Business Cell Phone Plans - Making the Right Choice

Small businesses in today’s market need to have every advantage possible. In a tight economy like today, small business employers are looking for any advantages they might find technological or otherwise to be successful. I’ve found that a very important business tool to stay current with clientele and the business community, is the proper cell phone plan. A basic cell phone plan for each employee is costly, wasteful and does not fulfill the basic needs of most companies. In my own business, we need a central office line with access to and from the sales crews on the road. They need to be able to update and share their customer information and stay in touch with fellow employees. I searched the Telus website for days, meticulously going through each appropriate plan to find the right one for us. All of our employees have Smartphones. It is important for our small business employees to have the usual access to talk, text, email, web, and video streaming as well as access our central computer programs and information at the drop of a hat.

The first plan I looked at was the TELUS Business One Bundle. The biggest perk with this plan was that it lets you add only the services that you will need. It is bundled with your TELUS Long Distance service and TELUS high speed Internet service for business plan, so the savings will vary according to the services you choose. I liked the savings we would receive over time but this plan did not make it easy for our employees to access the central office programs. That is a big issue.

The second plan I considered was the TELUS IP Networks. With this plan we could do everything we needed all on one secure, high performing MPLS-based network. It seemed to be simpler, less expensive and more productive. What more could we ask for? We can run internet, voice, video and data applications all on one network. Also, prioritize sensitive applications across the network, and ensure the best performance with proactive Service Level Agreements. The benefits of this plan are plenty. With an IP network our employees can access the central computer, its programs, and any info anytime. This was what I was looking for, cutting management time and costs for equipment and maintenance. Even better though, it can ensure performance by prioritizing access based on how each employee works.

Thirdly, I looked at the Telus wireless LAN plan. Telus will design, build and monitor your wireless LAN to improve productivity for a business on the go. They can expand the ‘productivity zone’ of key employees, easier communications between each other and it cuts down on the front office management by monitoring the network for us. Telus would evaluate our site and technology for their LAN design. We can of course make recommendations, such as the findings of the assessment, costs and the implementation plan. With this plan Telus will monitor your network 24/7. This plan would make it easier for our employees to collaborate with each other but would be far too large of a commitment.

For our small business, I chose the second plan. The first plan was too small, and the third too big for our small, growing business. Maybe one day.

Hopefully I can help another small business operator get the right plan for them without the long nights of research. Good luck.