Best Internet Service Provider for Small Business
8 Best Internet Service Providers in Washington, D.C. Fiber Connectivity by Tom Collins With another East Coast winter approaching, the issue of business continuity is popping up.
Choosing a vendor that can reliably provide service in even the worst conditions allows your organization to take calls and accept orders from sunny locales regardless of the weather outside your windows. Reliable Internet service holds a unique position in the business world. From sales to marketing to communications, most operations require continuous, reliable Internet service.
Therefore, your choice of Internet service provider can make or break your day and your profitability. If you are new to the area or are looking for a viable alternative to your current service, there are plenty of options in the Washington, D.C. area. How, then, do you decide which ISP to go with? Differentiating Your Local Internet Service Providers When comparing ISPs, keep this short checklist in mind to help you determine which may be the best fit. Speed and connection Contracts and pricing Reputation and reliability Add-ons and extras Customer support Coverage area Our goal in this article is to provide the tools you need to make the right decision for your business needs.The section below is the next step in the decision-making process—learning the players and evaluating if their service options are a match your requirements. Major ISPs in the D.C. Metro Area In D.C., the options vary and include well-known telecom providers. Here's a short review of those major players. Birch Birch is a national ISP that offers voice and data connectivity and are focused on being a good option for local small businesses. Allied Telecom Allied Telecom is local ISP that provides telecom services and is another great option for small to medium businesses that prefer a local vendor. Comcast Business Comcast Business is a Multiple System Operator which is registered to provide cable TV and sells advertising on those channels.
They offer a variety of services in bundles to homeowners and small businesses in the D.C. area, including phone, Internet, and cable. Comcast is well known as a low-cost entry point for ISP services. These competitive rates are due in part to outsourced data centers, advertising being a primary revenue stream and the fact that they only provide regional coverage. Verizon Verizon is a well-known provider due to its massive size. Some companies are attracted to Verizon because of their ability to provide services just about anywhere in their regions. The most common customer complaints concern billing and customer service. For companies that prefer more personal support and simpler billing, other providers may be a better fit. Zayo Zayo offers a "Pro" service that provides exceptional data and connectivity for businesses of any size.
They do not provide phone services, however. So, for companies looking for a single-source provider, Zayo might not be the best fit. Windstream Windstream is a major provider of enterprise telecom services on the east coast and midwest. They offer "specialty" bundles tailored to the needs of specific industries. Windstream has put an emphasis on major enterprise organizations, which could make them a good fit for larger companies. Small and medium size businesses may find other partners a better fit, but Windstream is worth evaluating. RCN RCN is another potential partner for any business looking for a full-service vendor. Strong offerings and good customer service make RCN worth checking out.
While they are a great provider, they don't offer 100% regional coverage. When considering RCN, ensure they can provide services to your location before spending too much time reviewing their offerings. Atlantech Yes, we also provide fiber internet to the Washington DC area. Atlantech has the right combination of support, connectivity, coverage, and reliability, including: Direct connectivity Company owned & operated Certified Data Centers Fantastic customer service Unified communications packages to fit your needs Streamlined, easy-to-understand billing While we recommend evaluating multiple providers to find the best fit, we want to be on your list of potential vendors. Contact us today and let us get to know your business, fiber, and voice requirements.
Technical terminology Bandwidth Bandwidth is the total physical capacity of an internet connection to deliver data from one point to another. Broadband An umbrella term for many types of high-speed internet, broadband internet is distinguished from older dial-up service for its “always on” connection that doesn’t interfere with phone lines. Cable internet Using coaxial cables like you see in many homes, cable internet is one way businesses can get high-speed internet. Some cable networks use newer hybrid fiber coaxial (HFC) technology that combines coaxial and optical fiber cables. Copper Copper wires deliver phone services to millions of American businesses—and DSL internet travels along these lines too. Dial-up internet If you were born before the year 2000, you probably remember the dial-up internet days.
Even businesses used to use this now-obsolete internet access that required your modem to dial a phone number and wait for an answer to get connected. DSL internet Digital subscriber line (DSL) is a type of high-speed broadband internet service that uses copper wires to deliver data to businesses and residents. But unlike dial-up connections, DSL internet doesn’t interfere with phone services and is much faster. Fiber internet Fiber-optic technology can deliver blazingly fast internet over glass or plastic cables. Fiber internet is newer and less available than DSL, cable, or satellite connections. Fixed wireless Some rural businesses can get internet by connecting a wireless receiver to signals sent by radio towers. It’s an alternative to satellite internet for businesses that need reliable access.
Latency Even at the highest speeds, it takes time for internet data to move from one point to another. But some connections are faster than others, and the ones that lag behind have higher latency. Satellite internet has the highest average latency because information must travel tens of thousands of miles to orbiting stations and back. Fiber-optic technology offers the lowest latency. Satellite internet Orbiting the planet are dozens of high-tech satellite stations, many of which are used to deliver high-speed internet to businesses across the globe. Satellite internet is a godsend for rural offices that can’t access other types of connections. Static IP Every computer that accesses the internet is assigned an internet protocol (IP) address.
Traditional connections use dynamic IPs, which means they can change over time as the ISP sees fit. But some business operations require unchanging—or static—IPs to function. Uptime You can’t expect your internet to work perfectly 365 days a year, unfortunately. But you should be able to expect high reliability from your business ISP. Uptime is the percentage of time—such as 99.9%—measured over a month or year that your internet is connected. VoIP Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, services allow you to make and receive phone calls using internet technology. The name comes from the process of turning sound into packets of data that are sent using internet protocol (IP) computing language.
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