Cheap internet services: the true cost

When the going gets tough, businesses must do everything they can to cut costs. Unfortunately, if you’re considering saving money by switching to a cheap internet service, you may find yourself counting the cost and not the saving

Slow download speeds

They may say that they can provide fast speeds in your area, but many cheap internet services can only manage as little as 5 — 6Mbps (megabits per second), which is simply not good enough for today’s business broadband user (Ofcom reported that the average residential broadband speed in November 2013 was 17.8Mbps).

If you’ve signed up for a long contract with these cheap, slow internet providers, you’ll be regretting it when you can’t get the speed you need.

And if your download speed is slow, imagine how terrible your upload speed is. If your business relies on a speedy internet connection, choose a business internet service that really matches your requirements.

Download limits

If, like many businesses, yours relies on sending and receiving considerably large amounts of data each month, you may come unstuck with a cheap internet service.

They often impose unrealistically low download limits and charge you heavily if you go over your agreed usage. A business broadband user needs boundless limits on their downloads.

Poor-quality internet telephony

Does your cheap internet service offer the kind of connection that can support high-quality voice telephony? If all you get is patchy quality with frequent drops in service, you simply can’t use that service for customer contact or client calls.

Choose a business broadband provider that offers you a stable, reliable service for all your VoIP (voice over internet protocol) telephony requirements.

Service down more than up

When you sign up to a cheap internet service you may discover to your cost that their service is down more than its up.

To most businesses, downtime means a serious dent in profits. Always choose a business broadband provider with the very best connection stability. (And think about having a backup connection, too.)

Unsatisfactory customer service

When you choose a cheap internet service, often you must pay a premium price to call their customer service line. When you finally reach one of their operatives, they may struggle to handle your query effectively, wasting your time and money.

When you select a business broadband provider, choose one with a good record on customer service.

Before signing up for any business broadband package, check all of these areas. If your business depends upon excellent communication and connectivity, choosing a cheap internet service could end up costing you more than you save.

More on this topic:

• How to choose an internet service provider
• How to cope without broadband
• Broadband supplier checklist