Factors affecting the cost of a business phone plan
Always take a look at your business and determine how phones are going to be used to cope with your company’s communications needs. Businesses gain various advantages by supplying a phone to their employees along with an appropriate phone plan. Also, it is important to constantly keep a track of the pattern of phone usage so that it can help you select the best phone plan that your business requires.

How does the selection of service provider affect the business phone plan cost?

• Most companies opt for AT&T and Verizon, which are the two topmost national carriers, but if your business operations tend to be limited to your local or regional area, you must consider a smaller local service provider for an effective business phone plan cost.

How does locations influence the business phone plan costs?

• Whether your organization is at a single location or you have multiple locations that require phone lines is also a factor that affects business phone plan costs.
• For instance, the installation cost for a company with 25 users at a single site will surely be lower than the cost required for installing phone lines at multiple sites.

How do the training requirements impact the cost?

• All of those employees who might be using phone lines on an everyday or occasional basis would require training on how to effectively use these new technologies.
• The cost required for training may vary for organizations according to the number of employees and sites, but it is possible to reduce this training cost by managing this process internally.
• It is critical to take this factor into account while making the budget for a new phone system.

How much do the annual maintenance requirements cost?

• The expenses required for annual maintenance may vary according to many factors, which include your internal IT resources.
• If the internal team of your organization is well qualified in troubleshooting and training, the requirement for external maintenance assistance could be diminished.
• The offerings of a provider may vary, but small businesses may prefer maintenance assistance on an annual basis or as needed.
• The contracts generally cover a dedicated number of hours on-site every year and may encompass a few essential replacements or modifications to the system.

How can you save on roaming charges?

• The coverage area maps are available on the website of every cell carrier.
• You must not only check out your local area but also learn about the areas in which you expect to be doing business.
• If the map indicates a strong presence in your home region but coverage is scanty within the cities in which you may be spending lots of time with clienteles, you will not only have blotchy service, but your company will also probably get punched with roaming costs on both calls and the data, which could push your business phone plan costs far beyond the expected range.

How can you reduce the business phone plan cost by including the friends and family feature in your plan?

• Major phone plan providers now provide the business version of the friends and family plan, authorizing the organization to designate ten most frequently contacted business numbers—landline or mobile—for unlimited voice calling.
• Having the friends and family feature on a corporate plan can show dramatic savings, but make certain that you have got the flexibility to change those numbers whenever you need to.
• Taking out the commonly used numbers, as discussed above, can help you save on voice minutes; however, the feature isn’t regularly available on the lowest price plans.

What factors are to be considered while choosing a cost-effective phone plan for your business?

• Coverage
• Contract length and the business phone plan cost
• Call costs
• Monthly limits
• Changing or canceling your contract
• Whether the phone is locked to your network (if so, it means that you cannot use your phone on another service provider’s network)
• How will you be able to keep track of your costs when using the phone overseas
• Warranty
• Whether you’ll be able to get free calls or cheaper rates at a certain time of the day
• The inexpensive way to pay