What Does UNLIMITED Mean for Mobile Broadband?

By: Paul Mendiola Click author's name for more of his/her articles

My friend Pete recently changed jobs and his company gave him a mobile broadband card from Verizon Wireless. Pete is a on-site support professional who is charged with respondiing to IT issues for mission critical applications so the company wanted to ensure that Pete was able to access the Internet at anytime, from whatever location.. Unfortunately, his boss failed to mention that the mobile broadband plan had a data transfer limit of 5GB per month. Over the next week, Pete was using the data card as his main Internet access from his house because the installation of his DSL line was delayed a week. Pete loves You Tube and he downloads stuff like crazy so he hit the wall pretty quick on the data limit. Pete was never told of the access limit but when he met with his boss, Tom; Pete got a quick lesson on mobile broadband access limitations. Fortunately for Pete, he was able to keep his job but he loves to tell people his story whenever we spend time with friends..

In mobile retail shops, you will not find an unlimited data plan because almost all the carriers limit data transfer to around 5GB per month. There are certain professionals who would really benefit from a mobile broadband plan without these data transfer restrictions. Like Pete, I am sure that any critical support technician would love to get their hands on an unlimited data plan without the 5GB cap. I can also see the unlimited data access plan helping companies who hire remote sales reps, on-site customer support, journalists, media producers, or anyone else needing on demand 3G mobile broadband wireless service. You may not know it but there is a wholesale alternative for companies seeking an unlimited broadband wireless service without the data cap limit.. If you select the right mobile broadband wholesale carrier, your company will secure the ideal solution because data plans include truly unlimited data access, flexible terms, easy provisioning, and reliable service from a tier-one nationwide provider.
Here are a few tips when considering a corporate wide mobile broadband implementation.

1. Create new policy for mobile broadband end users

Policy needs to be established up front so that everyone in the organization has a clear understanding of how the new mobile broadband service will play out. One way to decide who gets a data card is to give them to everyone with a laptop. We recommend that key traveling employees should have mobile broadband and Wi-Fi access, including sales reps, field service technicians and executives.

Another important policy is to decide who is responsible for approving new data cards and who will the data cards be delivered to the end user. For most companies, it makes sense to follow the same procedure for mobile phones.

It may make sense for your company to purchase the data cards instead of having your employees purchase the data cards so that you are able to control expense and obtain corporate discounts.

2. Always Maintain an Inventory of Compatible Hardware

It is important for companies to pick a hardware platform that is universally accepted by the organization. Most companies maintain an inventory of standardized laptops and handheld devices that connect to the corporate network.

3. Establish a Deployment Plan

You will need to choose a departement or person to be in charge of provisioning the data cards and getting to the end user. The most obvious choice is going to be your internal IT or help desk so that the process is centralized and easily managed.

New employees should get their manager to issue the data card and have it ready for the new employee on their first day of work.

When someone leaves the company, you most likely will have to determine a procedure for getting the employee to return the data card and then also turn off the service if the employee keeps the data card.

4. Monitor Usage

It is good to monitor your mobile broadband data cards to make sure they are being used at all or for non-work related activities like music and movie downloads.

For those employees who travel infrequently, the data card may not be essential because you may have many months of non-usage but still be responsible for paying the bill. If you see zero usage for a couple months, then you may want to suspend the data card until you can come up with an alternative solution for that particular person.

5. Find a Wholesale Wireless Broadband Provider

Working with a proven wholesale provider will give you the best opportunity for better pricing. In addition, the wholesale provider may offer flexible contract terms, superior service, customized billing, and simple provisioning of new data cards.

Mobile broadband is quickly becoming an essential access point for corporations because of the connection speed and convenience of everywhere connectivity. As the next generation of mobile broadband and mobile applications become available, corporations will certainly find new ways of doing business and becoming even more productive away from the office. In closing, corporations should consider implementing mobile broadband right now to lower broadband access costs and gain productivity increases.

Article Source: ABC Article Directory

About The Author: Paul Mendiola is a business entrepreneur and wholesale data access provider with Spiritel Solutions. Calling all companies looking to increase productivity with unlimited mobile broadband. To learn more, please visit Mobile Broadband or go to 3G Wireless Data Card