Tough times can make or break a company, and whether companies make or break it all depends on how prepared they are to deal with economic downturns. Careful planning and realistic goals have become imperative as economic forecasts have generally been dire. If the world’s economy takes longer to heal than expected, how will telco companies keep themselves in the black?

There are several ways to survive a dipping economy, and as shown on the SmartCompany Dun & Bradstreet Industry Growth List for the telecommunications industry released last March, there are also ways for companies to capitalize on opportunities that crop up during tough times. A telecom company can survive the recession and keep itself from being in the red by playing its cards right and having sound plans, and backup plans.

Customer Management

To keep revenues from sliding, telecom companies should look at ways on how to keep their current customer bases strong, and how to attract new customers. Of course, the best way to keep a solid customer base is to provide good Quality of Service (QoS) and give good value for money.

Consumers are more prudent during lean times, and telcos could definitely cash in on this fact. Good value is not necessarily the cheapest service in the market, but the best service at a reasonable cost. Consumers these days have limited purchasing power and will therefore look into having the best value for their money. Offering good value and perks (bundled services and incentives, among others) are good ways to keep customers from looking at other providers.

Offer New Services & Cheap Alternatives

Customers keeping an eye on their purses will always be on the lookout for cheaper ways to get what they need, and so offering cheap alternatives like VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) might prove to be lucrative. This is a good time to start looking for new value services to offer, though telecom companies need to be careful on how their new offerings are perceived. If consumers see the offering as something they can do without, the product will probably see dismal sales.

Of course, telecom companies should be prepared for lower than usual takings, but as market shares go, having a significant piece of the pie is essential. As soon as consumers get their purchasing power back, patient telcos can expect higher ARPUs (average revenue per user).

Expand & Broaden the Network

Expanding the customer base and targeting a larger chunk of the market can be achieved by expanding the networks’ reach to cover other areas.

Telcos should not hesitate to tap into infrastructure sharing since that would soften rollout costs and help save money in the long run.

Detailed information on the advantages and disadvantages of infrastructure sharing is discussed in the next article entitled “Telecom Infrastructure Sharing: A Means to Counter Investment Deficiency?”

Efficiency & Cost Effectiveness

Another part of surviving the storm is keeping a tight ship. For some companies, this may mean restructuring the organization, running efficiency checks, and even cutting jobs. Keeping a tight leash over accounts and credit since telcos these days really can’t afford to be lenient in terms of collecting its dues.

As with infrastructure sharing, outsourcing may be a good option for telcos tightening their budgets, and it is a cost effective solution to patch up holes in the workforce while keeping good quality of service.

Informed Decisions, Business Intelligence

Companies cannot afford to spend its resources on things that aren’t guaranteed to help the organization. The best way to keep tabs on what the network needs, what aspects of the business need to be focused on, and what areas the company could capitalize on is to have accurate and accessible real-time data through which informed decisions can be made. Business intelligence can provide companies with the proper tools to gather and analyze data which can help provide the information necessary for a telco company to make informed decisions.