Stop Guessing, Start Saving: Mobile Rate Plan Optimization
August 16, 2007
By Mae Kowalke
TMCnet Contributor
Communications expenses are a necessary part of doing business. But many companies looking to streamline their budgets can trim the fat, so to speak, by auditing their communications service spend. Significant savings can be realized, especially in the area of wireless voice and data services used by mobile employees.
Compared with traditional telecom expense management (which is complex itself), call accounting for wireless services can be very confusing. Wireless plans change all the time, and trying to keep up with while also tracking usage fluctuations among employees probably seems like a daunting task.
What is needed to cut through the confusion is a mobile rate plan optimization solution like that offered by Avotus. How does this work? Mobile rate plan optimization maps end-user calling patterns and compares that data to a comprehensive database of wireless plans to determine the best fit for both employee demand and company spend.
Without rate plan optimization, choosing a wireless plan for employees is a guessing game. While an educated guess can be made by averaging out the usage of employees in similar jobs and geographic regions, but the result is still a guess. With rate plan optimization it is possible to know, not merely guess, which is the best plan.
Wireless service providers make money by leveraging the guessing game described above. When a company stays “on plan”—not going over usage limits—the carrier makes money on standard monthly rates. But, when a company goes under or over plan (using fewer minutes than paid for, or exceeding minute buckets and having to pay higher rates for the extra minutes), the carrier benefits even more. The carrier’s goal is to win this game, known as “breakage.” The goal of a rate plan optimization solution is to help customer win.
There are many benefits to implementing a rate plan optimization solution. The biggest, of course, is the tangible cost savings realized; many of Avotus’ clients realize 20-40 percent savings on their wireless services. On average, $242 is saved per device per year after rate plan optimization is complete.
Rate plan optimization need not be a lengthy process; most Avotus clients see turn-around in 30 days or fewer. It also need not be a disruptive process; often only a plan change is needed, not a change of carrier. Avotus also provides a complete dashboard that clients can use to generate reports and identify opportunities for savings.
The dashboard software included with Avotus’ rate plan optimization solution is a robust tool that organizations can use to realize ongoing savings on their communications expenses. Among the reports that the dashboard generates are monthly usage averages, roaming
and long-distance details and month-over-month expense variance.
Implementing a rate plan optimization solution for wireless services is a smart move that companies will find more than pays for itself. Wireless carriers will continue offering varied and fluctuating options to their customers, but it is no longer necessary for customers to simply guess at the best pick.
To learn more about mobile rate plan optimization solutions, please visit Avotus’ TMCnet.com channel, Call Accounting.
Mae Kowalke previously wrote for Cleveland Magazine in Ohio and The Burlington Free Press in Vermont. To see more of her articles, please visit Mae Kowalke’s columnist page. Also check out her Wireless Mobility blog.
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