Money Matters - Summer 2007

Making the most of mobile technology

Photo of mobile phone. Not being in contact with your office for even an hour can affect your bottom line, so being able to access voice and data services using the latest mobile technology can give you a real competitive advantage.

The challenge is to develop a mobile communications strategy that meets both your business and budgetary needs while making the most productive use of employee time.

Mobile technology can change the way you do business and therefore save you time and money. Devices include portable office components that range from laptops, palmtops and personal digital assistants (PDAs) to mobile phones. These devices can use a number of communication technologies either wirelessly or by using dial-up services or connecting by cable.

You can use this type of technology to perform any number of normal office-based activities while out of the office. These include accessing the internet, preparing and giving customer presentations and linking directly into the office network to access customer databases and accounting systems and to check stock availability. You should also not ignore more straightforward services that enable you to re-direct your phone to a handset that will answer.

Before you commit any money to a new or upgraded piece of mobile technology you should assess the real needs of your business both today and in the future and find out as much as you can about the technology that is available.

Being able to access data and voice services while away from the office is critical for many growing businesses, but exact needs will always be shaped by the type of business you are in. Security also needs to be considered so that mobile devices do not expose valuable data to unauthorised people.

Choosing a provider is an important decision, not least because you will need to keep ahead of the curve in terms of new technological developments and tariff charges. Money can be saved by comparing tariffs before you buy and by continuing to carry out regular checks on the competitiveness of other providers after you have done so. Inertia can cost hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds.

You should also make sure that providers offer detailed billing to help you pinpoint where your business is overspending. And if you do not have one, you should draw up a company policy in relation to mobile technology to help encourage good corporate usage.

There has been a lot of media focus on the money saving potential of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and this technology has now been developed to the point that makes it a real business option both from a cost saving perspective and because of the flexibility it provides. But before adopting any new technology you should compare providers and look at the downsides and risks, including the security aspects.