Surviving in today’s ever-changing business environment, it is imperative for a business to adopt the latest innovations in communication technology in order to stay efficient. Is it the right time for replacing, or upgrading, your existing phone system or moving to a newer hosted technology ? Which solution will best suit your business and your budget? Begin by assessing your needs and asking the following questions:
- Has your phone system become technically obsolete? Review the compatibility and interoperability of your phone system with any recently upgraded IT or networking equipment.
- Does your existing phone system have scalable features? Are you able to add more extensions or users? Scalability is an important feature, especially for a business with aggressive growth plans in the near future.
- Will your phone system be able to efficiently handle the increased number of inbound and outbound long distance calls within your growth plan? Check your network for any potential congestion, verify you have sufficient capacity on your local services i.e local T1 or analog T1′s. An increase in call volume is normal for a growing business, and your phone system should be effectively and efficiently equipped to handle a boost in voice traffic.
- Does your phone system support VoIP telephony? Transporting your voice calls among branches via an Ethernet or MPLS network can save your inter-branch long distance telephone costs. Many other cost saving can be realized using VoIP technology when implemented correctly.
- Does your phone system have a multi-office support feature? If you plan to open new sites at multiple locations, while increasing your mpls or ethernet network, your phone system should be able to manage and remotely administer extensions at those locations — or home-based offices — as easily as if they were on-site.
- Does your phone system allow your mobile work force stay connected and accessible? For your front-end sales executives and other staff members, who are on-the-move most of the time, enhanced connectivity is a requisite operational feature through remote Internet Access.
Signs That You Need a Hosted Phone System
- Do you have multiple office sites? With a hosted phone solution, multi-location offices are easily served. The service provider can assign a virtual number to the office location of your choice.
- Do you want to outsource the technical services that support your business communication and focus more on your core business? With a hosted phone solution, the entire telephony infrastructure, except phones and related equipment, resides at a remote location and business communication is managed remotely.
- Are a large number of your employees on the move most of the time? A hosted phone solution enables employees to stay connected remotely using Internet Access via an IP phone or a computer with a soft phone.
- Do you have specific calling features requirements? Is “find me/follow me” a must-have? Would an “auto attendant” be more effective at managing your incoming calls? A hosted phone system solution provides the flexibility of choosing the features that best suit your needs.
Signs That You Need an On-Premise Phone System
- Does your business still require customized communication adaptions that are not satisfied by canned solutions?
- Do you need control over your telephony infrastructure? Do you have sufficiently trained in-house IT expertise? The implementation, maintenance and support of on-site large PBX systems call for a solid infrastructure and operational IT networking expertise to carry out tasks such as integration, customization and routine upgrades.
- Is your organization a large enterprise? Does your business need a long-term fully integrated business communication solution? Then your investment in an on-site PBX solution may ultimately be more cost-effective than any other solution.
