Businesses of all sizes adopt technology to make them more productive, cost effective or flexible and help them compete. Over the years the adoption of tools such as mobile phones, wireless laptops, the internet and email have all been driven by such expectations. Small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are often at the forefront as these technologies can give them a lead on their larger competitors. What starts as a useful extra tool or 'competitive edge' soon becomes the accepted norm and a search for improved quality and utility then ensues.
QUOCIRCA INSIGHT REPORT June 2008
Loud and ClearSMBs get the message about unified mobile communications Businesses of all sizes adopt technology to make them more productive, cost effective or flexible and help them compete. Over the years the adoption of tools such as mobile phones, wireless laptops, the internet Contacts: and email have all been driven by such expectations. Small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are often at the forefront as these technologies can give them a lead on their larger competitors. What starts as a Rob Bamforth useful extra tool or 'competitive edge' soon becomes the accepted norm and a search for improved quality Quocirca Ltd and utility then ensues. Tel +44 1962849746rob.bamforth@quocirca.com . Email addresses and mobile phone numbers are the primary business contact points for all employees Bob Tarzey Most SMB employees' business cards display an email address, and about eight in ten show a mobile Quocirca Ltd phone number, whereas only two thirds will bother to mention a direct dial fixed extension these days. Tel +44 1753 855794 Surprisingly, the fax machine is not yet defunct as the majority of SMB employees still have a fax number on their cards, more so than list a web address.bob.tarzey@quocirca.comJohn Cullen . The mobile phone is the hub of SMB communicationsRadioFrame Networks Beyond simple telephony and text messaging, many SMBs use mobile phones for mobile email, web browsing and instant messaging both inside and outside the office. Even at a desk with a fixed phone, Tel +44 78 5770559 the mobile is the first preference for many employees wanting to make a call, despite the difference jcullen@radioframenetworks.com in cost.. Even with careful operator selection, mobile reception is not always good, especially at homeMore than a third of SMBs notice occasional problems getting mobile phone coverage at work, with employees sometimes having to move around the office, or even go outside to get a signal. At home, the problem is, if anything, worse, with almost half of companies noting that some employees will have difficulty getting coverage on their business mobile while at home.. 3G phones have not made great inroads, but the use of 3G laptops is set to grow Over half of SMBs have no plans for deploying 3G phones, but around 17% expect to roll out 3G lap-tops over the next year, adding to the one in three SMBs that have already. In some cases these will be laptops with 3G capability embedded, but even if not, external 3G modems have fallen in price and are available in a number of compact form factors. Mobile data tariffs are still a concern.Research Note: . IP telephony use started with ad hoc consumer products, but is now becoming more formal The information presented Around a quarter of SMBs have other phone identities, such as Skype, on their business cards and use in this report is based on a consumer IP telephony products to make business calls. However the use of commercial VoIP tools or survey of 240 organisations services is growing, and will exceed the business use of consumer tools over the next year.in France, Germany, Sweden and the UK. It was completed . Mobile voice and data airtime costs are high; assistance to control them would be valuedin April of 2008. The flexibility might be worth it, but costs are still an issue. SMBs are open to ideas like fixed mobile convergence-offering both services from a single device-providing it delivers value without requir-Those surveyed were small ing substantial upfront investment. Most of them think this is an area where mobile operators can help, to medium sized businesses giving those operators an opportunity to grab fixed call minutes and revenues.(SMBs) with between 1 and 500 employees. . Broadband could help to curb mobile call costs and bundling both services is attractiveMany SMBs already pay for their employees' mobile phones and just under half provide and pay for Quocirca would like to thank some of their employees' broadband connections. Over half of SMBs would be interested in using all the respondents to the sur-broadband capacity to reduce mobile call costs, and almost as many say they would value the idea of vey and the sponsors of this both broadband and mobile services bundled together.research. CONCLUSION: The mobile networks have become vital for SMBs; not only for employees making mobile phone calls, but sending and receiving data-in small amounts on phones or larger... [download for more]
