Indirect partners face the challenge of unmasking carrier fees. Whether comparing rates during the quoting process or working with a customer to decipher unexpected and vaguely described line items on customers’ bills, agents come up against what some partners have dubbed “hidden charges” and are forced to provide an explanation for the fees. However, with complicated rules, no naming standards and less-than-perfect communication from service providers, partners are scrambling to give their clients satisfactory answers.
While carriers strip surcharges and fees out of the per-minute rates to keep them competitive, oftentimes the bills reflect a different story (see Sample Bill). By the time the surcharges and fees — whether federally mandated or not — are factored back into the rate per minute, usage charges can vary dramatically from one vendor to the next.
Sarah Linares, vice president and director of product development and revenue assurance at TMC Communications, said she’s seen agents fooled by stripped down rates all too often. As a reseller, TMC usually is competing against an “unbelievably low rate” and she has to remind agents to dig deeper to see what other charges will be included on the final invoice.
Metered products like voice usually are the biggest culprits for being padded with carrier charges. Many times, when customers are evaluating proposals, they will look for the best rate per minute since that’s all they really know, and they will not look any further until it’s too late. Therefore, the agent is tasked with not only explaining the possibility of additional charges during the sale, but also what the charges are for once the bill is received.
