Agency Channel: ARG Quenches Market’s Thirst

Posted: 01/2001

ARG Quenches Market’s Thirst
By Tara Seals

The Association Resource Group (ARG) acts as an advocate for clients. It’s a
win-win situation. According to CEO Greg Praske, customers look for someone who
cares and can deliver in telecom. Because ARG does just that, he says, the
master agency wins big with lucrative ongoing relationships.

He cites the example of Systems Planning Corp. (SPC, www.sysplan.com),
a government consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. ARG took on the
transition of its telecom services during a two-month move.

SPC called on Praske’s firm to help relocate an office and install a new
telephone switch. ARG installed CLEC services and saved the customer 32 percent
in telecom expenses.

SPC had 500 direct inward dialing (DID) numbers randomly assigned to its
employees. The incumbent provider, Verizon Communications (www.verizon.com),
could only redirect the DID numbers to the new office in preset blocks of 20. It
was unable to coordinate specific numbers during the move with the people who
used them. So, SPC transferred calls to the second location via temporary, and
expensive, point-to-point circuits.

Also, the installation of primary-rate interfaces (PRIs) could have cut costs
by allocating lines for inbound/outbound DID calls. Verizon only offered a
switched long-distance version, which is less efficient than dedicated service.

Praske’s master agency compiled a side-by-side carrier price comparison, and
Net2000 Inc. (www.net2000.com) emerged as a
viable alternative.

Net2000 supports DID number porting with no block limitations. The ARG
recommended that SPC convert its local service in all locations to Net2000
before the move so the DID numbers could transfer as needed. This would
eliminate the point-to-point circuits.

In addition, at the new location, Net2000 provided dedicated PRIs with caller
ID, and installed, programmed and tested the new telephone switch before the
move, minimizing downtime worries.

The CLEC waived all installation costs, and SPC says it was the first time
its telephone service had been installed on time, according to Praske.

At the time of the move, SPC also had a Qwest Communications International
Inc. (www.qwest.com) T1 contract that had six
months remaining. Rather than pay a termination fee, the ARG suggested keeping
it in place and chose traffic to route.

"They would meet their contract obligations and get the most from it. We
managed that as well," Praske says.

Since the transition took place last June, the ARG has visited SPC every
three months. During those visits, it identified potential employee misuse of a
remote Internet dial-in server and evaluated whether SPC would save more by
paying per minute or per call for local service. It also changed a calling card
platform from Qwest to Allied Communications Group (www.goacg.com).
The move cut that cost in half.

"Also, in our next meeting we’ll be sitting down and going over their
circuit utilization reports, so we’ll be evaluating whether they’re over-
trunked or not," says Praske.

This type of customer care and retention is essential for an agent to
survive, Praske says.

"We have less than 1 percent churn per year, and I think in the agency
business it’s virtually impossible to be very profitable if you have any
measurable churn," he adds. "It takes us about 14 to 18 months to turn
a profit, so if we’re churning accounts faster than that, we lose."

The agency wins because of its ability to act as a compassionate, nonvendor-specific
field expert, Praske says.

"The market is so thirsty for someone that cares, that’s knowledgeable,
and can deliver. We know the process. We know the players. So, we can take away
the pain that’s so frequently felt as companies weave through the transition
process," says Praske. "We stay squarely focused on the interests of
our clients. In so doing, we establish long-term relationships."