According to the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), many UK SMEs are suffering the consequences of poor connectivity.
A recent survey by the FSB found that 30% of small businesses received download speeds of less than 10Mbps, a figure that rose to 39% in rural areas.
Unsurprisingly, a third of respondents said the speeds they received were insufficient for their current needs, while 40% thought they’d be insufficient for their future needs.
Mobile connectivity was also an issue, with 45% of small businesses experiencing unreliable voice connectivity, and this figure rose to 57% in rural areas.
Connectivity drives business
These figures are especially alarming when you consider how important connectivity is to business.
For many businesses (perhaps most) reliable connectivity is now essential to everyday operations.
Organisations communicate and collaborate online. They use a range of productivity apps and back office services hosted in the cloud. Nearly every business has a website and many run e-commerce operations.
Security and facilities management firms rely on connectivity for many of these things too, and they also depend on the mobile internet to connect security systems, like alarms and CCTV, to a centralised platform.
The reliance on digital networks makes businesses vulnerable, especially if that connectivity is underpowered or unreliable. It means that, when the internet drops out, so do many of your core operations.
The FSB research highlighted the costs to businesses that arise from poor connectivity. It found that 26% have lost business or sales due to connection issues. Nearly a third (31%) think a poor broadband or mobile internet connection is a barrier to growth. Even more (32%) have had difficulty communicating with customers due to underperforming connectivity.
Connectivity: a major business issue
As the FSB research makes clear, limited connectivity is a huge issue. Small businesses regularly grapple with download and upload speeds that make running the latest digital apps and services difficult or impossible.
To get over these issues, many double up on connectivity, with fixed line broadband supported by 4G mobile. If one goes down or is especially slow, the other can take over.
That’s one use for mobile data and there are many others. In some rural locations, mobile coverage is better than fixed line equivalents, and speeds are faster. Some businesses rely entirely on the mobile internet.
Mobile connectivity is also used for one-off events and festivals, and for vehicle fleets that need internet access on the go.
Security businesses often use mobile technology to link alarm and CCTV systems together, especially where security has to cover large areas and multiple entrance points.
Connectivity can be limited in more ways than one
When we talk about ‘limited’ connectivity, we tend to focus on the speed of fixed or mobile connections.
But the mobile connections many businesses rely on can be restricted in another way, too. They’re limited by data caps.
A data cap is simply the amount of data any SIM can use in a month before punitive measures are taken.
For example, if you run CCTV cameras with a 1GB mobile SIM, when you reach that limit the service will stop or, more likely, you’ll start paying extortionate rates for extra data.
Large national carriers encourage businesses to invest in these data capped SIMs because they make small fortunes from data overage (businesses breaching their data limits).
You may be persuaded to invest in limited data SIMs because your devices rarely use more data than the prescribed limit. But it only takes an occasional breach of a data cap to leave you with a hefty bill.
The other thing that tends to happen when businesses rely on limited data SIMs is that they spend far more on capacity than they need to, “just in case”.
In other words, you invest in 1GB of data for a device that rarely uses half that amount, simply to ensure you never lose your vital connectivity.
Introducing connectivity risk
In other words, limited data SIMs introduce a connectivity risk to businesses that rely on mobile communications. Breaching data limits can be damaging. Just the fear of breaching them can force companies into unnecessary spending.
Luckily, there is another way. Pooled data is simply the practice of having one pool of data shared across multiple devices. That means that when a CCTV camera is connected to the internet, it’s drawing from a shared company data pool rather than a single account.
How does pooled data help you meet your data challenges? Well, each month you’ll have heavier and lighter users of data. Unused data from lighter users can be taken up by those with more data hungry requirements.
The result is that the business still pays one predictable monthly data charge, but it’s also much less likely that users will run out of data.
There are three main kinds of pooled data.
- Fixed Pools, where a fixed amount of data is chosen in advance.
- Aggregated Pools, which change every time a SIM is added or removed.
- Buffer Pools, which operate at an account level and can reduce data overage charges significantly.
More cost effective – and simply more effective
A pooled data plan makes mobile connectivity more cost-effective, by hugely reducing the chances that you’ll have to pay overage charges, and by increasing the data that is available to any single device.
On top of that, there are ways of making mobile connectivity as fast, reliable and fit-for-purpose as fixed line equivalents.
Mobile connectivity is no longer the poor relation of fixed line broadband. For a start, mobile data speeds are available up to 200Mbps, much faster than the average Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) connection.
And fears that mobile connectivity is less stable than fixed line can be put aside by investing in the right technology. That includes:
Specialised M2M (Machine to Machine)
E-SIMs
SD-internet (Software Defined Internet)
Why Everything Voice?
We’re experts in mobile communications, so we can advise you on the right SIMs, and the right data packages, for your needs.
Our pooled data packages can greatly reduce your mobile data spend, while ensuring your security network always has the bandwidth it needs. By utilising multi-network E-SIMs, we add an extra layer of reliability, because your CCTV and alarm systems aren’t relying on a single mobile network for connectivity.
We also combine pooled data and SD-Internet, calibrating your security infrastructure so the right bandwidth is always available for the devices that need it most.
If you’d like to know more about how mobile data from Everything Voice can solve your connectivity issues, please get in touch. We’ll be happy to talk you through the options available to your business and calculate the best mobile data solution for your budget.