Not very long ago, the internet was largely considered a novelty. Some people even thought it was little more than a fad. Today, it’s a necessity. It’s as much an essential utility as electricity, water, and gas. It’s our lifeline to the rest of the world. In fact, without the internet, many people are cut off from the rest of the world. They cannot connect with friends and loved ones, hear the latest news, pay their bills, and carry out other seemingly basic tasks.
The internet is so important, that having the right service provider is crucial. In many cases, choosing a local internet provider can make a difference in how well your internet serves you. Think about some of the advantages of forgoing the national chains and working with a local company.
Better Customer Service
One of the main benefits of choosing a local ISP is the customer service they offer. People often believe that being a smaller company means having fewer customer support resources. Though that may be true to an extent, it’s only a small portion of the bigger picture. Whereas national providers tend to direct calls and emails from customers to automated systems, local providers are likely to make actual human customer service representatives more readily available.
Local service providers are more driven to keep their customers happy as well. Keep in mind that local ISPs don’t have nationally recognized names and customers across the country to fall back on. Satisfied local customers and word-of-mouth advertising are the keys to their survival, so they actually care about the level of support they provide.
Faster Problem Resolution
Another reason to consider choosing a local ISP is faster problem resolution. National internet chains can take days to resolve outages, coverage gaps, individual connectivity problems, and other issues. They may have to coordinate their response efforts with their regional offices as well as their main headquarters. From there, they have to dispatch technicians to resolve those issues, and those personnel may have to come in from elsewhere.
Local providers have teams on hand to handle problems. Perhaps even more importantly, they know your area because they’re part of your community. They don’t rely solely on their dispatch software to get teams on-site to fix problems, and they have more thorough knowledge of where their towers or underground cables are. They can resolve issues faster and more effectively than the national chains.
More Service Options
Additionally, local internet providers may offer more service options than national ISPs. Though national chains give their customers a few internet plans to choose from, they’re basically one-size-fits-all solutions. They don’t cater to the needs of all customers; they’re simply designed to cover a range of general needs and expectations. Local providers often give their customers choices that are tailored to more specific needs. As such, you may be able to choose an internet plan that more closely matches your usage and budget.
Choosing a Local Provider for Your Internet Needs
People tend to gravitate to national chains when they choose ISPs. They assume those larger companies will give them better service and response times and more choices. That’s not usually the case, though. Local internet service providers care more about their customers. They often provide better support, faster resolutions to problems, and more plans to choose from among other advantages.
