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Customers need no longer be restricted
in their choice of telecommunications provider. No matter what
your requirements, be it landline telephone, mobile or internet
services, there are many companies out there fighting for your
custom. Many offer free trials, bonuses & discounts, so
make sure that you scout around before letting impatience get
the better of you & committing yourself to a company that
won't work so well for you. |
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Be aware of your own needs. If
you are interested in internet service providers then think
about how many hours you will be online per week. If you are
an infrequent, casual user then it might be more cost effective
to opt for a pay-as-you-go plan. If you plan to use the internet
more frequently & do not wish to be restricted by peak times
then an unlimited access package is more suited to you. The
same goes for mobile phones; will you be using your phone for
daytime or evening calls or will you primarily use your phone
for text messaging? Would you prefer the steeper initial cost
of a pay-as-you-go phone or prefer the more spread out costs
of a long-term contract phone? All of these factors will come
into play in your choice of mobile phone package. |
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Telecommunications companies that
charge calls by the second are a better deal for the consumer
because then you are charged only for the time that you are
talking, not, for instance, charged for 2 minutes when a phone
call has lasted for 1 minute & 1 second. |
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Take advantage of special deals
regularly offered by telecommunications companies such as family
& friends plans. It will only take a minute to think about
your most frequently called numbers & these numbers can
often be updated online. |
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Don't let your installed phone
line restrict you. There are many services now available whereby
your calls can be re-routed through a cheaper provider, enabling
you to keep your current cabling whilst receiving cheaper phone
bills. The process is often made available by the attachment
of a small box to your current equipment or by dialling a prefix
before the number you desire to contact. |
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If you are travelling, think about
how you are going to contact people before you go. Hotels often
charge extortionate prices for telephone calls & even regular
payphones can be seriously undercut by the use of a prepaid
international phone card which you can buy in the UK. Many mobile
companies allow you to adapt your phone for use abroad by simply
dialling a number into your keypad. However, prices are often
much steeper so check out your companies tariffs before you
go. Also, if you are abroad & receive calls or messages
to your mobile, you will be charged any additional costs that
the caller would otherwise be charged. This was introduced because
it is impossible for the caller to tell whether or not the person
they are calling is abroad but it is an easy way to drain your
credited account without even realising it. |
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Beware of bogus SMS messages to
your mobile informing you that you have won a prize. Even if
the message claims to be from your network provider it is still
likely to be a hoax. Contact your network provider if you are
concerned. You will most likely be asked to reply to the text
message within a certain time limit otherwise your 'prize' will
be passed on to somebody else. The text message you send will
be charged at rates well over the standard costs (pounds rather
than pence) & the grand cash prize you have supposedly won
will be delivered to you in the form of useless tokens such
as holiday vouchers offering you amazing 'discounts' on package
holidays that you have to buy. Don't be a fool, Billy! |
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Also beware of ringtone phone
lines which charge you ridiculous rates whilst you are left
listening to rudimentary tunes that don't actually resemble
anything you have ever heard before. If you really want to get
hold of that Status Quo tune or happy hardcore anthem for your
mobile then many websites allow you the opportunity to hear
their ringtones online. Sometimes you will have to order the
ringtone by telephone but this cuts the expensive process of
paying as much as you would to go to a gig to listen to a substandard
series of bleeps on the phone. Also check the compatibility
of your model before you order something which you might not
even be able to use. |
