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Preferred Blog

Preferred has been serving the Tinley Park area since 1991, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Vince Arden is the founder and President of Preferred Communication Systems. He is a graduate of DeVry University with over 30 years of experience in the IT industry. In addition to providing leadership in sales, marketing, project management, and service delivery at Preferred, Vince provides Virtual CIO-level services for the 4th-largest Realtor Association in the nation and to an Inc. 500 fastest growing company. He has been interviewed by industry publications like Redmond magazine, CRN News, and Continuum for his expertise related to cloud computing and the managed IT services industry. He also lends his voice as a contributing author for the Cloud Business Review.

His core purpose is to, "Help people achieve their greatest potential in work and L.I.F.E." He passionately works toward making this a reality in every aspect of life, including his areas of expertise, such as thought leadership, ideation, communication, team building, and Servant Leadership. Vince models building strong relationships, both with his team at Preferred and with his clients. He strives to build a network of people he can embolden to work smarter, so that they may ultimately be able to live better.

The Opportunity Cost of Neglecting Your Business IT

The Opportunity Cost of Neglecting Your Business IT

In business, it’s tempting to think, if it's not broken, don't fix it. This is especially true for technology. Your computers turn on, emails go out, and things seem to work… so why bother with constant maintenance?

What if I told you this safe approach is actually draining your profits? It’s a hidden expense, and understanding it can completely change how you see your IT.

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The Unseen Vault

The Unseen Vault

For business owners, your most critical assets aren’t your office or your inventory; it’s your data. Every client list, financial record, and strategic plan forms the makeup of your company. Protecting this data, due to its importance, isn't just an IT issue—it's an essential business function.

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How AI Could Be Quietly Streamlining Your Operations

How AI Could Be Quietly Streamlining Your Operations

Today, few topics are generating as much buzz right now as Artificial Intelligence. It's a concept that can feel both futuristic and, at times, a little intimidating. What if I told you that AI is already working behind the scenes in many businesses, acting as the most efficient, data-driven coworker you've ever had?

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Vendor Management: A Single Point of Contact for All Your Needs

Vendor Management: A Single Point of Contact for All Your Needs

Your small business works with vendors to ensure it has access to all of the tools and services it needs to function, but managing them all can be tedious and tiresome. If you’re not careful with how you manage your vendors, it can become a job in and of itself—and you don’t have time for that. Vendor management doesn’t have to be hard, though, and with Preferred, it can be a breeze.

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The Next Time You Get Frustrated with IT, Remember This

The Next Time You Get Frustrated with IT, Remember This

It’s easy to let issues with your technology cause productivity to crash and burn, especially when you’re in the thick of a major project or a complex task. Frustration is all too common in the office, especially where technology is concerned, but it doesn’t have to ruin your day or kill your productivity. Today, we want to discuss how maintaining your composure is the best way to address these issues.

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The Hidden Costs and Risks of Outdated Technology

The Hidden Costs and Risks of Outdated Technology

It feels good to use tools you’re familiar with, but there comes a time when old tools start to hold you back. You might start to see unexpected costs that only surface over time. Let’s take a look at how you can know when it’s time to update your business’ tech and some of the hidden costs associated with not updating it.

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The 5 Key Components of a Successful Security Strategy

The 5 Key Components of a Successful Security Strategy

Your business’ security infrastructure does a lot of heavy lifting, primarily due to today’s increasingly sophisticated cybersecurity threats. Companies want to know that their security measures work. To help you make sure you’re doing all you can to protect your infrastructure, we’ve put together five important components for any successful cybersecurity solution strategy.

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What Do All Those Different File Types Do?

What Do All Those Different File Types Do?

There are a lot of file types that are put to use in the modern workplace, all with their own importance. Let’s review what the different file extensions—the little series of letters after the file name—mean, and how they influence how you can use a given file.

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Don't Let IT Downtime Gut Your Business

Don't Let IT Downtime Gut Your Business

Let me ask you something… Do you know just how much IT downtime costs? For SMBs, it’s typically between $427 to over EIGHT GRAND an hour. Imagine your whole workforce just chillin' because the Internet's down, meanwhile deadlines are getting missed, customers are getting ticked off, and opportunities are disappearing. That's a nightmare, man. 

This is why you need to do what you need to do to keep your business up and running.

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4 of the Biggest Cybersecurity Risks Your Business Faces

4 of the Biggest Cybersecurity Risks Your Business Faces

Most small businesses have trouble navigating cybersecurity, and that’s because there are too many threats to count. You might even feel like you're a little over your head yourself. Today, we’re bringing to you four of the biggest threats to watch out for on the Internet, as well as what you can do to keep them from impacting your operations.

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Easy Ways to Spot Phishing Scams

Easy Ways to Spot Phishing Scams

Have you ever received an email that just felt…off? Maybe it promised a prize you didn't enter to win, or it tried to scare you into thinking your account was in trouble? That’s likely a "phishing" scam, and it's one of the most common tricks thieves use on the internet.

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Tip of the Week: How to Use Presenter View for Presentations

Tip of the Week: How to Use Presenter View for Presentations

If you’re worried about presentation anxiety, or if you’ve ever experienced dry mouth, sweaty palms, or a sudden loss for words while on the spot, then you’ll be happy to know about some of the options available in modern presentation tools. One in particular, Presenter View, comes to mind, and it’s a great way to kick presentation anxiety to the curb. We’ll go over how to use Presenter View in Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides.

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The Real Talk About Data Backup

The Real Talk About Data Backup

We need to talk about something that is as exciting as watching water boil, but it might just save your entire business one day: backing up your data.

I know, I know. You're busy doing your thing, closing deals, and you’re busy. The last thing on your mind is where your files are outside of your server. The truth is, it’s not very interesting, but it sure is important.

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When the Wi-Fi Dies

When the Wi-Fi Dies

We’ve all felt that mini-panic that happens when our personal technology glitches. Not a great feeling. That’s just if your microwave is on the fritz, or your smartphone fell in the toilet. We all depend on multiple devices each day, but for a business owner who is responsible for so much, technology failure really isn’t an option. This month, we thought we’d go into how technology outages can impact a business to give you a better perspective of just how much is at stake.

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Don’t Let Your Organizational Security Take a Vacation This Summer

Don’t Let Your Organizational Security Take a Vacation This Summer

Summer is here, and with it comes the rest and relaxation that warm weather encourages. That said, summer is not a time to let up on your cybersecurity awareness. Today, we’ll share how you can both enjoy the summer season without putting your security at risk in the process.

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5 Tips to Optimize Your Workspace

5 Tips to Optimize Your Workspace

You’re on your second coffee, but the gears just aren’t grinding. You know the feeling. Sometimes, it isn’t that you lack motivation, it’s that where you are working isn’t conducive to productivity. A well-optimized workspace, not just in your physical setup, but in your digital organization, can improve productivity and efficiency of tasks immediately.

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Get Better Insights from Your Spreadsheets… Use Quick Analysis

Get Better Insights from Your Spreadsheets… Use Quick Analysis

Do you ever find your eyes glazing over at the sight of a sprawling spreadsheet? That feeling of being overwhelmed by a sea of data is universal… but what if you could instantly start making sense of it all with just one click?

Both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets offer powerful, yet often overlooked, features to help you quickly analyze and visualize your data. In Excel, this is called the Quick Analysis tool. While Google Sheets doesn't have a single button with the same name, it provides the same powerful capabilities through its intuitive menus and the AI-powered Explore feature. Let's dive into how you can leverage these tools to transform your data from a source of sighs to a font of insight.

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Stop the Productivity Drain

Stop the Productivity Drain

Every business owner understands the concept that time is money, but are you one of the few who know exactly how and where it is chipping away at your bottom line? One thing that is often cited is productivity, or often, the lack thereof. We believe that understanding these numbers is the first step to mastering them.

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Ditch the IT Drama and Level Up Your Business with Managed IT

Ditch the IT Drama and Level Up Your Business with Managed IT

Real talk: does running your business feel less like you’re crushing it and more like you’re the unpaid, stressed-out IT guy? One second you're closing deals, the next your whole system crashes and you're stuck on a support forum trying to figure out what a "DNS propagation error" is. I can easily say, that’s not the vibe you’re looking for.

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Advanced Cybersecurity Strategies for the Modern Traveler

Advanced Cybersecurity Strategies for the Modern Traveler

As you prepare to travel, remember that your digital security strategy needs to be as agile as you are. While advice like using strong, unique passwords and employing a VPN on unsecured Wi-Fi are helpful, professional data on the move has grown more complex. Today, we offer key security strategies that go beyond the usual to help you travel with greater digital confidence.

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      Your small business works with vendors to ensure it has access to all of the tools and services it needs to function, but managing them all can be tedious and tiresome. If you’re not careful with how you manage your vendors, it can become a job in and of itself—and you don’t...

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      Best Places to Work - 5 YEARS STRONG!!

      Preferred is once again, honored for being a Best Place to Work for the fifth straight year!  Our team is what makes Preferred a Best Place to Work.  

      Daily Herald Suburban Business 2024 Best Places to Work Honorees The Daily Herald Suburban Business has announced the names of 51 companies, in 5 categories of competition, that are honored as the 2024 Best Places to Work in Illinois. This statewide survey and awards program was designed to identify, recognize and honor the best places of employment in Illinois, benefiting the state's economy, its workforce and businesses.