Account Management Archives - Online Technology Associates

Account Management, Account Security, Business, Connectivity, Financial

Problems With Your Phone or Internet Provider?

Problems with Your Phone or Internet Service? Reach out to OTA today!

Deciphering business phone and internet invoices is difficult enough, but what do you do when you believe the provider is billing you for services or fees you did not agree to and do not want or need?

There are professionals that will go to bat for you with these complex issues. Here at OTA Online Technology Associates, we handle these issues for our customers at no charge. Still, if you purchase these services online or by calling the company’s 800 number, you do not have many options.

You can file a claim with your state’s public service commission – but getting successful results takes knowledge of the system and what the offending provider can legally do, what they are not allowed to do, and how to get the results you need.

The good news is that you can get this type of expertise at no charge when you purchase business services from an independent broker, who works for you, not the provider. And that’s exactly where OTA comes in. We advocate for you at no charge!

Reach out today to learn more about how we work and what we can do for you!

Larry Cole
Managing Partner
Main 770-446-7199, x 202
Direct 678-916-1952
Cell 404-660-1662

November 20, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, Connectivity, Wireless

Faxing In the 21st Century?

Faxing is a service that has been around for over 25 years, so you would think that it is obsolete…right?

Well, if you said yes, you are probably not familiar with modern faxing services. Here are some features of modern faxing:

Faxes can be sent to and from any email account and the recipient receives them as a fax.
Users can send and receive faxes on any computer, tablet, smartphone or any smart device with internet access, even a smart TV
E-faxing can incorporate a traditional fax machine or multifunction copier or printer. This enables users to receive faxes by email and reply or send from either the email or the fax machine. This is a popular option.
Efaxing can save money on paper and ink, inbound faxes can be read, saved, forwarded, printed, or deleted, or any combination.
Efaxing is very affordable, services start at less than $20 per month for unlimited faxing in and out.
A single account can accommodate sending by any number of registered users on a single number.

Contact OTA for options and pricing and step into the 21st century in office technology!

Email : LCole@OTA1.com
Call: (770) 446-7199

Our Hours:
M-F: 8AM-5PM
Account Holder Emergency Support: 24/7/365

October 7, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, Connectivity, Financial, Satellite Service

Sharing Internet For Multi-Location Businesses?

Generally speaking, it is illegal to share internet service, but when you are sharing with your own satellite locations, it is not. So how do you do that?

If you have a dedicated internet circuit in your main location, we can create circuits for your branches that allow you to have only one internet connection for all your branches. This saves a lot of money in several ways.

First, Internet access is not free, when you buy any internet circuit, about half of the cost is the actual circuit connection to the carrier, and the other half is for internet access. Say you have 5 locations; you can have the main circuit in the home office and the other locations have only a connection to that office. In that case, all the locations use the main office to access the internet and since those circuits are not accessible over the public internet, it is very difficult to hack into them.

In addition, you only need one firewall for all locations which gives the main office more control over the satellites.
This is a great product for multi-location businesses for improving control, increasing security, and saving a lot of money!

Want more info on how to set a service like this up? Reach out today to OTA, your go-to advisors for all things connected!

Email : LCole@OTA1.com
Call: (770) 446-7199

Our Hours:
M-F: 8AM-5PM
Account Holder Emergency Support: 24/7/365

October 6, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, Connectivity, Data Services, Financial, Phones, Secure Connections

Do You Understand Your Phone Bill?

Frustrated Woman Business Owner Not Understanding Her Phone/Internet Bill.

Most business owners do not understand what they are paying their phone and internet provider for…!

The main reason is the carriers do not want you to understand or know! We see many commercial phone and internet bills that have many pages filled with acronyms and codes but do not explain what they are for. So, what is the solution? You could call the carrier each month and ask for an explanation of every charge, or you can engage a professional to audit your bills and challenge what is not supposed to be on them. You might wonder if you would be spending more on the audit than it would save, but there are companies that will do it for free if you are a client.

Companies like OTA do telecom audits for all the products we sell and for every customer, we know the difference between a valid charge, a mandatory charge, and a made-up fee with no basis. We call this Telecom Expense Management and we have been scouring over our client’s services for a long time and have saved countless thousands for our clients! Using an independent booker for your business services has many advantages, and saving your business money is just one of the services we offer!

Reach out to Online Technology Associates today with your phone bill to see if you are overpaying for services: email us at LCole@OTA1.com, or give us a call at (770) 446-7199…we look forward to helping you out ASAP!

September 27, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management

Telecom is Complicated, Don’t Go It Alone

Business Man crossing a path with a missing piece, OTA team on other side putting the piece in place.

Telecom Companies make the choices super confusing on purpose – as they tend to misrepresent some products as to what they can do and what they really cost.

There has been an explosion of new telecom options of products and services in the past few years – choosing what is right for your business, can be confusing if you aren’t well informed. These numerous carriers make the choices confusing on purpose as they tend to misrepresent some products can do and what they can and what they really cost.

One of the most prevalent misrepresentations is the “promotional offer”.

This is where a carrier offers artificially low pricing requiring bundles and confusing product names and features. We see a lot of what we call, “Telecom Math” where the more features and products you order, the lower the price. In one carrier’s offerings, the internet alone costs more than the same internet with “mobility phone lines”, They are very vague as to what exactly a mobility line is since it is not cellular and not mobile, but ordering some will cost less than the internet alone. What they don’t tell you is that these unneeded lines are free for a promotional period and then are billed at full price with no notice or option to drop them, or you lose the bundle price which makes everything more expensive. They also do the same trick with TV service which is often not wanted, needed, or ever installed.

Then there is the “no contract” contract. You order the service on a month-to-month basis, somewhere along the service it magically converts to a term contract with early termination fees. In fact, there are many factors that will restart the non-contract, contract by making any number of requests.

The solution for business customers is to work with a professional broker, who represents you, the customer, instead of a company rep who works for the carrier, not for you. The best part is that using a broker does not cost any extra. All carrier services include a sales commission paid to their internal sales department or a broker who represents you, not the carrier!

That’s where Online Technology Associates come in to save the day and your money! Reach out today for a complimentary consultation on what exactly you need and DO NOT NEED for your business today: (770) 446-7199.

September 14, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Artificial Intelligence, Business, Cloud, Connectivity, Data Services, Dedicated Circuits, Fiber, Financial, New Technology, Phones, Satellite Service, Secure Connections, SMS

How OTA Can Help Your Business…

In 2023, companies using cloud telecommunications will rise above 50%.

Companies like yours are moving their phone systems to the cloud every day. According to Gartner Group, 46.8% of all companies are already using a cloud provider for their phone system.

We have evaluated countless cloud providers and know that HostMyCalls is the best. HostMyCalls has over 75 years of experience providing traditional key and PBX systems and installed their first cloud phone system in 2001. This gives them more than 22 years of experience delivering hosted service – more than almost all big-name providers in the industry today. As a hosted provider focused on reliability, redundancy, and customer service, a call center will not answer your calls. Instead, their support staff will provide hands-on, personal help to your individual issues.

HostMyCalls can replace your monthly telephone bills, telephone system, and equipment maintenance costs. Their service typically provides:

No capital expense
Low or no upfront cost
Unlimited long distance (CONUS)
No ongoing maintenance agreements
Savings over your existing charges

You can learn how Online Technology Associates can solve your complex problems by watching this brief 1-minute video below:

Reach out to OTA today for a free Contract Review, and information on how to connect with clients economically:

Contact
LCole@OTA1.com
(770) 446-7199

Hours:
M-F: 8AM-5PM
Account Holder Emergency Support: 24/7/365

August 25, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, Connectivity, Financial

Free Telecom Advice!

Best of all, OTA’s research, advice, and counsel will cost you nothing.

Online Technology Associates are independent telecom agents. We are not employed by any of the countless carriers and cloud providers. Instead, OTA brings you knowledge and dozens of years of telecom experience to represent you.

In short, OTA can help you:

Review existing carrier contracts and invoices for errors and make sure they are still your best fit
Manage carrier relationships, keeping you away from tech support headaches by speaking to them in their language
Provide new circuits and hosted services as needed

To learn more about how I can help you and how we get paid, please watch this short video, reply to this email, or call OTA at (770) 446-7199 for more information on saving money for your business!

Our Hours:
M-F: 8AM-5PM
We offer Account Holder Emergency Support: 24/7/365

August 18, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, New Technology, News, Phones, SMS, Voice Services

Phone Service in the Cloud?

Gartner Group predicts that over 50% of all companies will have moved their phone system to the cloud by 2024! This rapid migration is happening because of the blatant benefits of the cloud – after all, cloud-hosted systems boast better economies, protections, and furthered capabilities than old-fashioned systems.

We reviewed countless companies to find the best because we can represent almost any hosted provider. HostMyCalls is the clear winner. Among many other capabilities and features, their business-hosted telephone service can:

Extend calls to multiple devices easily, including PCs and smartphones
Combine numerous offices and home workers into one simple telephone system
Replace your existing telephone system and services with NO capital expense and for LESS money than what you are paying today
Provide a seamless SMS experience that can be connected directly to your website

You can learn more about our hosted service by watching this brief 1-minute video, replying to this email, or calling Online Technology Associates: (770) 446-7199 – We’ll help you figure it all out ASAP!

August 14, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, Connectivity, New Technology, Phones

It’s A Great Time for A Contract Review!

Couple negotiating their business phone contract.

Companies should perform annual reviews of their telephone bills and any associated contracts. Annual reviews find services that you no longer needed, billing mistakes, and opportunities for better and less expensive services. Plus, it’s a great time to evaluate transitioning your phone system lines to the cloud.

We proudly represent HostMyCalls for cloud telephone services. HostMyCalls is a hosted PBX provider that replaces capital expenditures on telephone equipment, monthly telephone bills, and equipment maintenance costs. HostMyCalls will upgrade your equipment to the latest technology including:

Advanced call routing
Remote office and teleworker integration
Voicemail to email
Find me/follow me
Mobile phone and SMS applications

These can all be done with no capital purchases and low upfront costs.

Typically, telephone service contracts automatically renew. Once they renew, future options are limited. Reach out to OTA for help reviewing your bill – we’ll find options for each of your circuits at no charge to you. HostMyCalls can completely replace your telephone equipment AND circuits at LESS cost than you spend today on your circuits alone! Talk about saving money!

Reach out today if you would like my help reviewing your bills or evaluating your options: Online Technology Associates

July 7, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela

Account Management, Business, Connectivity, Data Services, Financial

Telecom Is Complicated – Don’t Go It Alone!

There has been an explosion of new telecom options of products and services in the past few years and choosing what is right for your business, can be confusing if you aren’t well informed.

Often carriers choose to confuse consumers by misrepresenting what their products actually cost and do. One of the most prevalent misrepresentations is the “promotional offer” where carriers offer artificially low pricing that require you to purchase bundles with confusing product names and features. We see a lot of what we call, “Telecom Math” where the more features and products you order, the cheaper the price. In one carrier’s offerings, the internet alone costs more than the same internet with “mobility phone lines”, They are very vague as to what precisely a mobility line is since it is not cellular and not mobile, but ordering this vague service will cost less than internet service alone. What they don’t tell you is that these unneeded lines are free for a promotional period and then are billed at full price with no notice or option to drop them, or you lose the bundle price which makes everything much more expensive. They also do the same trick with TV service which is often not wanted, needed, or ever installed.

Next is the “no contract” gimmick. You order a service on a month-to-month basis, and at some point during that service, month-to-month magically converts to a term contract with early termination fees! In fact, there are many factors that will restart the non-contract contract by making any number of requests.

The solution for you, as a business customer is to work with a professional broker, who represents you, the consumer, instead of a company rep who works for the carrier, not for you. The best part is that using a broker does not cost any extra. All carrier services include a sales commission which is either paid to their internal sales department or to a broker who represents you.

The message here is a warning to not go into this alone…We speak fluent telecom and know what you do and do not need for your particular business…Reach out to Online Technology Associates today for your free consultation!

June 20, 2023/0 Comments/by Angela