Steve Belgau This is Me

 Web References

1. 1. madison.com

   www.business-first.net/backiss - [Cached]

   Published on: 9/10/1999   Last Visited: 8/15/2000

   Businesses should make sure they know who they are dealing with before buying into any operation, says Steve Belgau, the operations manager for telephone systems at Madison Telecom Inc., 1810 S. Park St. One of the things you would be concerned with is the length of time the company has been in business, Belgau says. Make sure the company has been in business for a few years..
   
   Be aware of people known in the industry as trunkers, said Belgau, who has been in the industry since 1971 and with Madison Telecom for the last nine years.
   
   These are guys who work sales out of their trunks, Belgau says. These individuals typically sell a one-year warranty for a system. When the system acts up, the buyer tries to track down the so-called trunker only to learn the person is nowhere to be found or employed by another company, dealing with yet another system and unable to honor a deal made under another name.
   
   ...
   Be sure the maintenance contract covers all the equipment included in the warranty, Belgau says. Verify what happens to the agreement if you buy more equipment from the same company, Belgau says.
   
   ...
   Belgau says consumers need to educate themselves on the company's reliability and the specifics of the maintenance contract. You want to make sure they are holding or promoting the product line that they are selling. Ask if they have the stuff in stock? Does the company stock your equipment? Belgau says.
   
   The maintenance agreement also stipulates that the customer is agreeing to be loyal to the company, agreeing its technicians' will be the only hands to touch the system.
   
   ...
   Belgau also encourages businesses to ask about costs of unexpected add-on work that comes up in a new surrounding.
   
   Walk-throughs are very important. Point out everything you want done. And be thorough and do not assume, Slattery says.