Small Business Tips - Increase Revenue Through Technology

6 Steps to Finding the Right VoIP Service

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As technology improves, more and more companies are switching over to a VoIP-based communication strategy. Companies that have large sales teams, customer service representatives, or just need to use the phone frequently, benefit from switching to a VoIP phone system. Although hardware may be initially expensive, the savings you get from your cost per call, CRM integrations, call forwarding, and more, drastically outweigh initial fees.

1) Providers that offer both “on-premise” and “hosted” solutions.

Providers that offer these solutions have greater flexibility and allow for lower costs on implementation and hardware. Sometimes, small to mediums sized businesses can get away with implementing a hosted solution, depending on what their needs are. The biggest advantage of this is avoiding the large implementation costs of having your own PBX system.

2) Look for an Open Platform

Look for a solution that enables you to use different pieces of hardware with the system. An open platform solution allows you to shop for different phones on the market that will best fit your needs and also allows you to find the best deal when not having to deal with a single hardware supplier.

3) Feature Comparison

Most phone systems provide tons of features that may cost extra or may not be relevant to your business needs. Features like this include, Caller ID, call transfer, call waiting, repeat dial, return call, 3-way dialing, desktop application integration, call accounting and auditing. Determine which features are necessary for your business and find out if there are recurring monthly charges for them so there are no surprises when you get your phone bill.

4) Call Charges

Because call charges are different depending on the service provider, it is a great idea to do some research on your call records. From here, you can choose a package that best fits your needs as a heavy or light user. Make sure to check that the provider has local area codes available so you can avoid charges for local calls.

5) Total Cost of Ownership

Find out what the cost of owning and maintaining your own phone system would be. Hosted solutions can be less expensive, but are not always the right fit for a business, so be sure to do some research yourself and then contact a consultant for additional advice.

6) Choose a reliable vendor and service provider

Choose a vendor and provider that has experiences with all types of systems and features. Choosing a vendor that has a proven track record and can provide customer testimonials will have a better understanding of the industry and what it takes to be a good vendor and provider.

Anthony Pagliaro
The Maynard Group
831.465.7728
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Reference: "6 Easy Steps to Finding the Right Business VoIP Service"
by Don Panek