Do you discuss vital business affairs with your clients sitting far way from your office? Do you want to stay in touch with your relatives, college kids and friends? Does the thought of paying those expensive long distance rates ever force you scrap the idea altogether? Do you have to finish your conversation in a hurry to save money? There are better ways to save money on your long distance bills.

Do you remember the days when you could pick up your phone and dial a number directly? You may not be old enough to remember the days of direct dial long distance. Along about the 1980's with the breakup of Ma Bell, 10-10 numbers and the long drawn out process of dialing an 800 number and typing in code after code in order to call someone, became synonomous with long distance as new phone companies and new calling plans exploded into the marketplace.

These new phone companies offered long distance phone rates significantly lower than the Baby Bells. That is why a lot of people under the age of 30 have never had the ability to direct dial a long distance telephone number.

If you have the right long distance carrier, you won't have to worry about your long distance rates. If you use the right company, you will always be able talk more and still pay less money than what you pay right now. You can save money even if most of your calls are intrastate long distance or international long distance.

Recently, as matter of fact, many long distance calling services have earned a bad reputations due to surprise billing increments and unjustified monthly fees. Those factors put tremendous financial burden on the consumers. That's why most people have turned their backs on so-called sophisticated and cost-effective long distance calling services.

When choosing your long distance carrier, get the facts. Never trust the marketing copy of any carrier. Instead, always, but always read the fine print! Most companies don't want you to read their fine print. If you did, you would likely change providers.

There are certain factors that you should always consider when shopping for a long distance provider for your home or business.

* Your Calling Patterns - Consider the long distance rate your current long distance carrier charges you for making calls at different times of the day. Do you make most of your calls during the day, night, or on weekends? What is your average volume? Do you make long distance calls mostly within your state, outside your state, or to other countries?

* Monthly Fees - If your long distance carrier promises 10 cents a minute, look for any additional long distance rates, such as, monthly fees or surcharges you have to pay to get that long distance rate.

* Minimum Charges - Look for minimum charges for each long distance call. If every call has a 50-cent minimum, even a two-minute call can cost you 50 cents. On 'up to 20 minutes for a dollar' long distance plans, a one-minute call or a message you leave on an answering machine is a dollar. In effect, this charges you for time you're not even on the phone.

* Billing Increments - Some long distance carriers (like AT&T, Sprint and MCI) bill in 60-seconds increments; if your long distance call lasts one minute and one second, you're charged for two minutes. This unused time can add up, especially if you make many short long distance calls or when you get a recording.

Programs that bill at six-seconds increments and six-seconds minimum call lengths (like http://www.GotoLongDistance.com) more accurately reflect your actual calling time and save you money every time you place a long distance call.

* Climbing Rates - An ad may say that all long distance calls up to 20 minutes cost a dollar. Look for information on what happens to the long distance rate structure after 20 minutes. The long distance rate may increase dramatically.

CoVista Communications, a leading name in telecommunication services, has developed new and innovative calling plans that are making waves in the boardrooms of their competitors. They have introduced direct dial long distance rates, as low as 3.9¢ per minute within the USA, that will make many competitor's CEO's lose sleep. And, they have introduced a unique toll free long distance service that at the same low long distance rates per minute for incoming calls that will cause any CEO who purchases services from CoVista to jump for joy.

With their automatic online billing facility, you be able to know the amount billed for all of your phone calls instantly. You can also opt for their outstanding AUTOPAY billing option to avoid the hassles of paying the bills monthly. (To utilze the AUTOPAY billing option, your bill has to be over $20 each month.) Whether you AUTOPAY or pay your bill manually, you can count on CoVista to provide prompt billing services.

Before deciding on CoVista Communications (GoToLongDistance.com) or any other phone company, you should still get the facts and read the fine print. You can compare the calling plans of CoVista Communications and their top five competitors at: http://www.gotolongdistance.com/compare.htm

The time has come to stop worrying about how much your phone calls will cost, so that you can focus your mind on those things that are really important in life: expanding the reach of your business and renewing ties with your friends and family.

About The Author

By George M Noceti, Managing Partner for http://www.gotolongdistance.com George has designed his web site to help you to find the lowest cost long distance rates for you home or business.

George can be reached at: mailto:george@gotospp.com.