sundance-communications.com/forum Forums General General Telephone & Systems Information Maintenance Contracts

In my mind the two most important steps to take when "maintaining" a system is to 1. Protect it, surge protectors and UPS. and 2. Backup system programming.

<a href="https://www.acsnyc.com" title="ACS">ACS</a>

Most interconnects can triple there profits in a short period of time by offering service plans on the key systems they are selling. This is not rocket science here. And if you craft a good plan, there is no more risk than you have now (you already provide serive if something breaks, right?)

The easiest way to sell your plan is POS, meaning at the point of sale. The customer is already buying and your rep is already there. Simply have them pre-sign on a plan that the coverage and billing starts when the warranty is over. We get 50% of our sales to sign at POS. And we don't have to go back from the sales side.

Be sure to include an auto renewal part to your plan, and exclude toll fraud.

There are manuals and seminars on this subject and you can email me if you want more information on what I can get for you.

If you are not offering maitenance plans, you are leaving most of the profit on the table and selling yourself short. And, you are living month to month instead of having a large amount of contracted, predictible, high profit, residual income coming into your business each month.

These are easy to sell if you have a great plan that offers benefits to your customers "even if nothing breaks" such as priority dispatch, over the phone support, programming, etc.

Again, I got a ton of information on this subject. I am at [email protected]

Thanks. Brian

I would also add by doing so you lock the customer in for MAC work.

Forgive me if this sound rude - and maybe I'm missing something, so please explain - but this sound like nothing more than you ripping off your customer and being proud of it!
1)You are charging the customer a monthly fee for a service you don't provide
2) That is already 100% covered by the manufacturer warranty and
3)THEN you charge them the regular fee on top of the monthly fee for the services you do provide - or am I missing something?

Sure it puts money in your pocket, but how exactly are you different from the "used car salesmen" or those telemarketing guys who rip of the elderly with $500 water purifiers you can buy at wall-mart for $30!

You might be able to get away with it because, sadly, most customers are too stupid to know or pay attention to what they're signing, but sooner or later you'll get one who'll be calling the state attorney generals office right after you walk out the door.

Again, I am not trying to offend you, but I don’t understand what else you’re selling!

It's hard enough making a living as it is, it doesn't make it easier if we encourage dishonesty and deception as a revenue source!

How do you mean dishonest? You offer the maintenance plan that begins after the warranty. I for one had desighned my contract so that it has the customers interest in mind. Sure i make a monthly income from them, but the extra services I provide for contract holders really makes it worth the cost.

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| Telephone Systems | Voice & Data Cabling

Corwyn, it's an insurance policy. Plain and simple. You aren't required to do it. I have seen many people roll the dice then call wanting help and I have no reason to jump and every reason to charge the max. I also warn the customer about doing their own work AND not being certified as it voids both the warranty AND the maintenance contract. Once again no one is required to have a service contract but don't expect a vendor to come running when you don't have one.

I'm SORRY but this -
"A maintenace contract with all hardware still under manufacturer warranty? Sweet!"
- Doesn't say insurance policy after the warranty to me! This says -well English is my 3rd language, so maybe you need to explain it to me!?

And, if you are charging for travel time, moves, changes, programs WHAT exactly does the "insurance" policy which you title Service agreement (as in perform a set of services for an agreed fee) cover? What that you'll show up an hour earlier than usual?

I've said SEVERAL times in my original that I didn't understand what you are selling, but you're still not explaining anything!

I believe the "sweet" comment was from a member that misunderstood as well.
Yes there is a warranty on the items in question but the labor is NOT covered under the warranty. they are selling them a contract on the labor during the warranty period, then after the warranty is over converting it to include parts. MAC work is a seperate deal all together.

Ok- Let me explain. A post warranty service contract (AKA Maintenance plan) covers parts and labor should something break, after the original warranty is over. Many firm, like mine, add extra benefits to our plan, like free training, free programming, and priority dispatch. Any additions, including moves, changes, wiring, and extra equipment, is billable. Hope that clears things up.

I would be angry if anyone I have consulted or taught would ever go out with the intent to rip an uneducated customer off. The object here is to provide a good plan for the customer, sell it when they are in the buying mode, and collect a monthly residual payment to be there for them. Sort of like my health insurance. I pay every month whether I use it or not, but it is nice to have when I do need it.

I have spoken as a paid consultant on this subject for NEC, Winn, several distributors, and NATD. I have also done several private seminars on this subject. The only uneducated ones in this discussion is not the customers but rather, the interconnects who don't offer plans. If anyone wants info on a manual called "How to Turn your Interconnect Into A CASH COW." Please email me your fax number to [email protected] and I will fax you a 2 page flyer.

Rest assured, you can have a plan where you make a ton of profit and still be a good value to your customers... and they will want it! I can tell you how to strike this balance... (I did a little above). Brian