3 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR BUSINESS TELECOMMUNICATION VENDOR

If it's time to invest in an entirely new business telecommunication system, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer number of voice and data vendors in the market these days. It is important that you take the time to ask a few hard questions of each potential vendor until you find the one that works best for you. Here are three big questions that will have a big impact on how much you pay and what you get.

WHO ARE THEY WORKING FOR?

First things first, your vendor needs to be your partner. Their role in your business should be to assist you in overcoming all of your voice and data barriers going forward. They should be working on your behalf to find solutions that fit your business instead of trying to convert your business to services it can't or won't effectively use. Make sure you choose a vendor who is going to represent your best interests and form a lasting relationship with you as your business expands, adding new technology down the road.

WHAT OPTIONS DO THEY OFFER?

Business telecommunication systems are not one-size-fits-all. Ask potential vendors about the types of products and services they offer. Do all of their products come from the same company? Do they have ongoing contracts with multiple carriers so that you can shop for rates and packages from multiple sources? Are they capable of giving you a complete voice and data solution, or will you have to hire multiple vendors to round out your telecom setup? This is also a good time to ask why they have partnered with particular device manufacturers and carriers and if they have any recommendations based on their experience. You will likely consult and quote with multiple vendors before you make a decision, so learning about any common likes and dislikes in the industry can give you a good idea of what to steer away from.

WHAT IS THEIR SERVICE POLICY?

Uptime is everything when it comes to telecommunication. You need a vendor who not only claims to have great service, but one who takes their service seriously enough to track and measure it. Ask about their current stock of parts, how they handle service calls, and what you can expect if your system does go down for any reason. Get an idea of which parts fail frequently and what they keep on-hand versus parts that may need to be ordered and shipped overnight for service the next day. If you fail to ask about the service policy and measurements up front, you will almost certainly be frustrated when something goes wrong and you end up in a bind.

The world of business telecommunications is quickly expanding and new vendors are entering the market each and every day, offering a variety of data and voice solutions. Before you choose a vendor for your business, ask plenty of questions about how they can help you implement a strong telecommunications infrastructure and which options will best fit the needs of your growing business. After you have an idea of the solutions they have to offer and which options come highly recommended by industry experts, learn about service options and what to expect as you continue to work with them long term.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Outsourcing: an overview

Image
Outsourcing: an overview Outsourcing today simply involves using external entities to handle specific, specialized business functions so that organizations can focus on their core competencies. The idea of seeking outside support for areas that are not core to a business is many decades old. However, seeking support from external providers can make a lot of sense, especially in fields that involve considerable complexity. One example, as human resources becomes increasingly complex practice, especially in areas that involve often complex and arcane laws such as benefits and employment law, many smaller companies are increasingly outsourcing some or all of their HR tasks. IT is another example. Like human resources, IT covers a wide range of specialties, for which no one or two individuals can possibly hope to be fully versed in. As the CEO of a small- to medium-sized firm, or perhaps a line manager, why should you consider outsourcing all or part of the IT function? One immediate rea
Read more

Can you do this at home?

Image
Can you do this at home? Outsourcing HR, real estate portfolio management, tax audits, etc is fairly common nowadays. This whitepaper discusses another function which, when outsourced, can bring greater efficiency and effectiveness to your business’s overall functioning--IT. IT is one of the core functions of any business. There’s no aspect of a business that is untouched by IT. Outsourcing IT is a big decision and it is not surprising that many organizations choose to manage their IT in-house rather than relying on outsourcing. However, outsourcing your IT to a managed service provider offers numerous benefits. Availability Depending on your service level agreement with the MSP, you get access to an IT team 24/7 when you bring a managed service provider on board. With your in-house IT team there will be days when some of them may be on a vacation or an unexpected day off. You also probably cannot justify 24/7 internal IT support, even though your IT needs to run 24/7. All of these cha
Read more

So, what is this “Unified Communications” thing, anyhow?

Image
So, what is this “Unified Communications” thing, anyhow? Have you heard the term unified communications tossed around lately? It seems to be used a lot in IT, telecomm, and work collaboration circles. Unified communications is a newer concept that refers to a conceptual platform where multiple communications channels can join together to increase productivity and facilitate collaboration. Here’s one way to look at it. Imagine that you only own one car. And imagine it is a sporty two seater. And then imagine you decide to invite five of your friends, none of whom are able to drive, out to dinner. This means you would have to pick each one up separately and drive him or her to the restaurant. And of course, one of them lives down an old rough farm road, so you have to drive very slowly so you don’t damage the underside of your expensive little two seater. This scenario is pretty similar to the way we handle business communications today. We aren't able to just throw everyone together
Read more