Financial advisors say
cellphones are “the most indispensable portable technological device” they use, a recent survey shows. But as handy as they are, there is no reason to let cellphone costs get out of control.

There are three major cellphone carriers in Canada — Bell Mobility, Rogers Wireless Communications Inc. and Telus Corp. — and all have service plans for small businesses that allow people in the same office to share minutes, while the company pays one phone bill.

Kristin Rallis, a sales representative with Bell’s small-business department in Toronto, says a business considering a cellphone plan should first look at whom employees will be calling, and what time of day they will be making those calls. “We have about six plans right now, and based on a client’s needs, we can suggest a plan,” she says.

Rallis points to Bell’s “small biz” plan, as an example: for $55 a month, two people can share 250 minutes of local calls anytime, to anyone. There is a $20 fee for each phone that is added, and up to nine people can share the plan. People who are part of the office plan also have unlimited local calling to each other.

“Bell’s mobility plan changes all the time,” Rallis adds. “It might be one thing this week and something different next week.

Rogers Wireless also offers a variety of plans for small business. Rogers Wireless’ “business pooling” plan, for example, allows up to 29 people to share a pool of monthly minutes, with free local calling among plan members. Pricing depends on the number of minutes used and the number of people using the plan. Prices range from $25 to $245 a month for two phones. There is an additional $15 or $20 fee for each phone that is added, depending on the plan.

Suzanne McMeans, manager of communications with Rogers Wireless in Toronto, says her firm’s acquisition of Fido in November 2004 has improved its wireless coverage, particularly in cities.

Wade Oosterman, chief marketing officer with Telus in Toronto, says his company’s rates for small business are similar to those of Bell and Rogers Wireless, and the plans look similar. Telus’ plans range from $25 to $150 a month, and offer a varying number of minutes and features. The “business share” plan starts at $50 and allows two phones to share 300 minutes of local calling. The “business share Canada” plan starts at $65 a month and allows two phones to share unlimited local calling and 200 minutes of long-distance calling.

Oosterman says people who are running a small or medium-sized business should also look at the quality of the network because they can’t afford to miss important calls. “If you get a million calls a day, and you miss one, who cares? But if you get one call a day and you miss it, that’s big,” he says.

“What really counts,” he adds, “is ‘I cannot afford to miss a single call. Therefore, I need to choose a provider with the best network. Picking poor quality brings a lot of hidden costs. So you want a network that gives you the greatest chance of getting your calls through.”

Oosterman says Telus is the only one of the major cellphone service providers with two networks, a regular personal communication service network and Mike, which is dedicated solely to business. Mike’s features include a walkie-talkie function that allows users of PCS phones, such as a BlackBerry, to connect to their contacts across North America using a “push to talk” button. Mike also has pooling plans through which a business can choose a local or long-distance plan that is best suited to each of its team members, and then combine all members on one bill.

Dennis Schooley, a consultant with Schooley Mitchell Telecom Consultants in Stratford, Ont., says the challenge for small-business owners is to find plans that cover their office needs.

Schooley says some factors advisors should consider when choosing a plan are:

> make sure the plan you choose can service your clients;

> ensure the vendor understands the area that needs to be serviced;

> estimate the number of minutes you will need each month and the type of usage you will need. For instance, if you and your staff need to make a lot of long-distance calls, you will need to include long distance in your plan;

@page_break@> look for a pattern in your calls. Are your calls mainly local, domestic or international?

> study the terms of the contract, and try to avoid long-term commitments.

“Advisors looking for a group plan shouldn’t get caught up in a significant long-term contract, as there are features coming that might add further savings to their telecommunication bills,” Schooley says. IE