The Effects of Older PCs on Small Businesses

Your small business customers have probably noticed that their older PCs are not as fast or responsive as they should be. But they might not realize how much these older PCs are costing them.

A recent Techaisle* survey1 has detailed the effect of older PCs on small businesses. The report looks at small business in six countries and finds that 36 percent of small businesses have some PCs that are four or more years old.

These same businesses reported frequent or very frequent decreases in application and system performance; PCs that are slow to boot up and respond; application and system crashes; and virus, malware, and spyware infections, among other issues.

In fact, the report found that four-year-old PCs experience 1.3x the issues compared to PCs that are less than four years old—leading to higher repair costs and more hours lost to PC downtime.

Yet, 52 percent of small businesses surveyed responded that they did not see a need to replace these PCs. For many, the reason has to do with budget. Other popular responses demonstrated a perception that the PCs were not critical to the operation of the company and that there are no must-have capabilities in new PCs.

Faster Is More Affordable than They Think

Despite their hesitancy to buy new PCs, most survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that new PCs can run more applications simultaneously and make employees more productive. In fact, the survey found that while older PCs can run five applications at once, and that performance degrades when seven applications are running simultaneously, newer PCs can easily run eight applications simultaneously without performance degradation.

Other popular responses included that newer PCs help employees be more productive, are significantly easier to manage, and allow employees to work more efficiently when out of the office.

New PCs powered by Intel® processors deliver amazing performance gains and stunning new experiences for noticeably less than these respondents probably paid for a comparable PC four years ago.2 New mobile PCs come in sleeker, thinner, and lighter styles and offer unprecedented responsiveness and extraordinary battery life.

Helping Small Businesses Increase Productivity

It’s clear that small businesses can benefit from upgrading their older-than-four-years PCs. When asked what would make them invest in new PCs, 60 percent of respondents indicated they would replace PCs when the cost of repair approached the cost to replace.

These small businesses might not realize how much the costs of maintaining an older PC add up over time—both in terms of actual repair costs and lost productivity.

You are in a position to help these customers understand the risks of holding onto their older PCs, and the benefits of upgrading.

Here are some things you can do to help small business customers understand the benefits of replacing their four-years-and-older PCs with new PCs powered by Intel® processors:

Ask about the performance of their current PCs. Chances are, your small business customers have experienced slowdowns, malware issues, or connectivity issues with their older PCs. But they might not realize how much these day-to-day frustrations are affecting productivity—or what a difference a new PC can make. Once you understand their current situation, support your recommendation with information about how a new PC can address their specific pain points.

Lay out the costs of holding onto an older PC. The Techaisle* survey found that the average cost to repair PCs that are four years or older is $421—1.3x the cost to repair a PC that is less than four years old. Combined with the fact that older PCs need to be repaired 1.5x as often as newer ones, and that the number of hours lost due to PC breakdown is 2.1x higher for older PCs, these costs can really add up!

Source: retailedge.intel.com