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3 Tips for Saving Money on Mobile Data

As more people use their smartphones more than phone calls, data usage -- otherwise known surfing online -- is the rise. last year, major mobile carriers including AT&T and Verizon stopped offering unlimited data plans to new subscribers, meaning the costs associated increased data usage are growing.

For small-business owners are just getting started, paying individual data plans for employees using smartphones and other web-enabled mobile devices can expensive. As as 54 percent of mobile budgets at smaller companies get eaten by data plans, to New York City- research firm the Gerson Lehrman Group Inc.

Each mobile device a business owner pays incurs its own, separate data charge, says Sanjeev Aggarwal, founder and managing partner the SMB Group Inc., a Northborough, Mass.-based research firm specializing technology. "Data charges start to add fast," he says.

Here are three tips to keep in for keeping data charges a minimum for your business:

Related: Tips for Choosing the Right Smartphone for Your Business

1. Evaluate the mobile needs your staff.
It might seem a no-brainer, but before you hand business smartphones to everyone your team, determine if each person in fact require a smartphone to do his or job.

"Not every employee needs a smartphone. Some should OK with using basic-feature phones don't incur data charges," Aggarwal says.

The same logic applies tablets. "A salesperson can benefit having a tablet device for demos and reviewing proposals clients," Aggarwal says. "An office manager or engineer might ."

2. Consider more data-friendly service plans.
many carriers don't offer unlimited data plans anymore, there some plans that can be attractive for heavy data users. For , AT&T offers Toggle, a service that allows people to switch personal and work modes their mobile devices, effectively keeping personal data usage separate business use.

Earlier this month, Verizon introduced "Share Everything" plans allow subscribers to share a single data allowance up to 10 mobile devices. Plans begin at 1 GB $50 per month and up to 10 GB for $100. Plans also unlimited voice minutes, unlimited text, video and picture messaging.

3. Use Wi-Fi networks whenever possible.
sure that handsets used by your employees for business -- whether it is their personal device or was issued you -- can access Wi-Fi networks. If your employees often use mobile devices the office, have them log your company Wi-Fi so that they aren't racking data charges.

"You pay the subscription your fixed broadband connection and router and that's ," says Windsor Holden, a research director U.K.-based Juniper Research. The same goes using secure Wi-Fi networks when on the road, he says.


Adapted and abridged from: entrepreneur.com, June 26, 2012.