One of the notes I took on Mr. Hare’s speech was this:  ”Predicting the future is critical.  Being right all the time, however, is impossible… the good thing about it is, nobody knows for sure if you are wrong at the time”.  I’ve spent a lot of time since then thinking about how I can apply this approach to positively impact my clients…after all, emerging technology is only clear once you’ve missed it.  Its my team’s job to stay up to date on emerging technologies and deliver them to your organization at the best value possible.  Whether your company needs a single T1 or a complex multi-location MPLS, Data Center and VoIP network, Converged Technology Solutions, our vendor-neutral approach provides your business with straight answers to your technology questions without hearing the fluff.

No, we can’t correctly predict the future all the time either…but, we work hard to stay ahead of the technology curve.

Call us today to see if you qualify for a free technology audit!

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1. You get to hear the truth!
When you use an experienced Independent Telecom Agent, you tap into a wealth of knowledge and experience of someone who has been in the field for many years and has experience working with multiple carriers. An agent will have experience dealing with most of the carriers in your market and can tell you how they really perform. Who has the most reliable network? Who has billing problems? Who is going bankrupt? Who can make the desired install date? When using an Independent agent, you don’t have to listen to “The Company Story” for each carrier, as they always tend to dress up their deficiencies. You get to hear the truth.

2. Guaranteed best combination of price, product, service and support
Since Independent Telecom Agents work with multiple technology service providers, they can essentially guarantee their customers the best combination of price, product, service and support. If you work with a direct sales rep from one company, you only get one offer, from their company.

3. Agents are invested in a long term relationship with your company
This is an incredibly important concept to understand when choosing to use an Independent Telecom Agent! When you work with a direct sales representative for a telecom company, one that may be here today and gone tomorrow, they are paid only to bring in the sale. There is absolutely no incentive for a direct sales rep to ever speak to you again after you sign the dotted line. It’s sad but true. However, because Independent Telecom Agents are paid by commission only and on a residual basis, their entire business model is based upon building a portfolio of happy, long term customers.

4. Telecom has become commoditized
Standard telecom contracts are 36 months.  Smart businesses will renegotiate their terms every 3 years to reduce rates and reevaluate the new options available to them.  However, this can become a daunting task to perform – even more so if you actually switch providers every 3 years.  However, a good Independent Telecom Agent will proactively take this task for you and help you decide what’s best for your business when your terms are up for renegotiation.

5. Same pricing
The same standard pricing model is used for both the Agent Channel as well as the direct channel for every service provider. In spite of all of the additional knowledge you can tap into with Independent Agents, you can be sure you are not charged any extra for it. It’s an incredible model that helps the customer and insures all clients are treated equally.

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Recent research shows that:

• 60% of all small-medium sized businesses close within 6 months of suffering a major loss of data
• 72% of all small-medium sized businesses close within 24 months of suffering a major loss of data
• 60% of all data is held on laptop or personal computers
• A hard drive crashes every 15 seconds in the United States
• 2,000 laptops are lost or stolen every day
• 63% of all small-medium sized businesses do not follow best practices to ensure their data is backed up
• 22% of small-medium sized business users admit they never back up their data at all

Your company’s data is critical to your success, financial stability and the security of your workforce.  If you aren’t taking any steps to secure your company’s information, or if you are not following today’s best practices to ensure your company’s data is safe, you are literally playing Russian Roulette with the future of your organization.  Technology enables today’s market to provide small-medium sized businesses with many affordable, safe, secure, reliable and easy-to-use solutions that can put your mind at ease and, more importantly, provide your business with the type of data safeguards that you need.

Call or email me if you are interested in learning more about how Converged Technology Solutions can help.

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How much bandwidth is enough for your business? I enjoyed reading this article about bandwidth needs for today’s businesses. I have been in telecom for my entire post-college career with progressive experience in network operations, design, engineering, implementation, field services and senior management. I think that the article is probably fairly accurate by default – 5 mbs speeds should suffice for most businesses – however, it’s an awfully broad statement.

I still see a lot of companies with 10-20 employees being successful on a single T1 while some similarly sized companies would not dare entertain a bandwidth less than 10mb. I very rarely see a company with 50+ employees using anything less than 10mb unless they are in a very remote area where bandwidth of that size is not accessible. The differentiating factors that typically come into play are: cost, up/download speed differentiators, stability and of course end user application. You can get 10mb up/down for the same price today that a T1 cost 10 years ago. A T1 converged with 6-8 telephone lines is cheaper than a DSL with with the same 6-8 telephone lines was 4 or 5 years ago. Another thing that businesses should strongly consider is the commodity nature that bandwidth has become. Businesses should never sign more than a 2 year agreement and should shop their service every opportunity they get for better combination of price, product, service and support. If a business owner has had the same service provider for the past 6 or 7 years, chances are they are paying WAY too much for less service than they could be getting from another provider. Loyalty is out the window these days when it comes to bandwidth. Again, overall a good article and a good read.

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Voice over internet protocol technology cuts telecommunications costs and improves productivity. But is it right for your business?

You’re at an internet café and get an important business call–on your laptop. You’re on the road and receive an urgent voice mail–in your e-mail inbox. Your business has a phone number with a Florida area code–even though your office is in California.

Welcome to the world of voice over internet protocol (VoIP). With VoIP service, your phone calls travel over the internet as data, just as e-mail does. This type of service can dramatically lower your telecommunications costs while increasing your productivity. It also provides useful features and capabilities that conventional phone technology can’t offer.

Though VoIP is quickly gaining popularity, some small businesses are still on the sidelines, concerned that VoIP audio quality is substandard, that the technology is difficult or costly to implement, or that their phone service will be interrupted if their electricity goes out.

The truth is, VoIP’s benefits far outweigh any potential drawbacks. Here’s what you need to know about VoIP to decide if it’s right for your business–plus tips for making the most out of VoIP service.

1. Since its inception, the quality of VoIP service has come a long way. Early VoIP products required both parties in a conversation to be at a computer. Not only was this extremely limiting, but the sound quality was often poor. Today’s VoIP service has evolved and allows you to make and receive calls using standard phones or, even better, feature-rich IP phones. Sound quality has vastly improved, too–in fact, many businesses today have abandoned traditional phone systems in favor of VoIP. Many of these businesses have the ability to leverage their own data network to carry phone calls originating and terminating within their office with additional savings and benefits.

2. Using VoIP can significantly reduce your telecommunications costs. Operating costs for VoIP service providers are significantly lower than for traditional phone companies, which must contend with the existing, expensive-to-maintain phone infrastructure and costly industry regulations. With lower expenses, VoIP providers can charge much less than their competitors.

And with VoIP, businesses no longer have to maintain separate networks for phones and data–another significant money saver. Also, the costs associated with employee moves, adds and changes–which can cost $100 or more per occurrence–are virtually eliminated. All you have to do is move your IP phone (or traditional phone with a VoIP adapter) to a different broadband network jack and plug it in.

3. VoIP service makes your phone system highly flexible. VoIP systems allow you to do things that are simply not possible with traditional phone technology. For example, you can:

• Take your phone system with you. As long as you have access to a broadband connection, you can use your VoIP system anywhere, such as in a hotel room or at a friend’s home. Customers and employees can stay in touch just by calling your regular business phone number–they don’t need to call your cell phone, which means you can save precious cell phone minutes.
• Talk on your laptop. Many VoIP systems include telephony software that enables you to send and receive calls using a headphone/microphone unit connected to your computer. Now you won’t miss an urgent call from a client, even when you’re hanging out with your laptop at an internet café.
• Get voice mail and faxes with your e-mail. Many VoIP services allow you to have voice mail and faxes automatically forwarded to your regular e-mail inbox. You get all your messages in one place, and your voice mail and faxes can be easily archived or forwarded to others. Users can also get their e-mails “read” to voice mail.
• Get virtual phone numbers. Your phone number can have any available area code, not just the one assigned to your region. For example, a business based in California could have a phone number with a Florida area code–particularly advantageous if your business has (or wants) customers in Florida.
• Increase productivity. Many VoIP phone numbers can be configured to simultaneously ring on multiple devices–such as your cell and landline phones–before going to voice mail, thus eliminating time-consuming “phone tag.” In a recent survey conducted by Sage Research, the increased productivity enabled by internet telephony added up to 3.9 hours per week, per employee.

With all the benefits VoIP has to offer, if you’re now considering a switch to VoIP service, these tips will help you overcome any potential hurdles and make the most of a VoIP system:

• When in doubt, hire an expert. An off-the-shelf VoIP system for a business with a few employees is fairly straightforward to implement. But larger VoIP systems may work best if installed and configured by experts. Ask Converged Technology Solutions about VoIP services tailored for small businesses.
• Test it out. Rather than switch everyone at once, test a VoIP service first with just a few users. Once you’re satisfied with the service, then you can roll it out to other employees. (You might want to keep your traditional phone system up and running during the transition as a backup.)
• Use call forwarding. If the power goes out, your computer network may go down–taking your VoIP service with it (unless you have a generator or other alternative power source). For backup, configure your VoIP service to automatically forward unanswered calls to a cell or landline number.
• Secure your network. VoIP’s growing popularity is attracting the attention of hackers, and users are concerned that hackers may digitally intercept VoIP calls or bring down a company’s VoIP system using denial-of-service attacks. The solution? Make sure your network security is thorough and up to date.

One thing’s for sure: VoIP technology is continually evolving, with compelling new benefits being developed for small businesses. For example, some new wireless PDA/phone combination devices allow you to use your VoIP service whenever you’re near a Wi-Fi network and use your cell phone service when you’re not. Among the advantages: a dramatic increase in mobility and a sharp decrease in your cell phone charges.

For larger small businesses, having a single IP network for both voice and data can provide other advantages, too. For example, an IP network can also support real-time, high-quality, affordable videoconferencing, call center applications and more.

No matter the size of your business, VoIP is a surprisingly flexible, affordable technology that offers the same, sophisticated communication tools your enterprise-size competitors have.  Call us today for a free evaluation and let Converged Technology Solutions provide you with a quote.

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Today’s businesses are faced with a number of network-related needs that are
challenging from both a technology and a financial perspective. Organizations
are looking for proven, cost-effective solutions to:

• Implement a VoIP telephone system
• Create and improve disaster recovery infrastructures
• Replace outdated hub-and-spoke architectures
• Meet increasingly complex growing network requirements
• Prioritize certain applications, such as Video Conferencing and VoIP
• Maximize performance while minimizing costs
• Increase operating efficiencies

Your business might have one or many of the needs listed above and may be
in the midst of evaluating solutions to meet your goals and objectives. One of
today’s hot topics for network and application executives to help meet these
growing demands is multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) based/private IP
networks. Private IP networks are rapidly growing in popularity for medium-
to large-sized enterprises across a wide range of industries. Benefits for
adopting these networks include the ability to prioritize bandwidth by
application, the potential for automatic redundancy, and the value
of a fully meshed network with less complexity and cost.
Every network service provider has advantages and disadvantages.
We’ll help sort through those to determine what’s the right fit for your business.
Some service providers with MPLS services and other telecom services that
may help streamline your business’ data and networking include
Qwest, XO, PAETEC, NUVOX, AT&T, MEGAPATH, Level 3,
ACC Business, new edge, and more.

Specialized Telecom Services

Is MPLS right for your business? Possibly. We’ll help make that
decision and determine whether MPLS is right for your business or not.
We won’t sell you something you don’t need or up sell you on any
unneeded services. Many of the MPLS service providers also have
several other network services which can enhance your business’
productivity and network performance. We’ll make proper
recommendations when needed and when they make sense!

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I’m Matt Butler, President and CEO of Converged Technology Solutions.  My team is committed to providing your business with technology services that will help your business achieve more.   More of what?  More operating efficiencies, more technology upgrades, more cost savings and more revenue.  We strive to provide solid, innovative solutions to your organization’s technology problems.

Please feel free to reach out to me if I can ever be a resource.

Warmest Regards,

Matt Butler
Converged Technology Solutions
Matt Butler
(704) 350-5793 – Primary via Google Voice
(704) 968-7079 – Mobile via Sprint PCS
mbutler@ConvergedTechnologySolutions.com

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