What is it that makes small business owners choose a vendor to handle their communications? Is it always the lowest price? Is it value and reliability? Or is it relationship? Unfortunately In many cases business owners purchase based on low price. It is not unfortunate because they choose the lower priced provider of apples from one provider versus apples from the other provider, but because too many communications sales people simply say "yes" to anything a business owner asks. You ask? "will this system do four-digit dialing?" Your sales person says "of course." "Will the system make coffee for me in the morning?" "Not only will it make the coffee", says the salesman, "but you can dial in and select the boldness of the brew."

Time has come for buyers to beware! Instead of just asking why the higher vendor is so high, you also need to ask why the lower vendor is so low. I have put together some basic criteria you should use the next time you are purchasing a major communications system for your business.

1. From the field of choices find out who you can trust. This is a process of face-to-face meetings and reference checks. Who you "think" you can trust and who you can trust is very different so make sure you check out past performances.

2. When determining the brand of hardware consider market share. In communications, like any technology driven field, hardware becomes obsolete in only a few years. On the other hand a phone system should last you between seven to ten years. The likely hood of your system being fully supported when something goes wrong down the road is highly unlikely. So, you want to choose a brand that has a large market share because refurbished components will be available for many years. Also, a brand that has a large market share also will have the largest distribution and installation channel. This is very important because you do NOT want to be stuck with a faulty system in a market where only one company can service your system. Not only will your costs to repair be extraordinarily high, but your service response will be extremely low.

3. Make sure the system you review has room to grow. Do NOT purchase a system that you don't have at least 20% growth potential. If this means you need to purchase the more expensive model, then you should. Otherwise you will be purchasing two systems for $6,000 each instead of one for $8,000 for example. With all the leasing options available it is never smart to be penny wise and dollar foolish.

4. Make sure your system has built-in redundancy. In basic terms make sure if one of your main circuits or trunk lines goes down you have a back-up. This is a major way some vendors cut corners

Apples to apples comparisons are very rare when the difference between submitted prices is greater than 10%. Don't be so quick to discredit the higher priced vendor. First request a detailed equipment itemization schedule and meet with all vendors separately and go over each item. This can take some extra time, but you will learn more about what the system will be able to do for your business and about the integrity of the vendors you may be dealing with.

Saving a few bucks is never worth loosing the ability to communicate with your customers. Think long term. Know exactly why you are purchasing a new system. What goal do you want to achieve as a result of enhancing your communication platform. Choose the vendor who will help you achieve that result even if they are slightly higher in cost. It will pay dividend down the road.