Fixed Line Services
Since the deregulation of telecommunications, the business market has become complex and confusing in terms of the number of providers and multiple tariff options, With over two hundred different carriers all offering the 'cheapest rates', this market can prove to be a minefield. Cheaper rates may seem attractive, but will service be compromised as a result? To many companies the phone is the lifeblood of their business, therefore reliability is as important as savings. Because of the complexity of this market, coupled by technology that is always advancing, many larger companies employ specialist personnel to deal with this area. To find the best solution for your communications via landline and mobile phone, or for transmitting your data, there are a number of factors that need to be analysed and considered.
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. You 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. As well as costs, it is important to consider whether an alternative network offers the resilience you need, 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 and mobiles. Due to the pace of change in this market, you will need to repeat this audit annually, to ensure that you are still using the most cost-effective network solution. The Business Advisory Service do all this for you, make recommendation, thus enabling you to make an informed decision.
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