techCONNECT Success Story

“Other WISPs would be insane not to plug a Preseem box into their network”—How techCONNECT improved troubleshooting, increased ARPU 65% and MRR 30%, and decreased truck rolls and churn with Preseem.

Can you tell us a little bit about techCONNECT and what you do?

techCONNECT started as a wireless ISP in June 2017. We provide internet services in a small border town of South Africa called Komatipoort. Most of our clients are based in rural areas, between 5 to 20 kilometers from our high sites. We also provide IT and Network Support to our clients from our sister company called the TechShop. We grew from 40 clients in Komatipoort to now serving more than 600 clients, covering a 2,200 square-kilometer footprint with a total population of 212,000 residents.

How did you hear about Preseem, and when did techCONNECT first start using it?

We started using Preseem about a year after establishing techCONNECT. We found Preseem from a Youtube video.

What were the pain points your organization was trying to solve when you first got Preseem?

Our client networks were saturated with torrent downloads and Windows updates. We could manage corporate clients using WSUS and firewalls but home users struggled. Videos would buffer and WhatsApp calls would drop, causing frustration. We looked at various projects, from Netequalizer/Bandwidth Arbitrator to even implementing caching/proxy solutions.

How has Preseem helped you solve those problems?

• It has removed the complexity of implementing an FQ-CoDel/AQM solution.
• It has simplified Mikrotik queues. Simplified queue management reduces overhead on core routers.
• The built-in monitoring has helped troubleshoot network issues much faster and proactively.
• Integration into Splynx has given us a “pane of glass” with a central point where network techs and even admin staff can start their troubleshooting efforts.
• Historic graphs provide proof of usage and utilization of client links. Our market demographic is primarily lower income; economically, times are tough. We are often asked for refunds because clients say, “Lines were not used” or “We were not home”. Preseem proves they were.

Are there any measurable benefits you’ve seen since implementing Preseem?

• ARPU has increased from R440 (approx. $25 USD) to R730 (approx. $40 USD).
• Sector utilization increased to 80% due to AP shaping. We can now target underutilized sectors.
• Since the first implementation, client churn has reduced from 12% to 4%.
• MRR has increased by 30% year-on-year due to targeted marketing.
• Truck rolls have dropped by 28%. This is due to more effective troubleshooting our admin team can perform independently.

How has your experience been so far working with the Preseem team?

Excellent, 10/10, five stars, raving fans. Dasun has been exceptional, available all hours of the day. He helped us set up a spare server for DR purposes and identified bottlenecks on the server, primarily due to being a bunch of software update versions behind. Since the upgrade, our network has been even smoother.

Would you recommend Preseem to other ISPs? If so, why?

I would 100% recommend Preseem. Simply paying for poller/monitoring software makes up for the price. The added benefits of AQM and active AP Management and Shaping pushes the solution beyond a simple monitoring solution; it’s a QOE (Quality Of Experience) POWERHOUSE.

Many people I speak to tell me they already monitor their infrastructure in-house. They are missing the point. Being able to proactively monitor the client’s internet EXPERIENCE is invaluable. My staff have become so proficient at this that when they see a red AP, they immediately say, “That’s client X. Could sales please contact them to sell an extender?” or “Bet you backhaul Y is acting up again.” And this is automated.

After plugging Preseem into our network, the erratic traffic smoothed out, and all the spikes and jitters on the network calmed down to a smooth, tidy flow of data.

Anything else you’d like to add?

Preseem is cheap. For the value you provide, the ongoing support and bandwidth optimization features, other WISPS would be insane not to plug a Preseem box into their network.