Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is: Top Tips on Knocking Thousands Off Your Phone Bill

St. Louis, MO (PRWEB) November 16, 2007 -- Every year in the U.S. individuals overspend by an average of $2000, by signing up with an unsuitable telecommunications provider. Worse still, businesses lose over $1 million by paying too much for their telephones and computer networks. Why so much confusion and waste?

According to a survey by Teleconnect Magazine, over 94 percent of all bills that phone companies send out are wrong. It also found that as bills get more complex, the billing system gets worse.

To add to the confusion, companies now need to be in control of so many telecoms elements: from local calls, business long distance calls, VOIP, WAN, LAN, T1 connections and remote offices, to cell phones, pagers, Blackberrys and data lines.

Plus, as employees move to and from a company, it becomes near impossible to stay on top of all the active and dormant lines it needs. Each different telecom related service also has different billing practices, different rates, billing cycles vary and hidden clauses catch out the customer.

One would have thought that by 2007, finding the right service provider would be easier and more cost effective -- especially as telecoms are used by most of us every day. But the fact is -- it's still almost impossible to avoid ending up seriously out of pocket.

So, how does one find a service provider suitable for our needs?

One of the best ways to start could be by choosing an agent to find a provider -- that way one doesn't have to speak to dozens of telecom companies. They won't have to pore over price comparison tables, or try and work out whether they would actually save any money.

An agent makes the whole process a great deal easier. So how does one go about finding a good one? Common sense suggests potential customers should look for one that's been going several years, that way they'll know the company's probably reliable. After all, if the company didn't provide the goods, the customers wouldn't stay.

A handy tip here is to find out whether the agent represents successful Fortune 500 companies, as well as small businesses.

Next, make sure the agent is representing you, rather than the telecom company. Many agents are just sales people hired by a telecom service provider, so their loyalty is with that company. Find an independent agent.

Sounds impossible? Worldnet Solutions in Missouri has been providing exactly this facility for the best part of a decade. The company's CEO Van Theodorou runs a staff with collective experience of over 20 years in telecoms. He explains why it's important to choose an agent offering this kind of service:

"Most agents are trained to just sell the service to the customer and then move on to the next one. They don't care about whether the client is actually happy at the end of the process. It means that if the customer has a problem once they've signed up to a particular telecom provider, they have to go through that carrier's customer relations desk, and in most cases they never even see the sales person again after the sale. You'll find that many times, the sales person will bounce from one carrier to another every 6-9 months because they didn't hit sales quotas - or they jumped ship because the pay at the other carrier was better. They're not selling with your best interests at heart."

Ringing in the changes

Theodorou says the way to identify a telecoms agent with good intentions is to find out whether they offer a free consultation. That way, one can tell how much the service will save before signing with the telecom carrier.

"What interests me about providing this kind of service is that it's a win/win situation for all parties. I can save the client money, and I can save them the headache of having to deal with the phone companies. Anyone can sell anything, but what kind of lasting impression do I want to leave with that client? Will they call me back again, if I haven't offered them the greatest savings? Of course the answer is no."

And the best part? It's all free:

"What really makes it amazing, is that the clients don't have to pay me a thing. My service is totally free -- because I'm paid by the phone carriers."

Some of the carriers Worldnet uses include At&T, Sprint, MCI, Verizon, Qwest, SBC, Bellsouth, Broadwing, Covad, Global Crossing, MegaPath, New Edge, TTI National Inc., and UCN, XO.

The company's approach is to understand the way their clients' businesses work through all levels of the organization, and then to assess which telecommunications provider would work best for them.

For all US states, and internationally, Worldnet takes over all its clients' telecom problems -- from billing mistakes to maintenance issues, so its customers no longer have to deal with $8.00 per hour customer service reps who may be based abroad and really don't understand the clients' needs.

In fact, Theodorou says Worldnet routinely saves companies and individuals around 23 percent on long-distance calls, and 50 percent reductions in monthly charges overall.

That, as they say, is the power of numbers.

Van Theodorou will help you slash your telecom expenses by over 43 percent and assist or even become your telecom department at no cost to you. For a free analysis or phone consultation go his site for business long distance (http://www.worldnet-long-distance.com). You can also reach him by calling (866) 673-0217.

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