There are certain facets of a good company that aren’t as well-known as others. Business telecoms systems, for example, may not seem as glamorous as using the newest computers, laptops, and smartphones, but that does not diminish their significance to the success of a modern business.
Telephone networks are often the unsung heroes of the workplace. Most people don’t give their business’s phone system a second thought except for when it stops working properly. Anyone who has dealt with this issue before understands how stressful it can be. A company’s competitiveness can be severely harmed if the primary means of contact between employees, suppliers, and customers is unexpectedly lost.
Realistically, without a telephone line, how long could your business continue to make money? A day? A week? We would wager that for most businesses the answer is closer to an hour!
In a business landscape where technology offers considerable competitive advantages, it is critical that your business telecoms service has the functionality, services, and support you need.
Here are some of the most common factors which customers look at before choosing their telecoms provider:
- Expected Use
Group the company’s employees by job type and duties, as well as each role’s calling habits. A receptionist at a large corporation, for example, would almost certainly need several phone lines, and the ability to hold and switch calls. An apprentice, on the other hand, who will only be making or receiving a few calls and would only need a basic, single-line phone system with few features beyond the basics. Other employees may need company mobiles if they regularly work outside the office.
Once you have a good picture of how many handsets, lines, and additional features you can envisage yourself needing, you are far better equipped to find a telecoms provider which can supply this for you.
If you are having trouble working out exactly what your business needs (or may need in the future), speak with our team who can help determine the correct hardware and services for your needs.
- Price
Once you know what you require you can start comparing prices from various suppliers. However, always remember that the so-called “sticker price” is not always indicative of the actual cost. For example, if your business loses money because its phone lines are down, then no matter how cheap the phone line was, it was not a good deal. Customer service, maximum downtime, call quality, and flexibility of service all have a value to a business as well. Consider each of these factors when comparing the prices of different providers.
- Bundled Services
Many business telecoms providers also provide other enterprise technology services. For example, Carden Telecoms is a part of the wider Carden IT Group, offering managed IT services, managed print services, and digital marketing among its many divisions. By receiving multiple business technology services from a single provider, you can get a great deal on the price and, simplify your supply chain. Meaning that if something goes wrong, you have a single point of call in the form of your account manager – no more being passed back and forth between different providers.
- Customer Service
Customer service is important to consider when choosing a telecoms provider. For example, if you are a business that operates 24/7, like a hotel, then you need a telecoms provider which also offers 24/7 support. If your phone lines go down at 11pm on a Saturday, you do not want to have to wait until 9am Monday to even get to speak to an engineer!
Luckily, Carden Telecoms offers 24/7 support, 365 days a year as part of our business telecoms contracts so you can get help instantly in an emergency.
- Scalability and Future-Proofing
It is important to consider scalability when contracting a new service provider. How much would it cost you to add new employees to your telecoms plan as your company grows? Consider not only the cost of new equipment for your new hires, but also the cost of additional telephone lines. You should check the prices for all of these ahead of time.
As well as providing telecoms to established organisations, Carden Telecoms are also used to working with rapidly scaling businesses like start-ups, and so we offer highly flexible plans which allow you to scale your phone service as your business grows.
We hope this has been a useful overview of some of the factors you may not have thought about if you are trying to find a business telecoms provider. If you would like to learn more about Carden Telecoms’ phone lines, broadband connections, handsets and more, speak to one of our team today.
