When a relationship is new, people tend to give their best efforts to make a great first impression. We see examples of this in our daily lives: On a first date a women will wear a glamourous dress to look her best.
On the first day of school children are well behaved and excited about learning from their new teacher. During the interview the candidate for hire spells out all of his expert qualities that will surely make him an excellent choice for the job.
But what happens when you fast forward to a time when the relationship is established? The couple has gone from first-date-fabulous to sweatpants-casual, the school children have runny noses and are in “time out” for disruptive behavior, and the new hire is home from work again taking care of his sick cats.
The same new relationship/established relationship behavior change also holds true for telecom vendors. The vendor who makes a great first impression on a customer will inevitably raise prices over time. Acquisition pricing is always better than retention pricing in the telecom industry. If you want to be treated like a new customer and receive the first impression pricing, then you need an RFP.
What is a Telecom Services RFP?
A telecom services RFP, or request for proposal, is a formal request from a company seeking services to a telecom vendor. This request spells out the company’s telecom needs, and asks the vendor to propose terms and prices for fulfilling the proposal requirements. Typically a company would submit RFPs to several telecom vendors and then choose the vendor which offers the best terms and prices.
When you submit an RFP to a telecom vendor, it lets them know that you plan on looking at multiple options. Vendors who know that they you are looking at several vendor options know that they need to provide you with competitive pricing. This competitive landscape will result in much better pricing for the services that you need. Going through the RFP process will be a money saving move on your part.
How Can PAG Assist with the RFP Process?
Contacting PAG and enlisting a telecom consultant to write the RFP can help you on several fronts. First of all, if the telecom vendors know that you have an expert in your corner, they will realize that you mean business and that you will not be easily manipulated or mislead.
In addition to putting you in a position of power with an industry expert on your team, your PAG telecom consultant will advise you as to which vendors are best able to meet your needs. Vendors typically fall into three categories, or tiers:
Full Service Providers:
These are the largest of the vendors, and look to be your “one stop shop” for telecom. Full service providers include companies such as AT&T and Verizon who can meet a great variety of telecom needs.
Specialty Providers:
Specialty providers offer a specific product type, such as internet, and include vendors such as Sprint and CenturyLink. They are positioned to be specialists in one area of service.
Regional or Niche Providers:
These vendors focus on a particular region or niche market product, and include vendors such as Windstream and Time Warner.
The experts at PAG are familiar with providers at each tier, and will be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of each vendor. Your consultant will match the abilities of each vendor to your specific telecom needs, and advise you regarding which vendors will be able to offer you the best prices and contract terms for your business.
Whether you are considering contract renewal or switching vendors, enlisting PAG to write your telecom RFP will be a wise decision. You can be assured that with an industry expert on your team you will benefit from acquisition pricing rather than retention pricing. Your PAG consultant will have the knowledge and experience necessary to lead you toward the vendors who can best meet your telecom needs.
[author_bio username=”Ken” name=”yes”]
