LOCAL BUSINESSES ARE RETURNING TO BT

- Todd Architects form major part of new BT Business advertising campaign

Belfast: Leading local architects, Todd Architects is one of many companies driven by the challenging economic climate to more closely scrutinize their outgoings and change suppliers to make cost and efficiency savings.

With one office in Belfast and one in Dublin, the company has recently changed its ICT supplier and so convinced is it of the benefits of its decision that it has agreed to participate in a new BT advertising campaign. Other local companies Cable & Accessories and Country Garages will also appear in the campaign which will highlight the reasons why companies like them are switching supplier.

Commenting Paul Crowe, MD of Todd Architects said: 'Every business needs to consider its outgoings to ensure that it is getting best value for money in order that it can remain competitive. But coming back to BT has brought much more than cost savings. One of the most advantageous offerings is that everything, across our three offices, comes in under one bill including land lines, mobiles and broadband. In terms of time management this has huge implications as previously we were receiving upwards of 10 separate bills and it was extremely difficult to carry out cost analysis.

'With BT we already know we are saving 11% on landline calls and that is just the tip of the iceberg. The competitive rates on networking between offices are excellent and additionally having a Customer Account Manager is a huge plus. Recently one of our large hardware systems broke down and one call to Stephen, our Account Manager, and it was replaced within three hours — that is the type of on-the-ball customer service we need.'

'As we are involved with the Titanic Quarter Project, building Gateway Offices and the new third level education campus for Belfast Metropolitan College, coming back to BT has enabled us make this our primary focus. We don't have to worry about our business systems as we have total confidence in the service we are receiving,' concluded Paul Crowe.

Colm O'Neill, Managing Director, BT Business said that it is crucial that SMEs which are the bedrock of the Northern Ireland economy are offered support: 'At a time when things are tough for businesses and all budgets are under major scrutiny, BT offers combined savings across cost and time both of which are crucial to the success of any company. Our cost saving initiatives partnered with excellent customer service ensures that businesses receive a complete solution to their ICT requirements. In particular, we appreciate that time is money and businesses simply do not have the time or resources to queue on automated telephone systems and be passed from pillar to post. For that reason we have dedicated Customer Account Managers. Customers deserve to be looked after and this is an absolute priority at BT.'