In business, time is money. Nowhere is this truer than in a small business where downtime and lost productivity can have a big impact. Fast, reliable internet is no longer a nice-to-have. It’s a business imperative. Now more than ever, when customer expectations for fast service are high and margins are tight, small businesses can’t afford slow connections or service interruptions. 

There are numerous reasons why a faster internet connection enhances business productivity and profitability. But let’s start by understanding the differences in internet speeds.

Internet Speeds: Fiber vs. Cable Connectivity

It may surprise you to learn that not all business bandwidth is created equal. For example, there are significant performance differences between cable and fiber internet as shown in the table below:

Source: https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/networking/fiber-vs-cable-what-is-the-difference/

On average, upload speeds for cable tend to be half the download speed. That means uploading a file to the internet with cable connectivity will take twice as long as downloading it. When upload and download speeds don’t match, that’s called asymmetrical internet speed.

In contrast, fiber internet can offer symmetrical upload and download speeds, which means you can upload information to the internet just as fast as you can download it. This is beneficial to small businesses that need to upload information and data such as customer orders, accounting, file sharing and more to the cloud.

What impact does asymmetric speed have? Let’s say a small business wants to upload a one gigabyte promotional video to their website. With a cable internet speed of 10 Mbps, it would take 15 minutes to upload the video. Bump that up to 100 Mbps (a mid-range speed for cable connectivity), it would take 1 minute and 30 seconds to upload. But with 2G fiber internet at 2 Gpbs, it would only take 4 seconds.  

If a one-minute difference between 100 Mbps and 2 Gpbs uploads leaves you shrugging your shoulders, consider this: the more files you upload, the more waiting time it creates, potentially losing your business hours a day in productivity. In contrast, the nearly-instant upload speeds of fiber help ensure day-to-day business efficiency.

3 Benefits of 2 Gig Fiber Internet for Small Businesses

Fast internet speeds sound great, right? But does your small business really need 2 Gig fiber internet? Beyond better productivity through time savings, 2 Gig fiber connectivity provides tangible ROI in other areas of your business. Let’s take a closer look at the top 3 benefits of 2 Gig fiber for small business:

Three Benefits of 2 Gig Fiber Internet for SMBs

• Better performance
• Faster cloud services
• Future-proof connectivity

Better Performance

With 2 Gig symmetrical speeds, you can have more users and devices connected to your network without slowing internet performance. Whether this includes point-of-sale transactions, video conferencing, file sharing, or security systems, everyone using your network has the fiber-fast performance they need to get work done.

Faster Cloud Services

More and more of the work we do every day is moving to the cloud. Slow internet can’t keep up with cloud-based tools like Microsoft 365 and G-Suite designed to help us work more efficiently, effectively, and economically. As cloud tools grow more sophisticated, they require fast, reliable connectivity. 2 Gig Fiber delivers upload speeds up to 50x faster than cable and downloads that are 11x faster, delivering near instant access to cloud solutions.

Future-proof Connectivity

While cable connectivity remains a reliable internet solution, it’s important to consider that fiber is the connectivity of the future. More and more providers like Frontier are building fiber infrastructure to support the internet of tomorrow. Choosing fiber connectivity helps ensure your internet can keep up with the demands of new and evolving technology.

How Slow Internet Impacts Small Businesses

Because so many of today’s small businesses rely on the internet, poor connectivity can have costly impact on key performance indicators. While at first glance your existing internet connection may seem “good enough,” the truth is that internet speeds have a surprising impact – positive or negative – on everything from customer experience to business performance.

Top 5 Ways Slow Internet Hurts Small Businesses

1. Lost revenue. According to research from Cisco and AppDynamics, internet downtime can run a small to medium business between $8,580 and $74,000 per hour.
2. Customer satisfaction. When you’re trying to help a customer resolve an issue as quickly as possible, internet speed can mean the difference between a happy review or a lost customer.
3. Decreased productivity. The average American worker spends 5 hours a day on email, not to mention other online tasks. Lost productivity is a real concern when internet speeds are slow.
4. Meeting disconnects: As video conferencing has become the norm for business meetings, disconnects and lags cause communication breakdowns, lost efficiency, and collaboration difficulties.
5. Hampered growth: Poor internet security and the inability to perform online tasks quickly, such as file-sharing or accessing cloud apps, has a direct impact on your bottom line. When processes take longer, or you fall victim to a malware attack, revenue slows.

What Speed Internet Does a Small Business Need?

Today, every business is an online business. Whether you’re a neighborhood bakery or a modern digital operation with teams collaborating in real time, connectivity speed, reliability, and security are critical when shopping for business internet. 2 Gig Fiber delivers, giving you peace of mind that your business can grow securely without interruption.

Choosing the Right Fiber Internet for Your Small Business

For a growing small business, speedier internet can mean the difference between an efficient workflow and a stalled one.

If you know symmetrical uploads/downloads and easy scalability of fiber connectivity is the right solution for your business, here are some guidelines when choosing your speed:

Small Business Connectivity FAQ

How Internet Speed Is Measured

Internet speeds are measured in megabits per second (Mbps), a unit of measurement for the amount of data that can be transferred every second. It’s used when determining internet bandwidth speeds. The higher the number of Mbps you have, the more productive your business can be online. (Remember, 1 Gbps equals 1,000 Mbps.) A high number should mean that downloads complete more quickly, webpages load faster, media streaming begins more rapidly, and any video calls display smoothly.

Download Speed versus Upload Speed

Download speed refers to the speed at which your internet connection is able to retrieve data from the internet. Upload speed refers to the speed that your internet connection can allow data to be sent from your devices — e.g., as laptops, PCs, and tablets — to the internet.

When purchasing internet for your business, it’s often the download speed that’s advertised. While download speeds may be more important for the home internet user, business users should pay attention to both. Video conferencing, for example, uses download speeds, while upload speeds are important for file sharing and cloud backups.

WiFi versus Connected Ethernet

A WiFi connection transmits data via wireless signals, while an Ethernet connection transmits data over cable. No cables are needed to access a WiFi connection.

Why is this important? The answer: mobility. Employees need to be able to connect to your business internet while moving freely around a space.

The other advantage is speed. In the past, ethernet was faster than WiFi, but that’s no longer the case. Today’s fiber internet is faster, being able to sustain data speeds more than fifty times faster than Ethernet.

2 Gig Fiber Internet for Small Businesses FAQs

What is the difference between business internet and home internet?

Residential internet is the internet you use at home. But because there are typically fewer users requiring less bandwidth, residential internet plans tend to come with lower starting speeds as well as asymmetrical download and upload speeds (meaning your download speed is much greater than your upload speed).

What does business internet mean?

Business internet refers to an internet connection dedicated to conducting business. It typically comes with faster download and upload speeds and more features. While faster internet speeds come at a higher price, beware of internet service providers that charge businesses more for the same internet speed they offer residential customers.

What type of internet connection is best for businesses?

Businesses require speed, security, and reliability to compete, grow, and provide a great customer experience. While slower speed capabilities (e.g., cable, DHL) may be suitable for smaller households and minimal internet users that want to stream an occasional movie, only 2 Gig Fiber is able to meet the fast connectivity needs of today’s business.

Does business internet get throttled?

Throttling is when an internet service provider intentionally slows down internet speeds to limit the bandwidth consumption or to minimize network congestion. One of the big drawbacks of cable technology is that you share your bandwidth with neighbors. Because of this, your speeds will slow during times of heavy use, and overall you’re looking at a more unreliable network susceptible to more outside factors. Because of differences in transmitting technology, highly reliable 2G Fiber for business does not experience throttling and can be counted on to perform 24/7.

Can you go fiber-fast?

Small businesses need quality, business-grade internet connection and uninterrupted productivity in order to grow and compete. To provide superior customer service and help your employees work more efficiently in today’s digital environment, a slow cable connection just won’t cut it.

See what Frontier internet speeds are available in your area.