SMEs will keep investing in telecommunications services

A new survey from technology research firm Ovum has found 73% of small and medium businesses will continue to invest in new telecommunications systems, although they will restrict spending to those items that affect their business and provide a clear return on investment.

Given the economic environment, the pay-as-you-go model of hosted telco services is preferred by 79% of SME customers, who like to have a regular and predictable monthly charge rather than facing big upfront investments. Ovum senior analyst Claudio Castelli, says this preference should help software-as-a-service products grow during the downturn.

The survey, which included 100 Australian companies, also found SMEs like simplicity when dealing with their providers, with 83% of the SMEs preferring to purchase all their fixed and mobile telecommunication services from a single source.

“Bundling multiple services including fixed and mobile represents additional opportunities for providers,” Castelli says.

“However, these bundles have to offer commercial benefits when compared to the stand-alone offerings. Most of the SMEs (66%) still believe that price is the most important factor when selecting providers.”