Guide to Cell Phones and Service for Small Business

Get the basics from cell phone providers

When comparing cell phone providers, check for these basic elements: a battery that gives you ample talk time, text messaging, conference calling capabilities, a speakerphone and an address book that can hold at least a couple hundred entries. You may also want to look for an address book that syncs with your PC.

I recommend: Find the editor's choice picks for the best cell phones the best cell phones and cellular plans for small business at Entrepreneur.com. Download Good Mobile Messaging or Futuredial Snapsync software to help you sync your PC's contacts and calendar with your phone.  Find business cellular plans at Business.com.

Go for the extras on cell phone service

Go beyond the basic cellular phone service: Check the offerings of cell phone providers for a camera, video camera, mp3 player, multimedia messaging, instant messenger, voice dialing, EDGE high-speed data access, Bluetooth wireless connectivity and many others. Accessories you may want to consider include extra memory cards, a wireless keyboard for typing documents, a belt clip, a headphone or a mouthpiece.

I recommend: Find cell phone accessories at AccessoryGeeks.com.

Add a smartphone advantage to cellular plans

For more capabilities, look to a smartphone. These powerful communication tools do double duty as both a cell phone and a PDA. In addition to cell phone service, smartphones let you access email, update your calendar, maintain your contacts, browse the Web at high speed, run business software and work on projects.

I recommend: Find the best-selling BlackBerry and other smartphones from many cellular phone service providers at Amazon.com.

Equip and track employees with the right cell phone service

To save money, only give cell phone service to employees whose jobs take them out of the office on a regular basis. Decide if employees need cellular phone service with access to the Internet and email when they're on the road or if voice functions are sufficient. If employees are on the move within your facility rather than desk-bound, consider push-to-talk technology, cellular plans which offer cell phones like a two-way radio.

I recommend: View a push-to-talk  cell-phone service demo from Cingula to see if this technology is right for you. Keep track of your employees when they're in the field with AccuTracking software, a GPS cellular phone service.

Find flexible cellular plans for business

Some cell phone providers allow you to share minutes across employees, transfer unused landline minutes to your cell phone, make unlimited calls to your office number or pay-as-you-go. Look for cell phone providers that allow you to keep phone numbers even when employees leave.

I recommend: Cingular, T-Mobile and Verizon offer cellular phone service plans for small business. Sprint offers cellular plans for both office-based and home-based small businesses. Internet-based communications providers, such as CBeyond.com, are beginning to offer cell phone service plans.

For really flexible cell phone service, go with prepaid cell phones

These pay-as-you cellular plans require no contracts: Buy your prepaid cell phones, buy some minutes, your cell phone service ends if you don’t buy more minutes – it’s that simple. Plans for prepaid cell phones are typically more expensive per minute than standard cellular plans and may have access charges and monthly use-it-or-lose it restrictions on minute usage. But prepaid cell phones can be a great solution for temporary or project use or to keep a very tight hand on cell phone service expense.

I recommend: Prepaid cell phones used to be offered by minor league cell phone providers. Now the majors like Cingular and T-Mobile offer prepaid cell phones, too.  Specialists in prepaid cell phones like Virgin Mobile and TracFone buy large blocks of minutes from the major cell phone providers and aggressively resell, so be sure to check their prepaid cell phone plans, as well. For more on prepaid cell phones, read Work.com's Guide to Prepaid Cell Phones and find vendors of prepaid cell phones at Business.com.

Set up for international travel

Most U.S. cell phones are useless in foreign countries. If you or your employees travel on business internationally, select a phone with GSM (Global System for Mobile communications). If you rarely travel internationally, simply rent or buy an international phone for those trips.

I recommend: Check this list of phones from Cingular to see which will work abroad. T-Mobile has a search tool that lets you check international rates, service and coverage before you go. Rent an international phone from Planet Omni or purchase a low-cost model from Mobal.