Business broadband - choosing the right supplier

A recent study by the Communications Management Association (CMA) reported that one third of UK companies do not have fast enough broadband to meet their needs.

Lance Spencer, Product and Marketing Director of Pipex Business, has provided some general tips to ensure that you select the right broadband supplier for your business.

Quality, Speed and Bandwidth

Broadband services should be measured on the quality, bandwidth and speed required for downloading files, and running mission critical applications. You must determine how much you will need to download to work out which broadband service would suit your company best. You should be looking for quality throughput to cope with your requirements.

Stability and Customer Service

No business will benefit from broadband failure. Opting for a service offering top speeds will not necessarily guarantee you the best service. Make sure you are aware of the overall offering and ensure that customer service is a key part of your selection process. Your business relies upon a reliable broadband connection; you must therefore ensure the service you opt for has an accessible business-quality customer service. UK based, 24-7 customer service is paramount.

Control

You need complete visibility of your service so choosing a provider with online controls and dashboards to monitor the service.

Factors affecting Bandwidth

You do not and never will receive a constant set speed, on consumer grade broadband connections, your connection speed will fluctuate from, one second to the next. Think of this in the same way as rush hour driving - broadband is the same, the more connections there are, the more bandwidth has to be shared. Opting for a business grade service with guaranteed bandwidth ensures your business doesn’t have to stop during peak times.

Factors affecting Service

Factors such as the distance between your office and the local exchange, the region you are based in, the quality of your BT line, internal telephone wiring, the quality of copper line itself, the speed of your offices computers or the modem you use.

More General Tips

• Check all devices on your line are filtered (Phones, Faxes etc)
• Run a Spy ware and virus scan
• If you have a wireless connection, make sure it is secure, as other people could be using the bandwidth
• Always use Business Grade Broadband as a minimum
• Use guaranteed bandwidth products for mission critical applications
• Use a company with a UK support centre, who can help optimise your connections
• Use a company that has support staff that specialise in supporting businesses