Ask our Expert

What are my options for a new business phone line?

Our business expert says...

One of the first things that any new business premises needs is a landline. Whether you simply want to use your new line to make and receive calls, need access to the internet or want to have a back-up emergency line in place, you need to make sure you find the right deal.

Rather than opting for the first provider you come across, ask yourself the following questions to make sure you get the best possible deal - and a package that’s right for your business.

Is there already a landline at your property?

Costs can vary depending on whether you need a whole new business line installed, or whether an old line can be reconnected. If there is a white “faceplate” at your premises, find out if a line was active in the past - you might be able to save money simply by having it turned back on as this doesn’t usually involve calling out an engineer.

How many lines do you need?

If you need more than one business phone line installed at your property, you’ll often be able to save by having them installed by the same supplier at the same time. For example, you might pay £99 to have a single line installed, £79 each for up to five new lines or £69 per line if you need six or more.

TalkTalk www.talktalkbusiness.co.uk is one such provider - although it charges £99 for a single business phone line installation, the company will waive this fee if you take its Office Broadband package at the same time - saving you almost £100.

Bear in mind though that although you might need all of these lines for the same business they also all need to be installed at the same premises for you to qualify for a discount.

How will you use your business landline?

Think carefully about how you will use your phone line before you pick a provider and package.

Most businesses want a landline installed for two reasons; to make and receive phone calls and to access the internet. If this is the case for you, then you need to take various factors into consideration, including the time of day you use your services, the kind of calls you make and whether or not you want to bundle your broadband with the same supplier.

But if you already have a broadband and landline service, and simply want a second line to use as a back-up in case of emergencies, you should choose the cheapest line installation and monthly rental payment option.

There might even be other reasons that you want a new phone line, such as an alarm line that is connected to your business security system. A “redcare line” is designed to alert the police as fast as possible and also sends a heartbeat pulse down the line - so even if someone cut the phone line the police or your security service would still be notified.

Do you need broadband and calls as well?

All the big business phone providers now offer bundles to help you save money on your bills when you sign-up for multiple services.

You’ll be asked to pick the business broadband and phone services you want when you choose your new provider. Think about the time of day you’ll be going online or making calls, as well as the type of calls you make and the broadband connection you need.

• Daytime calls - will you be making most of your calls during 9am-5pm business hours?
• Mobile calls - would you benefit from a tariff that offered discounted calls to mobiles?
• International calls - do you make a lot of calls to clients and contacts abroad? If you have a fast internet connection, you might also want to consider a cheap VoIP internet calling package
• 0800 and 0845 numbers - many providers offer easily recognisable 0800, 0845, 0870 and even 09 numbers to suit your business needs
• Call features - do you want to make conference calls, or use features such as call waiting, mobile forwarding and ringback?
• Line rental - how much will your monthly line rental cost after you have had your line installed?

If you're also signing up for a business broadband package you should also think about the actual download and upload speeds you'll get, as well as your monthly data allowance, which might be quite high depending on the kind of business you run.

The cheapest business line deals

Business phone providers often run special deals and discounts to tempt you to switch or sign-up to their services - so it pays to regularly check what’s available, especially if you're coming to the end of your existing contract.

Ask us a question

If you have a general switching or provider query please email us at ourexpert@businesschoices.co.uk