IT support isn’t quite what it used to be. 

Businesses still need someone to call when things go wrong, but increasingly, they also need reassurance that their systems, people and data are properly protected. 

Following the introduction of our evolved support services, we caught up with our Sales Director, Dave Graham, to talk about what prompted the changes, what he’s been hearing from customers and what it means for businesses working with Freestyle. 

Dave, what was the main reason behind changing Freestyle’s support services? 

Since returning to Freestyle, I’ve spent a lot of time meeting customers, including some who’ve been with us for over 15 years. 

One thing that’s been really encouraging is the feedback about our service desk and account management teams. Our customers genuinely value the people they work with. 

But another message kept coming through. Customers were increasingly concerned about cyber security and wanted reassurance that they were protected against the threats they were hearing about. 

That got us thinking. We already had a strong foundation in place, but we needed to make sure the protection we offered was keeping pace with what businesses actually need today. 

So we reviewed our services and made the decision to include additional cyber security protection as part of our standard support offering, alongside introducing more advanced options for businesses that need them. 

What were the biggest gaps you wanted to address? 

Three areas stood out: email threats, unsafe internet activity and software vulnerabilities. 

These are common ways businesses can be exposed to cyber attacks, and we wanted to do more to reduce those risks. 

That’s why our New Standard now includes Email Filtering, DNS Filtering and Global Patch Management. 

It’s about putting sensible protection in place as standard, rather than waiting until something goes wrong. 

Have customers’ expectations of IT support changed?

Absolutely. 

Years ago, IT support was often about fixing a printer, sorting a slow computer or getting someone back up and running. 

Those things still matter, but the conversations we’re having now are different. 

Customers want reliable, secure remote access. They want to know whether an email or link is safe. They want simple ways to manage passwords and confidence that their business is protected. 

The expectations have changed, and rightly so. 

For us, it was important that our support services evolved alongside them. 

Why bring cyber security and everyday IT support closer together?  

Technology has changed enormously since Freestyle started providing IT services in 2002. 

We’ve seen businesses move from physical servers to virtual environments and then to the cloud. The way people work has changed too. 

Cyber security needs to move with those changes. 

The consequences of a successful attack can be significant, whether that’s financial loss, downtime or losing important business data. 

We don’t believe businesses should have to treat everyday IT support and basic cyber protection as completely separate conversations. 

They go hand in hand. 

So what’s actually different about the new approach? 

The biggest difference is that we’re putting more emphasis on preventing problems, rather than simply responding to them. 

Our New Standard introduces three additional layers of cyber protection for existing customers. 

We’ve also introduced two enhanced services, Proactive and Securely Proactive, which build on that foundation with further proactive management and security measures. 

Alongside this, our technical team has been reviewing customers’ Microsoft cloud environments at no additional cost, looking at opportunities to improve their Microsoft Secure Score within their existing subscriptions. 

It’s a more joined-up approach to looking after our customers’ IT. 

What would you say to customers wondering why their support costs are changing? 

It’s a fair question, and one we’re happy to talk through. 

The additional cost reflects the new security services we’re including, along with the work involved in managing them. 

Ultimately, the aim is to give customers stronger protection against email and internet-based threats, while helping identify and address software vulnerabilities. 

We’ve been speaking directly with customers about what’s changing, why we’re making those changes and what it means for their business. 

We value those relationships, and it’s important that customers understand what they’re getting from their support service. 

Finally, what do you want Freestyle’s support services to deliver in the future? 

For me, it’s about helping customers see IT as something that supports their wider business goals, rather than just something that needs fixing. 

The New Standard gives us a stronger security foundation, but there’s an opportunity to go further. 

That’s why we’re offering customers a free IT and business strategy alignment exercise. 

We want to understand where their business is heading and help them make better decisions about the technology they’ll need along the way.

Because good IT support shouldn’t just keep your business running. It should help you move forward. 

Want to understand what’s changing? 

Our team is happy to talk through the new support services, what they include and how they could benefit your business.

Get in touch with the Freestyle TS team to find out more.