Business continuity or disaster recovery plans are critical to keeping your enterprise afloat during or after a disaster. Equally important, however, is a data backup strategy. While this plan is definitely part of your disaster recovery scenario, it arguably deserves more attention than most other parts of your overall plan.

Without access to your data and any clients’ data, your business is stuck. And that applies whether the data is inaccessible on a locked laptop or, worse, if it’s been completely lost. Let’s take a look at what a business data backup strategy should look like for you.

What Do You Need to Save?

More than likely, you won’t need to save every piece of data. Try to determine which pieces of business information are absolutely critical and which are simply nice to have. But more importantly, don’t worry about backing up things like your computer’s operating systems. Those can always be reinstalled. Lost data, however, is difficult to recover and can harm your business long-term. Save original copies of files whenever you can and ensure that everyone has access as they need it.

Virtual vs. Physical Storage

Backing up your files on a physical hard drive or device may seem like the most secure option, but this isn’t necessarily the case. A locked laptop can still be stolen or damaged, depriving you of your data. Worse, a central physical storage location makes sharing files a challenge, especially if your employees are working from home. Consider taking advantage of cloud storage for easier sharing and less risk of file loss.

Backup Schedule

We always forget certain important things or simply choose to delay them. For these and other reasons, tech experts will generally agree that it’s best to automate your backup system as much as possible. Your computer and cloud storage system will take care of copying your selected files over. That just leaves the question of how often you need to do this.

Depending on how quickly your company generates data, you may need to run backups multiple times per day. On the other hand, if your core information rarely changes, weekly or even monthly backups may be sufficient. Take your typical productivity into account and build your backup schedule based on that.

Pro Tip: A full backup copies over all your company data. An incremental backup copies over new or modified files following the most recent full backup. Which type of backup is best for your company’s needs?

Accessing Your Important Data

Ultimately, you need to be able to access critical data like payroll, client information, employee information, and more regardless of circumstances. The exact method of backup you choose may differ depending on your company’s needs and the potential for disaster. Whatever you do, ensure that you’ll never be left hanging.

Connect with us to learn more about our cloud storage services and backup solutions.