Ok, now that we have your attention, let’s talk tactics. Remember that the telecom vendors are in business to make money. YOUR money. So they are good at this, and maybe you aren’t. Either get someone to the negotiating table with you that has experience, or at least be aware of these basic tactics….
As Valicom’s telecom expense management software Clearview is deployed as a SaaS application (software as a service) we always keep our eyes and ears out for research and trends in that area.Gartner released some new data yesterday on SaaS adoption. They find that over 95 percent of organizations expect to maintain or increase their investments in software as a service (SaaS) and more than one-third have migration projects under way from on-premises to SaaS, according to their recent survey.
Keeping track of your contracts is another imperative step to a good telecom expense management program. Granted, you may wonder why you care…. So we’ll tell you.
A difficult task for any IT or telecom manager is issue tracking and change management. People get hired and fired, buildings open and close, and products get retired and replaced. You need to know WHAT is going on, WHO did it, WHEN it happened and if it actually got done.
This is where the rubber meets the road. Telecom invoice auditing. Every piece of paper that comes into your office from a carrier is a place to save money. Incorrect charges, setup fees you were never supposed to pay, items not billing to contract terms – there are a lot of reasons you are paying too much for your telecom services.
As we run through good telecom management tips, we should pause and talk about tools. Anything is easier to do if you have the right tool. In the case of telecom or wireless management, we have spent years perfecting Clearview – our web-based telecom expense, invoice and inventory management software. It is the engine that drives our entire telecom auditing service menu, and is available for use in your telecom department too.
A major source of headaches for telecom managers is dealing with telecom invoicing. Lots of paper = lots of mess. And you know you should really review those suckers EVERY time, EVERY month, but really – who has the time.So finding a way to streamline invoice processing should be high on your list. A few tips to make your life easier…
Last post we talked about how fall and winter are good times to start thinking about your telecom and wireless cost control plans. What cost reduction ideas do you have? How do you plan to reduce telecom expenses?
It’s fall, and while most eyes are turning to football, those in charge of company finances are eyeing balance sheets and chewing their fingernails thinking about year end reports. So we thought it might be a good time for a reminder that you should also be taking steps to cut the fat from your telecom and wireless budget.
News reports just hit the wire that the US Justice Department is taking action to oppose the mega merger of AT&T and T-Mobile.
As everyone knows, smartphones are rapidly taking over plain old cell phones in the business realm. That means expensive wireless devices, fat data plans, apps apps apps, and costs costs costs!
In a recent post over at Channel Partners, Joe Basili did a great job of boiling down why master agents, IT consultants and MSPs would care about telecom expense management.
I ran across an interesting article today promoting a class for Telecom Expense Management training called “Best Pactices for Wired and Wireless Network Cost Control“. It is a two day seminar that will set you back eighteen hundred dollars, and the list they cover is daunting to say the least. What it really illustrates nicely is how complex telecom expense management really is if you try to tackle it yourself. Just as an excerpt…
Telecom expense management (TEM) firm Valicom will be participating in CompTIA’s annual Breakaway in Washington DC August 1-4 to showcase their SaaS telecom and wireless expense management platform Clearview. Utilizing the web-based TEM software, IT consultants and IT solution providers can expand their service offering and increase revenues through white label and profit-sharing partnerships. This offers a unique opportunity to enter the lucrative telecom management market.
A common problem addressed in a telecom expense management or telecom invoice auditing program is third party billing, known as “cramming”. TEM firms have long known that this is a problem on landline invoices, and now it is creeping onto cell phone bills too. And Congress is taking notice. A recent report, and a Senate hearing yesterday, are shedding light on the problem and suggesting changes to help remedy it.
A variety of articles recently have been discussing that iPads account for 1% of all current internet traffic. That’s not bad for one tablet, but then Apple launched the iPad 14 months ago with total sales topping 25 million devices. Last month, research firm comScore reported that the iPad comprised 89 percent of global tablet traffic. A May survey from Nielsen found Apple’s touchscreen tablet held 82 percent of the tablet market in the U.S. It will take a long time for any tablet competitor to catch up.
As we discussed in our recent webinar “Plugging the Leak: Software Tools and Strong Tactics to Contain Telecom & Wireless Costs”, telecom contract RFPs and negotiation are the #1 way to save money on telecom.
As I discussed yesterday, we ran some polls during our latest webinar – “Plugging the Leak: How Software Tools & Strong Tactics Contain Telecom Costs” – with some interesting results. Well, not interesting to us – we know what causes our client’s pain – but maybe interesting to you.
While hosting our summer webinar we gained some insight into our audience’s telecom challenges. To help the attendees learn from their peers, and to keep them awake, we offered a few poll questions with interesting results….The first question asked what they...
I have to say I found this news pretty interesting. I know the world is run by fees, but it hadn’t occurred to me how lucrative millions of thumbs-flying texting teens were to the wireless carriers. Those pennies-per-text or unlimited monthly package charges are a big part of their profitability. And they are about to make a big hole if they do start to fizzle out, as the talking heads are projecting.
Sorry, I couldn’t resist the gaming theme for today, as I’m sitting in Las Vegas at the WBENC 2011 Annual Supplier Diversity Conference at Mandalay Bay. Well, I’m sitting in a trade show hall, versus sitting by the pool, which is where I’d rather be. And where my husband probably is. He better go win me some money at craps later today to make up for that. Mama needs a new pair of shoes….