If your organization is experiencing poor network performance, you may need to switch internet or telecommunications providers to improve the performance.
When a decision is reached that a provider change will be necessary at the conclusion of a contract, it is important to understand the steps to take to terminate that contract in order to avoid accidentally auto-renewing it.
A poor-performing network can lead to poor productivity and, oftentimes, requires a change in providers to resolve the issue.
Therefore, it is important to understand your contract when nearing the end of your service agreement.
Switching providers may improve your network and your organization’s productivity, but the transition needs to be done properly so you can avoid any penalty fees as a result of breaking a contract.
Coeo knows how important a good service provider is to an organization. We want you to know what to look out for when nearing the end of your contract so you can seamlessly transition to a new provider that will improve your network and resolve your current challenges.
By the end of this article, you will know how to prevent your contracts from auto-renewing, when to begin negotiating with a new service provider, and the process of migrating to that new provider.
How to prevent your contracts from auto-renewing
When looking to terminate a contract with your current provider, the first step is to review the contract language to understand the auto-renewal provisions.
Once you’ve determined that your current provider cannot meet your expectations, you want to ensure that your legacy contract isn’t auto-renewed for a multi-year period of time.
Some ways you can prevent your contracts from auto-renewing include:
Review the Terms and Conditions of the contract
Long before the conclusion of your service agreement, it is important to review the terms and conditions of the contract.
Typically, the provider will detail the exact process you must follow to avoid the auto-renewal provisions in the terms and conditions of the contract.
It is important to review these terms and conditions in order to understand the exact steps your organization must take to prevent the auto-renewal provisions from going into effect.
There are some common provisions that can be found in the terms and conditions of most contracts which include:
30-90 day notice
Most providers require a formal written notice 30-90 days prior to the end-of-term date. It is important to review your contract and identify this date so you know when to send your notice.
Understand any waiting period provision before formalizing termination
Some providers require your contract to be active for a certain amount of time before allowing requests to remove the auto-renewal provision. This requirement varies by provider.
An additional small recommendation when asking to remove the auto-renewal is to specifically ask not to renew at the end of the term.
It is important you do not request to cancel your service otherwise the provider may assume you want to cancel your service immediately resulting in a potentially large cancellation fee.
When to begin searching for new services
Researching different providers and identifying their installation schedules will help you coordinate your transition dates for installing the new service and concluding the previous one.
Therefore, this evaluation and selection process should begin well in advance of the anticipated transition date. Most services require 30 to 90 days (or more) to install and typically vary by provider.
It is important to consider these implementation times when looking for a new provider.
Understanding these schedules will enable you to select a provider and provide enough notice to implement your new service before your prior contract terminates.
Here are the average times it takes to install different products and services:
DIA
DIA services typically require 60-90 days to install the service.
UCaaS, SIP Trunking, and Microsoft Teams Direct Routing
UCaaS, SIP Trunking, and Microsoft Teams Direct Routing typically require between 45 and 60 days to install.
In addition, porting more than 100 DIDs requires a 30-day notice to port from the losing carrier on top of the standard installation days.
Broadband internet
Broadband internet typically requires 3-4 weeks to install.
SD-WAN
An SD-WAN solution requires 30-60 days to install.
Process of migrating to a new service
Now that you know how to prevent an auto-renewal of your contract and when to begin looking for new services, it is important to understand the process of migrating to the new services.
The process of migrating to a new service includes:
Signing the contract
The first step in the process of migrating to a new service is contracting with your new provider.
During this process, you’ll need to provide a list of numbers and DIDs you want to be ported to your new carrier if you plan to migrate numbers.
Planning for the installation
As mentioned above, different solutions and services require different installation times.
It is important that you coordinate the installation and go-live dates of your new service with the end date of your current service.
Some additional things to consider when planning for your new service include:
Changing IP addresses within your network
If you are migrating to a new service and new service provider, you may need to change your IP addresses which will take some time especially if you have a larger network.
Training users on the new service
If your entire company is moving to a new network, your employees and IT team will need to be trained so they know how to use the new service.
Of course, it is best if this is completed before the new services are turned up. It is important to take the necessary steps to have your employees trained in order for a smooth transition to the new service.
Next steps to switching internet and telecommunications providers
Now you understand how to prevent your contracts from auto-renewing, when to begin looking for a new service, and the process of migrating to a new service.
This will help your organization prepare to migrate from your old service and service provider to a new one.
Organizations can’t maximize their results with a poor-performing network.
If your organization is struggling with a reliable internet connection, your employees will not be able to access the internet and will likely experience call breakups and drops.
These challenges significantly affect productivity. Changing providers may be the best solution to improve your organization’s quality of work.
Coeo has helped thousands of organizations migrate to our network and leave their old providers.
We want to help you improve your network by switching to a new provider if you are having a poor user experience with your current provider.
If you would like to speak with our team to learn more about switching to Coeo as your internet and telecommunications provider or ask any questions you may have you can schedule an appointment. 
Now that you understand what to do when your telecom service contract is coming to an end, read this article below to determine if a Coeo telecom solution is the best fit for your organization.
