Business internet connection is crucial for optimal operations. From sending emails to communicating with colleagues and accessing your cloud suite, businesses are essentially helpless without reliable connectivity.
When conducting connectivity research for a client, it is important to have the full scope of services of providers. What type of connectivity do they provide? What speed capabilities do they have? Do they have layer 2 or layer 3 solutions? The list of questions goes on.
In the past, finding connectivity solutions required hours of manual labor. However, with robust new technology available to telecom professionals, a fully automated tool can now perform that research. That means you can provide your clients with the best connectivity solution for their business in minutes, not hours or days.
In this blog post, we detail aspects of a bandwidth service provider and how to find these aspects with no research and in no time at all.
Why Is Finding the Right Bandwidth Service Provider a Big Deal?
Although bandwidth has a number of different definitions depending on the context, the term as it relates to the internet is the volume of information per unit of time that an internet connection can handle. Basically, the higher the bandwidth, the better the connection.
Although most people want to look at speed as the primary metric for establishing partnerships, there is quite a bit more that goes into determining the quality of a bandwidth service provider, such as the infrastructure of the provider, the reputation of the company, and types of solutions that indicate the quality of service. As technology advances, bandwidth calculations are becoming more complex in their ability to indicate the type of infrastructure being used to transmit data, such as optical fiber versus copper. It’s also important to understand whether services are being sold from a provider’s infrastructure or if the services are resold.
So what does this mean for the agent looking for a bandwidth provider solution? The right tool to account for these factors and more is needed to find superior internet connectivity.
Considerations When Comparing Bandwidth Service Providers
As the percentage of business conducted online continues to grow, telecom salespeople need to dig deep into the factors that make up bandwidth service. Using a bandwidth finder tool, telecom salespeople can find information on the following:
1. Speed
Although speed is not the only factor, it is still very important to consider. A business needs to know that their connectivity is not only going to be reliable but fast also enough to ensure tasks and communications can be completed quickly and efficiently.
As reported in a Visual Objects study, 29 percent of small businesses want to improve their website, while 21 percent want to improve their digital marketing, and another 20 percent want to improve their social media presence. The success of these campaigns all comes down to the importance of a consistent, reliable internet connection for business operations.
2. On-Net, Off-Net, and Near-Net
The location of a service carrier’s infrastructure can play a major role in the quality of a provider’s connectivity. There are three different types of locations:
- On-net locations have a physical infrastructure to create connectivity.
- Near-net locations are in close proximity to buildings with fiber assets.
- Off-net locations are serviced by solution providers who lease from on-net carriers.
Although on-net tends to have fewer variables to consider, each option comes at different prices and with specific benefits. For example, smaller businesses that may want to choose an off-net solution provider (that services the building through another carrier) because they have other services through them and want one bill and vendor to manage..
3. Company Reputation
All companies base their success, in part, on their ability to maintain customer relationships. It’s no different when it comes to bandwidth service providers.
When researching, be sure to answer the following questions: What is the bandwidth provider’s history of working relationships? Do they make promises that they can’t commit to? Make sure you are partnering with a bandwidth service provider that remains consistent and committed to pricing and uptime guarantees
Layer 2 versus Layer 3
Finally, find out the type of layer solutions that are provided by your bandwidth service provider. As a brief breakdown:
- Layer 2 is critical to a Solution Provider buying from another carrier because if they can acquire a layer 2 solution, they can inject their own internet service to the customer through the technology (last mile access) they buy from the carrier giving them more control over the overall service and customer satisfaction.
- Layer 3 means the solution provider buys from another carrier to resell both the local access and the internet service which affords them less control over the overall customer experience.
Much like you would when considering on-net, off-net, and near-net solutions, layer 2 and layer 3 solutions are critical to solution providers trying to offer the best service to their customers.
Find the Right Bandwidth Service Provider with BandwidthFinder
Performing manual research to find out about the qualifications of a bandwidth service provider is not required in this day and age of robust, highly intelligent tools.
Using MasterStream ERP’s BandwidthFinder, you can have all of the necessary information on a bandwidth service provider available with just a few clicks in just a few minutes. That way, you know the exact quality of connectivity that you’re paying for.
Ready to get started finding the right connectivity for you? Download our BandwidthFinder Checklist today!
