Doug Meades
Managing Consultant
Abilita Telecom Consultants
dmeades@abilita.com

"When the economy is good, saving money is important;
when the economy is bad, it's imperative."

It’s true, saving money is important for any organization and for many small businesses, telecom cost reduction is often an untapped source of revenue. With the evolution of telecom technology and constant changes within the industry the opportunity for small business to do some ‘belt tightening’ in this area has never been better and the rewards have never been greater. Consider this:

• On average, 7–12% of total telecom invoices are in error (Aberdeen Group)
• 57 % of businesses do not compare their telecom contracts to industry benchmarks for best pricing (Aberdeen Group)
• Late payment penalties equal 2% of overall telecom spend (Aberdeen Group)
• On average, firms save 18% when they improve their invoice processing practice yet 80% of all telecom bills are not audited (Avotus)
  

What do your telecom services have in common with your car or your health? Regular maintenance has been proven to reduce the overall cost of ownership and extends the life and value of the automobile. Regular check-ups with your doctor translate into a better quality of life. The same principles apply to management of your telecom services and corresponding expense. Here are some things you can be doing to manage your telecom expenses:

1. Check Rates
   Billing systems for major telecom providers are often legacy systems that were never designed to accommodate today’s billing requirements, so it isn’t surprising that billing errors occur. Check invoices against telecom contracts and request credits for any billing discrepancies you find.
   
2. Do an Inventory
   Make sure you know what each line is being used for and what features are being used on these lines. Match this inventory against the ‘ER’ (equipment report) from your vendor. Any line or feature that cannot be identified is a red flag and a potential candidate for cancellation.
   
3. Data & Internet Services
   Understand the utilization of your data and internet services. You don’t want to be over subscribed for service and you don’t want to be paying a premium for ‘over usage’ charges applied for exceeding the limits of your subscribed service.
   
4. Cellular Services
   Review cell phone invoices to ensure the usage pattern and cell plans line up (minutes used, long distance & roaming charges etc). Pay particular attention to charges for data as this is the fastest growing segment of the cellular market. These costs can spin out of control easily as new features and applications are introduced. Also check to see that the features you are paying for are being used.
   

Implementing a cost reduction strategy for telecom is an ongoing task. It is important on an ongoing basis to monitor, track and measure costs, savings and changes. Your efforts will be rewarded with the dividends of cost savings and the knowledge that you are on top of telecom expenses.

Doug Meades is Managing Consultant at Abilita Telecom Consultants.
Doug can be reached at (519) 432-1556 or dmeades@abilita.com.

Abilita is a full service telecom consulting firm helping clients across North America achieve greater cost efficiencies and improved performance for all of their telecommunications needs - voice, data and wireless.