Please deposit your life savings for the next three minutes...
Well, it's happened -- the state of California has deregulated pay phones.
Get ready for a shock. No more free 411 (Directory Assistance) calls. No more 20c phone calls. You say no way, it's not going to be that bad. Get real, it's going to be that bad. GTE has already announced that it is raising the cost of locale calls from it's phones to 35c. That is a 75% increase!
Understand the implications. If I own a pay phone, I can charge you any amount I want to. Fifty cents, or $5, or more if I feel like it. Get ready to be hit with some very expensive pay phones. The most likely places to encounter extremely expensive phones is at prime locations with no competition, such as remote locations, hotels, restaurants -- in short, any place you're likely to need a phone and not be free to go looking for another phone to use you are going to pay for it.
Get yourself a calling card with rates tied to your home or office phone. Get a card with no surcharges. If you can't get a calling card, then at lest get a prepaid calling card. Between the two, the better per-minute charge can be found with a card tied to your phone bill. Most prepaid calls still have a rate of more than 15c per minute.
If you just need to call your home or office, look into an 800 or 888 toll free number. Rates on personal toll free numbers are about 10c per minute. If you find yourself needing to call in to check your voice mail, get a toll free access number for it.
Get three-way calling or Centrex or Centernet. You can call in on the toll free number, then have your out-going call cross-connected through your home/office phone. To do this, you will need someone to answer your incoming call for you, then make the cross-connection.
Get an auto attendant system that allows you to call out. There are low cost devises in the market that will not only answer your phone for you, but allow you to call out though them automatically (look at this month's product testing from Tina). These devices range from $10,000 voice mail systems, down to $150 units that stand alone or work with your computer.
Get rid of your digital pager and get an Alpha Numeric pager. Alpha Numeric pagers give you the complete message. This saves you calling just to find out what someone wanted. Please View This Months Article On E-Mial Pagers
Get a cell phone or a radio. If you just need to talk to your office or co-workers in the field, look into a business band radio. If your calling needs vary, look into a cell phone. Which cell phone is best? Digital or Analog? PCS or traditional? The answer is, it depends on your needs and usage patterns (BizNet is testing several phones at this time.
Look for an upcoming report). Nextel offers one unit that can function as both a radio and a cell phone. Additionally, Nextel has no roaming charges. If you're considering purchasing a cell phone, take a hard look at how you are going to use it. Rates and plans vary greatly. To make an informed decision, you will need to know the geographical area (or areas), you are likely to use the phone in. You will also need to know the time of the day and the days of the week you are most likely to be using the phone. This will help you pick the right phone (Digital, Analog, PCS) and carrier. If you are a member of a local chamber of commerce, find out if they have any special agreements in place for their members. Several chambers have arranged to get what is commonly referred to as the "500 phone rate" plan for their members. For most users this is a very cost effective plan. Some chambers can arrange to switch you over to the plan even if you now have a phone on another plan. In some cases, the savings are so substantial it pays to join the chamber just to get on the phone plan.