When most people think of smart homes, they think about the fun parts—the cool technology that you get to see and use every day, like the audio systems or the smart lights or the smart blinds, even the ability to open and close their garage doors or front doors or set an alarm from their smartphone.

While we certainly understand this preoccupation (we’re tech geeks after all), we know that in order to make all this cool tech really shine, you need to have infrastructure in place that gives your smart tech the power and bandwidth it needs to operate at optimal capacity without failing you when you need it most.

Here’s why you need to talk to a provider who specializes in home network services and understands exactly why this basic smart home infrastructure is so critical to the success of your smart home experience.