My suggestion going forward is NEVER buy managed routers from AT&T. Never!

It is an automated message that calls to say there is an open ticket. Not when Ma Bell opens the ticket. Two days later.

How do they identify the circuit? By IP Address! Very helpful (not!) How about a state to narrow it down.

The automated call allows NO WAY to close the ticket or update the status of the ticket. It does ask if you are the person who needs to know. If you say NO, they reply, “Please tell that person.” How annoying!

Ma Bell now follows up calls with emails with a little more detail — but still no customer name. It directs you to Business Direct Express Ticketing. What a misnomer! It takes at least 2 status entries to close a ticket.

They never roll a truck. A human has only called once — when the ticket was open for 5 days.

Never again. I’ll buy the router and lease it to you if you need one.

No idea how other carriers handle this since most of my sales have been AT&T Bandwidth. Level3 and tw telecom handle it with a human. Imagine that!

If you need bandwidth or colocation or any circuit, RAD-INFO quotes from over 50 carriers. 813-963-5884 the circuit hotline!

How important is the WHY? Simon Sinek wrote about Starting with Why. Jim Collins wrote about companies lasting and becoming great. These companies had a BHAG – big, hairy, audacious goal – or a Purpose, A Why.

I pointed out the article about why you need a mission statement. Now Fred has some more insight into the reason you need a mission to Retain Talent.

Fred writes, “I’ve been told over the years that the number one reason employees leave a company for another job is that they don’t know where the company is headed and they don’t know what their role in that roadmap is.”

You need a clear vision and to communicate this to your company often. (And it isn’t all just talk – you have to live it, act it, too.)

In goal setting,the why is as important as the how. Without the why, there isn’t much motivation. Motivation is what drives us.

Here are some interesting tidbits and articles (if you have the time to read them).

This article is on the next FCC spectrum auction.

The Connect American Fund (CAF) and the $9 Billion to fund rural broadband (from TheHill blog)

An interview with Mike Oeth of OnSIP on planning, deploying and other thoughts on Hosted VoIP. Good insight into Hosted VoIP.

Why Data Beats Talent in Sales Development. A long view of data in sales. I don’t agree with the whole article, but I do understand that good data on the leads can result in better closure rate. Also, a highly targeted list can mean a more specific offer that will appeal to that target. Messaging is easier with the more detail you have. But more detail is not always available.

Three Numbers to Check in Sales by Spiro: Average deal size; Win rate; Opportunities created per week.

Hiring Tips for salespeople (and if you need help with this, give me a call).

3 Reasons Your Company Will Fail Without A Mission Statement

VoIP Survey results. If you want a full VoIP Market review, click here.

It has been a couple of years since I broke down the Hosted PBX (UCaaS) business into the top players. A lot has changed recently with mergers and acquisitions and other moves. Where is the market now and where is it going? Who is doing well and why?

This lists over 40 companies. The webinar will be interactive as we go over these companies, their revenue, marketing savvy and disruption.

There are 2 options: webinar and report for just $149 or just the report for $99.

Note: there is a discount for my long term customers. If you have been with me since the beginning of RAD-INFO, this is for you. If you have any questions, please let me know. Thank you!

It has been a couple of years since I broke down the Hosted PBX (UCaaS) business into the top players. A lot has changed recently with mergers and acquisitions and other moves. Where is the market now and where is it going? Who is doing well and why?

This lists over 40 companies. The webinar will be interactive as we go over these companies, their revenue, marketing savvy and disruption.

There are 2 options: webinar and report for just $149 or just the report for $99.

Note: there is a discount for my long term customers. If you have been with me since the beginning of RAD-INFO, this is for you. If you have any questions, please let me know. Thank you!

The webinar will be held on 9/25/2015 at 11 AM ET/ 10 AM CT