Why Businesses Need IP Phone Systems

Globally, the most trending business communication technology today is still the IP phone system. With VoIP services, your phone calls travel over the internet as data, just like emails. This type of service can dramatically lower your telecommunications costs while increasing your productivity.

The following are some of the benefits of opting for an IP telephony system:

Flexible & Scalable

Adding more phone lines or extensions often requires expensive hardware modules. In some cases, you need an entirely new phone system. Not so with an IP PBX. A standard computer can easily handle a large number of phone lines and extensions – just add more phones to your network to expand! Also, IP phone systems are very flexible, allowing easy remote collaboration from any device and from anywhere.

Better Customer Service & Productivity

With an IP PBX, you can deliver better customer service and better productivity. Since the system is now computer-based, you can integrate phone functions with business applications. For example, outbound calls can be placed directly from Outlook or a business’s customer database, removing the need for the user to type in the phone number. Plus, the system can bring up the customer record of a caller automatically when you receive their call.

Cost Effective

Making international phone calls through digital or analog phones is expensive. With IP phones, however, you do not have to worry about the per-minute price of calls because your phone service is accessed via your broadband connection, enabling you to make international calls as often as you’d like. Also, with this system, calling between branches becomes more convenient— and free! Most VoIP phone systems come with a rich feature set, including IVR, auto attendant, voice mail, ring groups, and advanced reporting. Unified Communications features are included, to support presence, video and audio conferences, and free calls via the data network. These options are often very expensive in proprietary systems.

Remote Working

Hot-desking, the process of being able to easily move offices/desks based on the task at hand, has become very popular. Unfortunately, traditional PBXs require extensions to be re-patched to the new location. With an IP PBX, the user simply takes his phone to his new desk – no patching required! Users can roam too – if an employee has to work from home, they can simply fire up their softphone from either their computer or mobile device. This enables them to make and answer calls from their extension, just as they would in the office. Calls can also be forwarded anywhere in the world!

Worldwide Access

More employers are discovering the benefits of having their staff work from home. This has come with the benefits of smaller office spaces, decreased utilities costs, etc., for businesses. VoIP allows employees to securely utilize the voice, fax, and data services of your office from anywhere. VoIP technology has become extremely portable, allowing users to connect from home offices and abroad.

Ease of Installation, Configuration, Maintenance

One of our favorite benefits of VoIP is that IP phones are incredibly easy to install—even for those who are less technically savvy. There is no need to have expert technicians running phone wiring throughout your office. Instead, IP phones are virtually plug-and-play. Hosted VoIP software also makes it incredibly simple to add new users, and a web portal makes moving, adding, or changing your systems configuration much easier.

Easy Integration with Other Business Systems

Your business likely utilizes various other systems and technologies to enhance your operational efficiencies. VoIP easily integrates with a wide variety of existing business systems. That means you’ll realize all of the benefits of VoIP without requiring modification of your existing applications or IT infrastructure. For example, outbound calls can be placed via Outlook or other business systems, and customer records can even be viewed during inbound calls from customers.

Built-in Backup Plan

Without virtual phone systems in place, your company runs the risk of losing telephone service due to outages and other unexpected incidents. The costs associated with losing phone service could be immense depending on the hours business is down and the cost of potential repairs. On the other hand, VoIP allows you to reduce the impact of disasters on your business by quickly redirecting calls in response to an outage according to preset routing plans.

Increased Security

Phone system security is a big deal, especially for businesses. VoIP can mitigate security threats by leveraging features like encryption and improved identity management. Hosted VoIP providers work around the clock to protect their networks. Plus, IP phone systems integrate easily with session border controllers, which more intelligently protects your voice network.

Supports Multitasking

Along with traditional phone calls, VoIP allows you to send documents, images, and video— all while simultaneously engaging in a conversation. So, you can seamlessly hold more integrated meetings with clients or staff from other corners of the globe.

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