Business Mobiles
IT'S A JUNGLE OUT THERE!
DO NOT CHANGE YOUR MOBILE NETWORK WITHOUT A TRIAL.
Most business mobile providers will encourage you to change your network each time you negotiate a new contract.
It’s a valid tactic in many cases, networks will pay more commission for connections that are with another provider. This in turn gives you access to more hardware or more funds to buy it with.
If you do decide to change networks, you must check that any key location that you work from has acceptable connectivity and data coverage. Key location might include home, all business premises, pub, etc. Anywhere that you might need to be contactable on a regular basis.
This means you will need to ask your mobile provider to supply you with a phone for a period whilst you check the locations before you sign an agreement to change network.
WHAT IS A PAC CODE?
At the end of your mobile agreement, if you are going to move your connections to a new network, you will need a porting authority code to do so. This allows your new provider to move your number to their network.
This means that 30 days before the end of your agreement, you will need to request a PAC from your current network.
HOW LONG DOES MY PAC CODE LAST?
Unfortunately, it has a small shelf life and only lasts for 30 days so it is not something that you can do in advance.
This means you must request it in the right way and at the right time. Your new network will tell you when they need it.
The type of account you have will dictate the amount of time the network has to send you your PAC. This can be up to 10 working days.
WHAT IS A TECHNOLOGY / KIT FUND?
Because smart phones have become so expensive and so central to the operation of our day to day business, it is no longer viable to change your phones every two years. As an alternative, many suppliers now provide a technology fund that you can draw down funds to replace and upgrade equipment during the term of your agreement.
This means throughout your agreement, should you need to replace or upgrade any equipment, you have a fund at your disposal.
DOES IT MATTER THAT MY EQUIPMENT IS LOCKED TO ONE NETWORK?
You must be careful. Make sure that when you buy equipment, you can buy equipment that is not locked to one network. Remember at some point in the future you might well move networks and the logistics of getting the phones unlocked can be prohibitive.
This means that it is worth paying a small premium for unlocked devices when buying new equipment.
WHAT CAN THE FUND BE SPENT ON?
You must be sure of exactly what you can and can’t spend it on. Many providers will not let you spend technology funds on accessories like cases, screen protectors and the like. With the value of these devices going through the roof, it is important that you protect this expensive equipment.
This means before going into any agreement, you must get written confirmation as to exactly what you can spend your fund on.
Make sure that all the fund is spent by the end of your contract. Most technology fund providers will not return any unspent balance that remains at the end of the contract.
We work closely with a homeless charity in London. When we first examined their mobile billing, we could see that they had had a technology fund of sixty thousand pounds.
At the end of the agreement they had left nineteen thousand unspent. Unfortunately because that contract had come to an end those funds were unrecoverable.
To our horror we realised that on their current agreement they were about to lose forty thousand pounds in unspent allowance. When we contacted their supplier they confirmed that if they did not spend that money within thirty days, they would lose it. All forty thousand of it.
We found it difficult to spend because the supplier had some very strict rules around what our customer could actually spend their own money on.
Although this charity are our customer for energy, we were not able to come to an agreement to supply their mobiles.
We did save them from losing their forty thousand pounds in technology fund though and we are quite proud of that.
WHY DO MY BILLS VARY SO MUCH?
Most business mobile contracts include unlimited local, national and mobile calls and unlimited text messages. If your bill keeps going up and down, it is because you are making out of bundle calls or using out of bundle data.
This means that your account may have been set-up incorrectly and you have not forecast your usage correctly. You will need to pinpoint what the extra charges are for and change your package accordingly.
WHAT IF I USE TOO MANY DATA?
Data usage has increased exponentially over the last few years. It is not unusual if your data requirements have doubled over the last 12 months. If your bill is more expensive than usual, check your bill for data over usage. Out of bundle data is extremely expensive.
This means, if it is happening on a regular basis you will need to speak to your current provider and ask them to increase your data allowance. This will be much more cost effective than paying over usage every month.
WHAT IF CALLS ARE MY PROBLEM?
Calls that begin 03, 08 or 09 are not included in any call packages and all of them attract a charge. In addition to these, overseas calls are very expensive. New roaming laws do not make calls to overseas destinations free unless you are on the right call package.
This means you will need to check with your network provider what is the best way to cover the cost of these calls.
Overseas data usage is not always covered by the new EU roaming laws.
WHY DO I KEEP HAVING TO CHANGE NETWORK?
Each of the networks incentivize the acquisition of a customer from another network with a higher commission payment and as daft as it may seem, it is easier for a new telecom provider to move a customer to a new network than it is for them to takeover your contract on the existing network.
This means that in most instances, the third party you are dealing with would want you to change networks. It makes their life easier and they receive higher commissions.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF SWITCHING NETWORK?
The main benefit in switching network is financial. Because a network will pay more for a new customer, you should be able to negotiate a lower monthly bill or access to a larger technology fund.
This means when moving to a new network, you should either see a lower monthly bill, access to a larger technology fund or more data allowance than with your current network.
WHAT ARE THE DISADVANTAGES OF SWITCHING NETWORK?
The main disadvantages are evident during the changeover. You must consider whether your devices are locked to a specific network and if they are, the cost of unlocking those devices. You must also consider the logistics of either getting new sims to all the end users or changing over to new devices. Also consider the effect on your business during the changeover downtime period which can be up to six hours
This means you will need to work closely with the new network provider to minimise the negative effects of this switch.
Most mobile providers will not discuss this plan with you or the cost associated before you sign a contract. You will need to be proactive and discuss this before you sign the contract.
DO NOT CHANGE YOUR MOBILE NETWORK WITHOUT A TRIAL.
Most business mobile providers will encourage you to change your network each time you negotiate a new contract.
It’s a valid tactic in many cases, networks will pay more commission for connections that are with another provider. This in turn gives you access to more hardware or more funds to buy it with.
If you do decide to change networks, you must check that any key location that you work from has acceptable connectivity and data coverage. Key location might include home, all business premises, pub, etc. Anywhere that you might need to be contactable on a regular basis.
This means you will need to ask your mobile provider to supply you with a phone for a period whilst you check the locations before you sign an agreement to change network.
WHAT IS A PAC CODE?
At the end of your mobile agreement, if you are going to move your connections to a new network, you will need a porting authority code to do so. This allows your new provider to move your number to their network.
This means that 30 days before the end of your agreement, you will need to request a PAC from your current network.
HOW LONG DOES MY PAC CODE LAST?
Unfortunately, it has a small shelf life and only lasts for 30 days so it is not something that you can do in advance.
This means you must request it in the right way and at the right time. Your new network will tell you when they need it.
The type of account you have will dictate the amount of time the network has to send you your PAC. This can be up to 10 working days.
WHAT IS A TECHNOLOGY / KIT FUND?
Because smart phones have become so expensive and so central to the operation of our day to day business, it is no longer viable to change your phones every two years. As an alternative, many suppliers now provide a technology fund that you can draw down funds to replace and upgrade equipment during the term of your agreement.
This means throughout your agreement, should you need to replace or upgrade any equipment, you have a fund at your disposal.
DOES IT MATTER THAT MY EQUIPMENT IS LOCKED TO ONE NETWORK?
You must be careful. Make sure that when you buy equipment, you can buy equipment that is not locked to one network. Remember at some point in the future you might well move networks and the logistics of getting the phones unlocked can be prohibitive.
This means that it is worth paying a small premium for unlocked devices when buying new equipment.
WHAT CAN THE FUND BE SPENT ON?
You must be sure of exactly what you can and can’t spend it on. Many providers will not let you spend technology funds on accessories like cases, screen protectors and the like. With the value of these devices going through the roof, it is important that you protect this expensive equipment.
This means before going into any agreement, you must get written confirmation as to exactly what you can spend your fund on.
Make sure that all the fund is spent by the end of your contract. Most technology fund providers will not return any unspent balance that remains at the end of the contract.
We work closely with a homeless charity in London. When we first examined their mobile billing, we could see that they had had a technology fund of sixty thousand pounds.
At the end of the agreement they had left nineteen thousand unspent. Unfortunately because that contract had come to an end those funds were unrecoverable.
To our horror we realised that on their current agreement they were about to lose forty thousand pounds in unspent allowance. When we contacted their supplier they confirmed that if they did not spend that money within thirty days, they would lose it. All forty thousand of it.
We found it difficult to spend because the supplier had some very strict rules around what our customer could actually spend their own money on.
Although this charity are our customer for energy, we were not able to come to an agreement to supply their mobiles.
We did save them from losing their forty thousand pounds in technology fund though and we are quite proud of that.
WHY DO MY BILLS VARY SO MUCH?
Most business mobile contracts include unlimited local, national and mobile calls and unlimited text messages. If your bill keeps going up and down, it is because you are making out of bundle calls or using out of bundle data.
This means that your account may have been set-up incorrectly and you have not forecast your usage correctly. You will need to pinpoint what the extra charges are for and change your package accordingly.
WHAT IF I USE TOO MANY DATA?
Data usage has increased exponentially over the last few years. It is not unusual if your data requirements have doubled over the last 12 months. If your bill is more expensive than usual, check your bill for data over usage. Out of bundle data is extremely expensive.
This means, if it is happening on a regular basis you will need to speak to your current provider and ask them to increase your data allowance. This will be much more cost effective than paying over usage every month.
WHAT IF CALLS ARE MY PROBLEM?
Calls that begin 03, 08 or 09 are not included in any call packages and all of them attract a charge. In addition to these, overseas calls are very expensive. New roaming laws do not make calls to overseas destinations free unless you are on the right call package.
This means you will need to check with your network provider what is the best way to cover the cost of these calls.
Overseas data usage is not always covered by the new EU roaming laws.
WHY DO I KEEP HAVING TO CHANGE NETWORK?
Each of the networks incentivize the acquisition of a customer from another network with a higher commission payment and as daft as it may seem, it is easier for a new telecom provider to move a customer to a new network than it is for them to takeover your contract on the existing network.
This means that in most instances, the third party you are dealing with would want you to change networks. It makes their life easier and they receive higher commissions.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF SWITCHING NETWORK?
The main benefit in switching network is financial. Because a network will pay more for a new customer, you should be able to negotiate a lower monthly bill or access to a larger technology fund.
This means when moving to a new network, you should either see a lower monthly bill, access to a larger technology fund or more data allowance than with your current network.
WHAT ARE THE DISADVANTAGES OF SWITCHING NETWORK?
The main disadvantages are evident during the changeover. You must consider whether your devices are locked to a specific network and if they are, the cost of unlocking those devices. You must also consider the logistics of either getting new sims to all the end users or changing over to new devices. Also consider the effect on your business during the changeover downtime period which can be up to six hours
This means you will need to work closely with the new network provider to minimise the negative effects of this switch.
Most mobile providers will not discuss this plan with you or the cost associated before you sign a contract. You will need to be proactive and discuss this before you sign the contract.
