UK Telecoms Industry and Resellers - Selecting a good one!

Ok, so this is where you learn to swim with sharks ........ :-)

First Lesson

There's probably half a dozen Major Manufacturers of Telecoms Systems selling into the UK and maybe 30 Minor Manufacturers. For very large Customers some Manufacturers have Direct Sales operations, but nearly all UK Businesses have to buy via a Reseller.

Each Manufacturer has their own Resellers - usually small Regional Companies that sell the Manufacturers products and support the local Customers. Some Resellers have their own engineering teams, sometimes they employ self employed Telecoms Engineers, sometimes they Resell the Manufacturers own Engineering services.

You will pay a minimum of £250 per day for a capable Telecoms Engineer, and this goes up depending what Systems they are working on and what skills they have up to perhaps £1000 per day for a top notch Telecoms Software Developer.

Whats the difference? Engineers install and configure Telecoms Systems, Developers also build software to bridge between your own in-house Customer Relationship Management or other software and your new Telecoms System.

How do you select a Good Reseller? Talk to other businesses in your area first, find out who they use and would recommend. Build a short list this way, then contact the Resellers directly and talk to them.

Some key questions to ask:

Firstly do they have their own engineers, or do they hire them in? How many engineers do they directly employ?

Why? Engineers are in demand and under time pressure. If you are lucky enough to find an engineer who listens to you, does a good job and leaves you happy with your new system, make sure you get his name and contact details! If he works for a local Reseller you have a better chance of getting him back next time you need him, whereas if they work for a Telecoms Manufacturer the chances of getting the same engineer twice are minimal.

Secondly do they sell several different Telecoms Systems? How long have they sold that particular Brand?

Why? Well, good or bad points here. Good - If they sell several Telecoms Systems they can point you towards the most suitable solution for your needs - but, as an ex Telecoms Sales person believe me, usually they will sell you what they think you will buy at the best profit margin for them! Bad - If their Engineers have to work with several Telecoms Systems they are unlikely to know them in as much depth as if they only sell one. Good - If they only sell one Brand and have sold it for several years they should know the product well.

Thirdly how many systems of the type they recommend have they installed, and how many do they still maintain?

This is a good indicator of how successful they are.

Check their Websites out - of course a Website can make a small company look big, but generally if the website is competent its a good sign.

More to come later...