring pattern. Many lawyers are brilliant at practicing law but are often held back by a digital anchor; outdated servers, fragmented files, and manual billing processes that eat away at billable hours.

In 2026, staying competitive isn't just about your legal acumen; a lot of it is about your tech stack. If you want to scale your firm, protect your clients, and have a chance to reclaim your weekends, here are the four technologies your office needs to run optimally.

Does your business technology drive you up the wall with uncertainty? Are you reacting to IT problems when you would instead prefer to proactively leverage technology to drive your business’ growth? It’s not your fault; it’s the result of a phenomenon known as the Executive IT Gap, and it’s keeping you trapped in an endless cycle of reactive, costly, and inefficient technology decisions that are slowing your business down.

Are you exhausted from constantly dealing with garbled audio, dropped calls, and confusing telephone bills from your vendor? You deserve better, and while you know it, your telephone provider doesn’t. Thankfully, we do as well, and we have just the solution for you: Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP.

However, not all VoIP solutions are the same, and what works for one business might not work for yours. Today, we want to explore some of the mistakes SMBs make when selecting a VoIP vendor.

Imagine you’re going through your workday, business as usual, until all of a sudden, you lose control of your computer. A message displays across your screen stating that your files have been encrypted and they will be permanently deleted unless you pay a huge ransom. Meanwhile, you’re sitting there thinking, “Why me? Why my small business?”

Cybersecurity is not just for enterprises; it’s for all businesses, big and small. You need to take proactive measures now so you don’t pay for your inaction later.

Google's recent decision to push more remote staff back to the office, with potential consequences for non-compliance, feels like a step backward in the evolution of workplace flexibility. 

While the tech giant cites the importance of in-person collaboration and a stronger company culture, this rigid stance overlooks the significant benefits and increasing acceptance of remote work, especially for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) need every advantage they can get. The Internet of Things (IoT) offers a powerful way to boost efficiency and drive growth. 

Simply put, IoT connects everyday business objects—from machinery and vehicles to thermostats and inventory—to the internet. These connected "things" use sensors to gather data and communicate, often automating actions without human intervention. This creates smarter, more responsive business operations.

News flash: just because you’re a smaller business doesn’t mean you’re a smaller target for cyberattacks. You’re not immune, and you can certainly fall prey to the unfortunate reality of the modern cyberthreat landscape. If anything, small businesses are the perfect target, and we’ll explain why.

Nobody likes getting big, unexpected bills from tech companies—neither the business owners who have to pay them nor the employees who might feel responsible for causing them. Small businesses face a tough choice: spend money to keep employees productive or save money and deal with slowdowns.

"I don’t need to worry about cybersecurity… my business is too small to be in the crosshairs of hackers."

This is one of the most dangerous mistakes a small business can make when it comes to cybersecurity. If you think this way, it shows you might not understand how modern cyberthreats work. Let’s break it down and show you why this mindset can be risky.

If you want to discuss the single most influential technology for the modern era, there’s a lot of competition—but the cloud is a serious contender. Through the cloud, your organization can pull off feats previously impossible for all but the largest and most profitable companies. Today, we want to look at how small businesses use the cloud and how you benefit from the various models.

Have you noticed the profound impact modern technology has on your business? Do you want to leverage it to your advantage? If you want to surpass your competition, then you’ll need every advantage out there. Let’s look at some of the technologies that your business can implement to give itself a leg up through marketing efforts.

The cloud has made quite a splash, even in our everyday lives. Think about it: how else would all those streaming services work, if it wasn’t for the cloud? Entertainment at our fingertips aside, we’re big fans of cloud services for business purposes, and there are a few very good reasons for that.

Six, to be specific.

The modern business landscape is fueled, in large part, by something we refer to as professional services. This typically includes any business model with trained professionals at the center of the business. In today’s economy, this can include tradesmen, but typically, it means consultants, lawyers, agents, and other professionals essential to moving business forward. Today, we thought we would briefly go into some of the technologies that professional services depend on. 

Nowadays, a business can’t really get by without using technology in some fashion, and wherever technology is involved, it greatly helps to have a reliable resource on hand to keep it functioning as expected. This is the role of a managed service provider, and while a partnership with one can be a great business asset, this is predicated on the value that the Managed Services Provider (MSP) actually provides. Let’s go over a few reasons that a MSP is a good resource for small and medium-sized businesses, and how you can identify the best option for you.

Technology brings a lot of benefits, but it can also cause problems. Small and mid-sized businesses that rely on technology will have to confront these challenges to get the most out of their IT. Let’s take a look at three of the most common technology problems that SMBs face. 

We’ve seen artificial intelligence used more and more commonly in businesses, largely in the form of machine learning. What’s even nicer is that it is becoming more and more accessible to smaller businesses as well. Let’s discuss how a small business might put AI to use, or in other words, how you can get started doing so.

In certain industries that are steeped in tradition, it can often be challenging to meet the stringent security requirements in order to keep up with modern threats. Take, for example, the modern law firm. Just how does a law firm go about securing its data and technology, and what must be considered when implementing security solutions for these types of organizations?