Having worked in a call centre myself, my team was responsible for selling mobile connections over the phone, as a part of my duties as a floor manager, I was expected to know all there was to know about the plans we offered, and also about the latest mobile handsets that were available. One of the major tasks I was entrusted with was trying to help people decide which deal to go for, this was a difficult task, if the customer did not like the deal I offered him, he refused. So it was my job to analyse, and work on the various deals that I could offer the customer. Having learned from that experience I have decided to help people choose the right deal for themselves.

Based on you usage, the type of handset you want and the type of calls you make, there are a few criteria that you should consider:

Volume of calls

If you are the kind of person who makes a call a week, or a call a month, or the sole purpose of a mobile phone is for emergency purposes, then you are best off not going for a deal with any mobile company, a pre-paid phone is the best option for you. If you do use your mobile phone a lot, then look around for a mobile deal that offers you a decent blend of text messages and voice calls. You might just end up paying nothing for your voice calls, but an exorbitant amount for your text messages or vice versa, so it is important to read the fine print before you go for a contract deal.

Type of calls made

By the type of calls, I basically mean, are they landlines calls? to a particular network? Or are they national calls, or even international calls, if you have ever received a sales call from a mobile company, you will know that this is one of the first questions they ask you. The reason is simple,if a majority of your calls are for example say to T-Mobile numbers, you are better of getting yourself a deal with T-Mobile as it will allow you the chance to get the most out of your deal (since T-Mobile to T-Mobile calls are cheaper). Similarly if you make a majority of calls to land lines, then look for a deal that gives you free land line or cheaper land line calls. The crux is to keep in mind the types of calls you make.

Line Rental

Almost all major companies today offer a mobile phone free with the line rental, however if you are going for a deal simply because its offering you an amazing handset, don't just choose based on the handset on offer. For example if a company is offering you a handset that is worth ?400 for a 12 month deal, and the monthly line rental is ?50 a month, this sounds like a good deal doesn't it? Well lets do the math ?50x12 = ?600! That means you are actually paying 600 pounds for a 400 pound phone, even if you are getting free minutes and texts every month, does it really look like you need such an expensive deal? The best thing is to go by the line rental, look at the line rental, then assess the free minutes and texts every month, and then finally try to get a decent handset.