3 ways to reduce your business telco costs (without reducing productivity)

To keep up with rising business costs, you've likely looked at ways to save on essential utilities - including your telco. 

But how can you reduce your internet and phone bills without sacrificing your business's performance? Find out in this article as we share tips that could save your business money. 

Is reducing your internet and phone plan worth it?

The short answer is: No. Reducing your telco plan will cost you more money than you save.

Your business internet and mobile plans are typically priced based on speed and data limits, respectively. The faster the internet connection, and the more mobile data you have, the more your plan will cost.

So, on the surface, reducing your plans is one of the most straightforward ways to save. But if you go down this route, the cost of the resulting productivity losses will dwarf the savings.

With a reduced internet speed, uploading and downloading files will take longer. It'll also take less bandwidth to overwhelm and slow down your internet connection. If you rely on the internet to get work done and connect with your team and clients, slower internet makes for a less efficient business.

And if your team rely on mobile data to stay connected outside the office, reducing their data will reduce their ability to bring in business. When on the move, your team depends on the internet to access emails, make and take video calls, and contact prospects via messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. Should they run out of data offsite, they won't be able to email, join meetings or respond to prospects promptly. So in today's fast-paced world, where prospects want simple solutions fast, a lack of data could mean lost business.

So, reducing your telco plan will cost you in time, efficiency and lost business.

But there are ways to save on your telco plan without sacrificing productivity.

Here are three telco solutions to keep your business connected for less. 

3 ways to save on your business telco

1. Take advantage of the nbn® $0* fibre upgrade: 

Okay, so this technically isn't a cost reduction. But upgrading to fibre will increase your business productivity at no cost to you. As technology advances, businesses need more and more bandwidth to take advantage of the latest innovations. High-quality video calls, the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud-based software are just some of the high-bandwidth business apps that are now essential to staying productive.

And as these technologies continuously improve, you might have noticed a more significant difference in how these apps run when multiple people are online.

The conventional solution would be to upgrade your plan's speed tier. But that's going to be an additional cost to your business. There is, however, a $0 way to increase your bandwidth.

Through the nbn® fibre connect program, eligible addresses can now access a $0* upgrade to a fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) nbn® connection. As FTTP means fibre optic cables connect directly to your premises, external factors such as the copper wire or weather conditions won't be as affected. It also performs better when multiple users are online at the same time.

When the nbn® first rolled out across Australia, most buildings were connected using the most convenient installation method. And if it wasn't FTTP, it meant your business lost out on the fastest, most reliable connection possible. The FTTP upgrade will bridge the gap in internet performance.

How will the FTTP upgrade help your business save money? FTTP ensures you get the optimal bandwidth available on your current speed tier. Fibre will maximise your existing internet connection, keeping your business productive with fewer interruptions. And with a $0* fibre upgrade, you won't even need to fork out for installation costs either (and they're typically in the thousands).

*Additional external costs may apply. Currently only available for eligible customers with a FTTN or FTTC connection. Customers must sign up to an eligible high-speed plan when upgrading. This plan change will only take effect once the FTTP connection is activated. Offer subject to service qualification for nbn® FTTP upgrade. Full fibre upgrade T&Cs apply. Not available at all premises. Current FTTN eligible nbn® plans are from 100/40 or higher. Current FTTC eligible nbn® plans are 250/100 plan or higher. All prices subject to change without notice. Actual speeds may vary due to external factors including in-building wiring.

2. Switch your office phones to softphones

Every business needs a landline phone. And with softphones, your landline can work without a handset. All you need to make and receive phone calls on your landline number is the computer or smartphone you already have.

You can set up a softphone-only hosted PBX phone system if you need more than one phone number. They've got all the features you know and love about Voice over IP (VoIP) phone systems, minus the cost of installing and maintaining landline phone handsets. You'll pay a flat monthly fee to enable softphone capability for each phone number. That's it. And many of the most popular softphone apps are free, so you won't need to worry about additional software costs.

Find out more about softphone phone systems here.

Head to our voice plan builder to discover how much you could save by switching your office phones to softphones. You only need to select the number of softphones you'll need. From there, you'll get an instant free quote that will give your business clarity on the cost of your ideal phone system.

And if you want to add a handset phone down the track, you can! Our phone systems are fully scalable. So you can add handsets and new numbers for your team anytime.

With a softphone-only phone system, you can reduce your office phone bill without reducing your capabilities. 

3. Make the most of your team's mobile data allowance with data sharing 

While Australians use more mobile data than ever, a lot of allocated data goes unused. And as cost pressures tighten, unused data comes at a higher productivity cost than ever.

But predicting how much data your team will need can be challenging. And that figure will likely change month-to-month too.

If your business mobile plan pools your fleet's data, you can use it more efficiently. Our business mobile plans let you do just that if your fleet’s on the same account.

If your salespeople are on the road and have used up their monthly data allowance, you'd typically have two choices: shell out for additional data or bear the business costs of not having them connected. That dilemma is incredibly frustrating if you're sitting in the office with spare data on your mobile plan. With data pooling, when someone in your team runs out of data, their plan will automatically source unused data from across your fleet.

And for a cheaper way to boost your team’s data allowance, you can add a data-only mobile broadband SIM to your fleet, which your team can use as needed. You’ll not only save compared to increasing your team’s plans individually, but it’s also a more efficient way to allocate data. 

Want to know more about how mobile data sharing works? Read our guide to mobile data sharing and how it will benefit your business.

Through data sharing, you’ll reduce your business’s mobile phone bill without reducing your data allowance. 

Switch and save

Found a better deal on your business telco?

Switching telco providers is easier than you think, even if you're a business with a complex service.

Contact our team, let us know you'd like to switch, and we'll handle the boring stuff. You might only realise you've changed telco providers once you start experiencing faster speeds and awesome customer service!

Want to know more about switching your business nbn® and mobile services to Aussie Broadband? Here are some handy guides that walk you through the simple steps.

How to switch business nbn® providers.

How to switch mobile carriers and keep your number.

We're sure you'll love our service. And if you spread the word to your family and friends, we'll give you credit towards your bill**: $50 if you refer a new residential customer you refer and $100 if you refer another business. They'll also get the same amount of credit towards their first bill, so it's a win-win! There are no limits to how many refer-a-friend credits you can get. So refer enough friends, and you can get 100% of your bill! 

Want to make sure you're making the most out of your telco?  

For more tailored advice on how to get your business on the perfect telco plan, we're here to help.

Get in touch with our friendly, Australian-based team on 1300 480 905 or via our website.