Let’s be honest; most business owners are less than thrilled at the prospect of choosing their wireless communication provider. But whether they realize it or not, every major function happening daily in their organization, from the speed at which an associate can respond to a customer request to the ability of your sales team to secure a deal as they roam the floor of a conference show, hinges on a successful wireless setup.

Unfortunately, most businesses go about it the wrong way. They look at pricing, then features but fail to assess if the provider actually has the coverage and network capabilities to meet expectations. That’s how companies find themselves locked into multi-year contracts with companies that sound great on paper but have a less-than-stellar follow-through in times of need.

What Actually Matters in a Provider

Coverage is an obvious talking point, but it’s not as easy as merely looking at a coverage map found on someone’s website. These coverage maps are hypotheticalized based on what type of access would be granted. Actual coverage differs from building materials to local interference to how many others are using the same towers in peak hours.

The best option? Ask for specific business performance metrics in your immediate region. Not only do they have coverage, but what speed/reliability is their current business client base seeing? If they brush past this question, that’s a red flag.

The extent of network reliability raises even more concern when you consider outage expectations. A few minutes down might seem manageable until you calculate those minutes with your point-of-sale systems crashing or your customer service agents incapable of accessing the CRM to handle client requests. Business-grade providers should offer uptime expectations as a percentage and compensate you when they fail.

Support, What’s That?

Most businesses don’t think about support until it’s too late. Then they realize, “oh yes, I have 24/7 support,” only to be disappointed that the person on the other line is reading from a script with no situational awareness to provide any complex assistance.

Before signing on the dotted line, test support availability yourself. Call the provided business support number to ask an actual technical question. Note your wait time and if the person capable of answering questions can resolve them or merely place the call into a ticket system. Companies like Digicom Wireless focus solely on business clients and often have dedicated support teams aware that downtime costs money in addition to being inconvenient.

This difference plays out in response times for business-grade vs. consumer-grade support. Consumer support may be 24-48 hours; business-grade should be minutes – not days – for serious outages.

What You’re Paying For

When it comes to wireless pricing, there are commonly big apples and apples of oranges in play. The rate advertised is almost never what you’re actually paying once you factor in necessary services for businesses. Data overages, additional lines, priority support, and equipment all add up fast.

Get total cost assessments from the start based on your usage patterns. Bring your current bills and usage information to the provider meeting. A company that refuses to offer reasonable expectations has planned for hidden fees down the line.

Yet beware – often the cheapest option ends up costing you more down the line. Budget-priced providers have to skimp somewhere – network infrastructure, less reliable support – and when your wireless goes down mid-client presentation pitch, you’ll reconsider why this monthly payment option seemed so great.

Scalability

Unless your business is a constant size square foot-footprint, chances are high that it will grow. Whether you’re looking to expand employees and service areas or locations and opportunities, your provider must be able to accommodate without starting from square one each time.

This means assessing how many lines are allowed for account growth without issue to additional pricing going up for previously established clients versus little-to-no established benefits for potential growth. Some companies have better per-line pricing at higher volumes; others lock you into tiered structures that penalize upscaling efforts.

This also means equipment compatibility; if you’re purchasing specific devices/system options, the provider must know how to accommodate. Otherwise, you’ll spend thousands only to have to do it all again with another provider.

How They Provide Service

Not all wireless communications are created equal. Some rely heavily on ancient technology, while others have up-to-date networks designed for speed, usability and reliability based on how many devices connect at one time.

While 5G may sound impressive, does that apply in your service area? Many companies provide 5G in metropolitan areas but revert to 4G or less when expanding outwards to regionalized offices that cannot sustain basic needs consistently.

In addition, many networks become congested during peak business hours as consumers limit access. Business-grade solutions often offer priority access and less competition even if their residential counterparts bog down access all day long.

Contract Terms That Won’t Trap You

No one wants to read fine print within any contract; however, without doing so, companies find themselves stuck and subject to change and deletion charges from logos and branding items to technology no longer pertinent.

Pay attention to your intended contract length and early termination fees should things go awry, what happens if technology changes through no fault of your own? Providers looking to keep you locked into multi-year agreements likely have seen it happen before; those who want flexibility won’t find it worth it unless they provide you an avenue first.

Natural monthly or annual terms sound great, but auto-renewal catches most companies off guard: unless you tell the company to charge you at least 60-90 days before the contract ends, you’ll find yourself signed for another year, or worse, before you even blink, even if you weren’t happy with the service.

Making The Right Choice for Your Business

Ultimately, it’s about matching their strengths with your weaknesses; while a particular wireless provider may function well for a small retail establishment down the street from your business, it could be entirely wrong for your construction company breaking ground at multiple job sites at one time.

Start by making a list of non-negotiables, things you absolutely need – and compare how well each potential provider addresses each need versus leveraging good sales pitches. Talk to other companies in your immediate area and industry – real experiences tell more than any sales pitch ever could, and find your ultimate solution that becomes a technological partner instead of just another vendor billing you each month.

Better yet, doing it right the first time will streamline operations, which would otherwise cause disruptions and added expenses while trying to change providers later. Take the time now to ask difficult questions, test support offerings and understand what’s being bought for everyone involved because future generations will appreciate the effort of everything working as expected!