We live in a world of constantly improving technology where people’s ability to stay in touch with their loved ones keeps increasing. There is always a launching of a new premium device — smartphone or tablet — every now and then. Other changes and improvements in the world of technology are not as visible and are only felt by parties that are closely involved. One of the biggest and most recent technological changes is the rolling out of 4G/LTE networks in many countries around the world.
With this type of technology, people are continuously consuming more data than they did on 3G networks. Note that LTE doesn’t consume more data on its own than 3G, but the increased bandwidth and download speeds eventually lead to more consumption of mobile data. To curb the growing data usage expenses, service providers have eliminated unlimited data plans almost completely, and if not, they come at overly exorbitant rates. Data is increasingly becoming expensive for both individual and corporate users. Companies today operate within monthly or daily limits whether roaming or in a domestic setting. Companies, especially the ones on shared data plans, use pooled allowances to limit their data expenses.
Reducing Mobile Data Expenses
The growth of mobile technology and application is no secret. The resultant rise in the cost of data will have an impact on the finances of enterprises and is not going to be easy to manage. Here are a few tips to help your company cut down data expenses:
Monitored Data Usage
Businesses need to track who’s using their data and how and when they are using it to reduce costs. Failure to do this will result in extremely high data costs and reduced profit margins.
Making Good Use of Managed Services
There are many companies out there that support business in their mobile lifecycle. These companies offer tem consulting services to help reduce data consumption. Some of the services provided include cost saving through economies of scale, management of mobile products cost as well as their complete life cycle, and the management of mobile usage by transferring these tasks to a dedicated team.
BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)
This is a growing trend in the business environment. Employees are allowed to bring and use their personal devices in the workplace. It may seem like a good idea in the short run as it saves the company upfront costs of having to purchase new equipment. However, the long-term cost resulting from the inability of the company to track and manage data use on personal devices are high. Still, companies use BYOD strategies and come up with ways to manage data use, one of these ways is coming up with a phone budget for their employees.
Monitored Roaming Use
When data is used outside a provider’s coverage area, it’s called roaming. Roaming is expensive. Roaming charges, especially for businesses, are expensive as employees have to travel. One of the ways companies reduce roaming costs is through restriction of data while roaming, the downside is that it compromises an employee’s productivity.
Clare Louise 
Raymond Bilger