Find the best telecommunications provider for your business
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This guide is provided by Independent Digital Networks who
are providers of the UK's first impartial phone call savings comparison
calculator for business users at
www.idn.co.uk. Since the deregulation of telecommunications, the business market has
become complex and confusing not only in terms of the number of providers and
tariff options, but the speed of technology changes. It is becoming
increasingly difficult for companies to decide which is their best method of
communication, or in fact which provider offers the most cost effective and
resilient solution. To find the best solution for your communications via landline and
mobile phone, or for transmitting your data, the following factors should be
considered: Call profile analysis To be able to
accurately compare your existing costs to potential savings across the market,
you need to analyse your existing call profile, and calculate the volume and
value of calls, by call type i.e. for local, national, calls to mobiles and
international calls. Current call costs and hidden chargesYou will
then need to calculate individual call tariffs; for instance, what is your per
minute call cost for a national call. Also look for any 'hidden' charges you
may be unaware of, such as minimum or connection call charges for each dialled
call. These can have a significant impact on your costs, particularly if you
make a lot of short calls.Tariff information on other providersThe time
consuming element of the process is gathering information on other
providers:- What are their tariffs?
- Do they have minimum call charges?
- Are these tariffs negotiable at your volumes?
- Are there any number porting issues if you are moving from a
cable provider?
- What are their services and tariffs for non-geographic numbers
(eg 0800, 0845, 0870)?
Resilience, support and customer serviceAs
well as costs, it is important to consider whether an alternative network
offers the resilience you need (often the number of 'switches' the carrier has
on its network helps determine this), and whether the right level of technical
and customer support is available. For instance, a new provider may have
flexible billing formats to enable you to analyse your telecoms usage more
easily in the future. Service Level Agreements can be obtained from most
carriers. You also need to consider the length of your contractual commitment;
for landline this is typically 30 days, for mobile and data this is mostly one
year.Regular reviewsDue to the pace of change in
this market, you will need to repeat this audit every six months, to ensure
that you are still using the most cost-effective network solution.Mobile telephonyThe audit processes for
landline and mobile are similar, although you will also need to consider your
equipment usage and future requirements, as well as any number porting issues.
The geographical coverage needs of your users should also be considered, and
the relative coverage strengths of an alternative provider measured against
your current provider.Data transmission and internet
connectivityThere are now several options in sending data via the
internet including traditional dial-up to your ISP (Internet Service Provider),
a direct leased line or ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line). Making the
right choice involves the consideration of cost, anticipated future internet
usage, and resilience requirements. The benefits of leased lines (starting at a
64k), such as real-time e-mail and unlimited access to the web at a fixed
monthly cost, are beginning to outweigh the cost uncertainty and varying
resilience of traditional dial up.
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