5 Tips to Fuel Productivity with Mobile Technology

Should Your Business Invest in Mobile Solutions?

From humble vessel of calls and texts to a palm sized computer you can keep in your pocket, the mobile phone has had quite the glow up since its inception in the 80s. The once, bulky device affectionately known as ‘The Brick’ was reserved for wealthy entrepreneurs, senior representatives of large organisations and financiers. Now it has transformed into a piece of technology that is not only accessible to most businesses, but a vital component of business communications and productivity.

With the world of business becoming far more agile than it has ever been, having access to connectivity on the go and a solution that ties your mobile workforce to your business is more important than ever. Mobile technology has advanced to a point where it can support this mobility with apps allowing users to take documents, emails and even their business phone system on the go.

We’ve narrowed down five top tips for fuelling productivity with business mobile technology, so whether you’re looking to invest in mobile solutions for your business or you want to find out how to get the most out of your existing solutions, our tips are here to help.

1) Ensure Your Data Allowance is Fit For Purpose

Back in the day, minutes and text allowances were a big consideration when choosing a mobile package. For workers who were relying on their mobile to connect with clients and colleagues whilst on the move between meetings, having a business mobile contract that had a suitable minutes allowance was really important to avoid overspending. Nowadays, most mobile contracts come with unlimited calls and texts, as standard and data allowances now hold the monopoly on the costs of your business mobile solution. Not having enough data included in your plan results in unexpected charges (if you’re on an uncapped tariff) if you go over your data limit or having your connectivity cut off (if you’re on a capped tariff), limits productivity on the go.

When choosing a plan for your business, it’s key that you assess the amount of data that your team is likely to need. If this is the first time you’ve invested in mobile solutions for your business, this can be a tricky question to answer, but here are some key questions to consider:

• Will the user need to hotspot often to utilise other devices in order to be productive?
• How often is the user likely to need mobile data throughout the average working day?
  • Emails?
  • Collaborating on documents remotely?
  • Dialling into video calls, VoIP calls or instant messaging platforms?
• How often is the user likely to be using the phone away from the office and therefore won’t be able to rely on WiFi?

Get this right and your team has access to the all-important data they need to be productive without racking up unexpected charges or your business overspending on too much data that your team doesn’t need.

2) Using Office Applications for Seamless Productivity

Who would have thought that one day we would have access to mobile applications of well-known and well-used desktop productivity software, including the Microsoft Office suite? Nowadays, most solutions and platforms will have a mobile app version to enable you to utilise them on mobile devices. Ensure your team equips their mobile solutions with applications that they need and monitor their usage to ensure they aren’t using applications that may distract or hinder productivity. How can you keep track of the usage and applications stored within your business mobile fleet? Don’t worry, we’re going to take you through a simple solution with powerful benefits that helps you keep an eye on your business mobile solutions, shortly!

3) Access Your UCaaS or Business Phone System From Anywhere

Business mobile solutions enable your team to take your business phone system out on the road with them. From accessing the full extent of your business’s contacts list to having the ability to dial into team meetings, hop on video calls and send and receive instant messaging, your team can connect and collaborate from any location, as they would in the office. Through accessing communication via the internet, your team isn’t tied to traditional voice calls and can communicate in a way that works for them and your clients.

4) Join the 5G Revolution

The rollout of 5G will enable faster access to documents, new employee and customer experiences and better remote and mobile working thanks to its faster speeds and better bandwidth. Ensuring your business mobile solutions are ready for 5G will allow your business to start taking advantage of its benefits sooner rather than later. From improved collaboration with quicker upload and download speeds and communication that isn’t slowed down by buffering or stuttering, the technology available to your team via mobile devices is bolstered by better connectivity with the rollout of new, faster networks.

5) Flexibility and Freedom For Your Team

A study conducted by Microsoft has shown that allowing flexible working is fuelling productivity, with 84% of UK workers saying they are as productive or even more productive thanks to hybrid working. With mobile solutions, productivity is no longer limited to the office – your team can connect and collaborate with each other and with your customers just as effectively as they would in a physical premises. Flexible working allows access to a more balanced life, which ultimate results in a boost in productivity, as your team are less likely to feel burned out or forced to work in a way that doesn’t work for them.

Are Business Mobile Contracts Expensive than Personal?

With any investment, the key consideration is the return you will get on that investment and it’s the same when purchasing business mobile solutions for your team. It’s understandable that there can be a reasonable amount of concern surrounding the cost and implementation of mobile solutions within your business.

For smaller businesses it can be tempting to simply invest in a handful of personal mobile phone contracts rather than investing in business mobile contracts. Is the monthly cost likely to be less than a business contract? Potentially. Is it going to serve your needs? Most likely not, as these contracts are designed for individuals not business use. You’ll be paying separate bills for separate contracts which means keeping track of your spending is very difficult and scaling your mobile fleet as your business grows becomes complicated, as you will be purchasing further individual contracts.

Business mobile contracts are designed to be bought and distributed amongst multiple people within your business. Furthermore, a lot of business contracts will come with added benefits, such as offers on buying multiple handsets, the ability to pool and distribute data across your devices and more. So, yes whilst the initial monthly cost may be more than a personal mobile contract, the features and the very design of business mobile contracts will save you money in the long term.

How to Avoid Overspending On Your Mobile

Ok, so we’ve covered how you can get the most out of mobile solutions to fuel productivity within your team, but how can you ensure that you are always in control of your solutions and the associated costs? Let us introduce you to my.plan from Elite.

With my.plan you have everything you need to ensure your mobile solutions are cost-effective and are promoting productivity within your team. From flexible data, calls and texts to roaming extras and real-time analytics that track how your team are utilising their mobile devices and usages, all at the touch of a button within the my.plan platform.

Contact us today to book a FREE demo of my.plan with one of our plan.com consultants. We’ll demonstrate everything the solution has to offer and how it can benefit your specific business needs.