We sat down with Gary Hielkema, President at Ferndale based SensorLink Corporation, to discuss how PogoZone services meet their high speed internet and phone needs. Below is a summary of our conversation.
How long has SensorLink Corporation used PogoZone?
We’ve been with them so long — over 6 years now.
What services do you currently use?
Ongoing services include high speed internet, VoIP, and web hosting. They even assisted with getting fiber optic cables to our building.
What made you switch to PogoZone?
Well, a few reasons really but mostly because I’ve known a couple of PogoZone employees for years — their passion and overall knowledge of technology is unsurpassed in the industry. Switching was an easy decision.
We know a lot of businesses in Whatcom and Skagit Counties use PogoZone’s high speed internet services — what about phone VoIP (voice over IP) services do you think benefits businesses the most?
Moving to VoIP has been one of the best decisions we’ve made. Our old phone system was so antiquated that it took a lot of internal hours for us to manage. Not to mention you needed a manual just to make a change that should have been quick and easy. PogoZone’s VoIP system is so incredibly intuitive, requires little or no back-end updates, and is very cost effective.
What keeps you loyal to PogoZone?
Their support is responsive, friendly, and knowledgeable. If we have to contact them for support, we know we’re not being routed to a call center but rather to someone that knows our business and how we’re set up. We really don’t have many issues, but when we do, they are all over it.
Also, the ‘mission critical’ services they provide are very valuable. For example, they set us up with redundant wireless internet in the rare instance our fiber cables get cut. If the fiber gets cut, we flip a switch and we’re back up and running. Downtime is so very minimal — this saves our company a lot of money in the long run.
So PogoZone came up with a solution to lessen downtime ensuring that decreases in productivity are minimal — at least due to the internet being down.
Exactly. Having this back up plan in place is crucial to our business.
Do you think there are advantages to using a local company for internet and VoIP?
Absolutely. As I mentioned before, if we do have to contact support, we know we’re talking a local person that understands our situation — and they are always willing to meet with us, should we have questions or want to discuss our growing needs. What it boils down to is that they are accessible. You will never get hands-on attention like that with a national company.
Anything else we should know?
PogoZone takes the necessary time to understand each individual business’s unique situation and needs — there are no sales quotas and they won’t push you into something that you simply do not need. And their customer service is truly exceptional.
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About SensorLink
SensorLink Corporation was founded in 1985 as an engineering and consulting firm with a mission to provide engineering and research assistance to companies needing to improve their competitive edge. In 1988, SensorLink was approached by a power utility with a request to develop a device that would operate safely in high voltage, without the problems inherent in mechanical clamp sensors. A sensor was developed that exceeded the capabilities of previous live-line measurement tools for accuracy, external current reject, and range of measurement. With the release of the newly developed sensor, SensorLink has evolved into a manufacturing company, using the patented sensor in almost all of their products. Thousands of SensorLink meters and recorders are currently in service worldwide.