Compare Alternatives to AT&T and MCI Business Calling Cards
Reviewing considerably
less expensive calling card services for your business? Choosing
a corporate
calling card often involves
looking at several different aspects. While low rates and convenience
are
definitely on top of your list, you also don't want to let a "fly-by-night" style
calling card company put your
valuable
business communication at risk. In addition, the requirements of your
organization include not
only the handling of domestic or international calls but also the ability
to set up multiple cardholders with
enough room to grow as you grow your business, individual credit limits,
usage monitoring and flexible
billing methods.
Fortunately, we have located some "true pearls" in this industry
that qualify as viable alternatives to the
services by AT&T or MCI.
Read more about these hand-picked companies below and why we suggest
you give them your business rather
than someone else.
Checklist: What To Expect from a Business Calling Card?
- Competitive
Rates on Domestic and International Calls -
You should realize significant savings compared to AT&T or MCI with
going rates of 10¢/minute or less on domestic calls and attractively
priced international calls. With falling carrier costs, there is no longer an excuse for high prices.
- Worldwide
Network Access -
If your business has locations outside the United States and your
employees must travel globally, your calling card should work in
these countries, too.
- Flexible
PIN/User Management - You should be in control
of things like setting individual credit
limits per user, adding/changing or turning off PIN numbers and usage or fraud monitoring -
preferrably in real-time through a webbased interface. All of this must be easy to use without
giving you headaches.
- Billing,
Monitoring and Statistics -
Downloadable Call Detail Records (CDRs) that can be
imported into Microsoft Excel or other applications for post-processing help you identify each user
and the phone numbers he dialed. This is a must if you want to prepare simple statistics
per cardholder or tell the difference between private and business calls. Some corporate calling
card providers even offer a few basic off-the-shelf statistics in addition to plain CDRs. Finally, all
calls should be listed on a single monthly consolidated invoice, sorted by cardholder.
- 24/7 Customer
Service -
It comes in handy to have a phone
number and speak with a live
representative when something goes wrong or you're stuck making an important phone call.
- Quick
Setup and Delivery -
Speed is important in business. Your account should be manageable
both on- and offline and new card requests etc. should be taken care of preferrably in real-time.
- Low Monthly
Maintenance Costs - Watch out for rising costs associated
with setting up
additional PIN numbers or cardholders. A good calling card company will charge reasonable
prices or offer volume discounts. For instance, AccuLinQ charges a maximum fee of $5 if you
have more than 5 cardholders and CogniCall does not charge you any fees.
- Not a
Prepaid Service -
You cannot afford to be cut off in the middle of a conversation.
Thus, a business calling solution must absolutely be postpaid.
Recommended Calling Cards for Business
Now you will be introduced to some of the highest-rated business cards in terms of customer satisfaction. They easily fulfill our above-listed requirements and even provide you with an array of advanced features that may be useful to your organization's needs.
Click Here to explore Business Calling Cards for your Organisation