Avoid the wrong business mobile plan: Nine things to consider

Business connectivity is crucial for employee productivity. With our increasing reliance on mobile devices, it’s vital your business has the right mobile-connectivity plan.

A plan that’s well suited will also help your organisation stay connected around the world—and in situations where remote working is necessary. It’ll reduce your overall connectivity costs—while keeping them predictable and avoiding ‘bill shock’. And it’ll provide effective support to minimise unavailability and the strain on internal technical resources.

Here are our top tips for consideration when you’re hunting for the right deal…

1)     Business mobile plans are made for businesses

Sounds pretty obvious, doesn’t it? But it’s surprising how many organisations shop for business contracts in the same way they’d shop for their personal contract.

Generally speaking, if your business employs more than a handful of staff, you’d be better off with a plan specifically designed for businesses.

Speaking of which…

2)     Size does make a difference

As well as determining whether your organisation is better suited to a business contract or a series of personal ones, your headcount can make a difference. Before locking yourself in, consider:

• How many users you’ll need to be covered
• Whether you’ll need (or can afford) company phones
• Whether you choose a plan that supports the pooling of your minutes, texts and data allowances
• The level of support you’re likely to need
• The right plan for a company of three people might not be the right plan for a company of 3,000 people.

3)     International businesses need special treatment

There are plans designed for companies with offices, employees, suppliers and customers in different countries—and indeed dotted all over the world. Perhaps your plan will need to cover Europe, perhaps you’ll need a global plan for connectivity and coverage wherever you work.

But it’s likely that international plans won’t be as competitive on cost for companies with all their operations based within the same country.

4)     Your business locations are unique to you

If you need an international plan, consider the actual countries and regions in which you do business.

Which countries are your offices in?

Do you employ staff who work remotely in other territories?

Where are your suppliers and partners based?

And where do your customers call home?

Having a clear understanding of where your connectivity and coverage will be required enables suitable providers to tailor a plan specifically to your business. That plan will ensure you stay connected; it’ll strengthen local relationships, globally; and it’ll help keep costs under control.

5)     Is a shared plan right for you?

While it might seem logical to choose one plan for an office-based employee who only has a business mobile for emergencies—and another for a globe-trotting customer relationships manager who’s in a different country every week, this isn’t always the best approach.

A shared plan pools reserves of voice-call minutes, SMS messages and MBs of data across the company for employees to draw from as required. For unpredictable mobile usage, it’s far more likely to be able to absorb the impact of peaks and troughs.

6)     Cost predictability should be a given

Providers might make predictability possible by offering shared company plans, or by having competitive negotiated rates with international networks, or by including enough flexibility in their contracts that non-standard usage is absorbed.

However they go about offering predictability, your business should be able to expect it—enabling your employees to confidently use their devices whenever they’re needed, and ensuring you don’t have to live in fear of ‘bill shock’.

7)     Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs)

You’ll be familiar with the Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) in your home country, but you might not be so familiar with MVNOs—operators which piggyback regional networks in each country to offer seamless-connectivity plans.

If your company operates all over the world, such a plan could offer massive benefits, including:

• A large coverage footprint
• Guaranteed connectivity in multiple countries
• Avoidance of paying for roaming charges when travelling
• Access to close-to-local tariffs
• One plan. One contract. One bill. Across your entire organisation

8)     eSIM technology is the future

eSIM (embedded SIM) is the latest in SIM technology.

It enables:

• Users to have several different numbers on one phone.So you can call an overseas contact via your usual phone, but they see a local number on their screen. (Similarly, they only pay local rates to call you.)
• Remote activation of profiles.—You get a new number on your phone, or a personal profile on your company mobile,without having to wait for a new SIM card to arrive.
• Switching between networks—ideal for staying connected across country borders or when networks drop out.
• End users to carry only one device.No switching between phones or multiple SIMs when travelling.
• All global company connectivity to sit under one contract, massively simplifying mobile management for ICT and Telecoms teams.

Look for a provider that supports eSIM technology for access to these connectivity and productivity benefits—and to reduce overall mobile costs.

9)     Think about support before things go wrong

We’ve all experienced long hold times on support lines, being passed around the houses for a solution, and the frustrations of being left without connectivity. But effective user support is rarely part of our initial decision-making process when it comes to choosing a provider and a plan.

So demand enterprise-grade support.

Expect a dedicated Service Delivery Manager for a consistent approach and a familiar voice when things go wrong.

Shortlist providers which can guarantee operators are trained to help you straight away.

And choose a contract with a support function you can rely on—wherever you are and whenever issues occur.

An effective support function that’s available 24/7, globally, and in multiple languages, will massively reduce the strain on your company’s internal technical resources—and it’ll make a huge difference to your teams’ connectivity and productivity.