Monday, June 25, 2012

Streamline Your Business with a Hosted PBX Phone System

A hosted pbx phone system is completely different from the usual landline telephone system. It is actually a virtual phone system that uses VoIP technology to bring many features to your business so that it can become much more efficient and streamlined. Using a hosted pbx phone system will give you many features that are just not available with the traditional phone, allowing you to bring your business out of the dark ages and into the 21st century. Here are some of the features you get with a hosted pbx phone system.

* Interactive voice response (IVR).

* Voicemail and voicemail to email.

* With a hosted pbx phone system you get call recording.

* Time of day routing.

* Music for customers who are on hold.

* Voice prompts that you can customise.

* Call queuing.

* Intercom and paging are also features of a hosted pbx phone system.

In addition to these features you get lower call costs since it uses VoIP technology rather than landline call costs. With a hosted pbx phone system you will find that there are no contracts, just a month by month fee for service. You connect through your broadband service and this allows you to connect easily to staff that are located remotely for no charge, just as you do for social calls through your broadband phone connection at home.

When you have a hosted pbx phone system you can choose to customise your package to suit your needs or you can go with one of the packages that are provided.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Pros and Cons of Business ADSL

Not every small business has business adsl, but if you don’t you may be leaving money on the table. Anything like business adsl that helps your business to work faster and more efficiently should be considered, especially when it is also affordable. So what can business adsl do for your business?

* Speed it up. Years ago people had to depend on the slower dial-up for their Internet connection. These days it is essential for businesses to be on the Internet and to use it for many of their transactions. Even if you use it just for paying bills you will find that it is faster and more convenient. Time saved is money saved or made. Business adsl offers a much faster way to connect to the Internet.

* Business adsl does not need a landline to connect; rather it uses the same connection as your computer. This saves money in that you don’t have to pay for line maintenance and expensive phone calls. Many calls can be free – and if those annoying road works destroy the phone line it won’t affect your business.

* One con of business adsl is that some rural areas do not have access to a fast broadband connection. When the connection is slow, the number of subscribers online at any one time can make download times even slower. However, it seems that this is being addressed.

* Some connection types are slower than others and if you have a slow connection the voice quality can be affected. Even so, business adsl is still one of the most popular ways of connecting to the world.

Friday, June 15, 2012

How Can You Benefit from an IP Telephone System?

A large number of companies are moving towards an IP telephone system. This because an IP telephone system is a phone system that uses the same cables that are otherwise used to connect your office equipment to servers and the Internet. When you choose an IP telephone system you obviate the need for multiple cables and phone lines.

There are various advantages that emanate from this specific feature of an IP telephone system. Because the cables are the same, the cost of installation and initial set up are lower. If you have an Internet connection and want to set up an IP telephone system in your place, you not have to get a large amount of cabling done.

Since the IP telephone system converts voice signals into data and transfers them over cables, the cost per call is much lower when you use this system. It is a great advantage to have when you are operating a small business and want to ensure that you save each and every penny that you can.

Starting conference calls and inviting a large number of people to join in is an easy option when you have an IP telephone system. This is a great advantage when you have suppliers, client and other stakeholders in the company that sit in various locations, a trend that has become extremely common.

The IP telephone system is also a great option for those who have businesses that require a lot of travel. The system allows them to make calls from any place that provides them with an Internet line as if they were in office, a convenience that a lot of small business owners need.

Features of an Office Phone System That are Essential

An office phone system is much more than what an office phone used to be some years back. These days the office phone is referred to as an office phone system because it offers much more than just the convenience of making and receiving calls. Sometimes one wonders about the manner in which the office phone system and other devices are converging to become one complete electronic solution for your life.

The office phone system has a lot of features to offer you. These are features that make your life comfortable and easy to manage. When there is so much competition out there, every extra bit of time that you get due to such an office phone system helps matters to a large extent. Office equipment such as a good office phone system can help you work more efficiently so that you can still take out time for yourself and your family.

Some of the features that you will be able to find useful in the office phone system include conference calling, speed dials, automated directory and auto attendant. These are aspects that make life easier for those who are working in a small to medium sized company where taking too many calls at the same time may become an issue.

Such a smart office phone system also helps you avoid extra travel that you may have by ensuring that you can have seamless calls with your colleagues and clients even if you are sitting in different locations across the world.

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Reasons to Choose a Hosted PBX

While there was not much choice in the place where you hosted your PBX some years back, the hosted PBX option has changed a lot of things. Hosted PBX is an option that businesses have today. It is an option that saves you a lot of trouble and gives you peace of mind too.

One of the most important things to remember is that when you do not opt for a hosted PBX you need to purchase one on your own. This costs a lot of money, capital that you could otherwise use for various other things or keep safe as emergency money. There are other kinds of office equipment that you need to buy in order to start office and choosing a hosted PBX allows you to do just that.

When you opt for a hosted PBX you do not have to worry about upgrades. You do not have to worry about ensuring that the PBX that you are using is the latest one that helps you achieve what you want to. The company that hosts the hosted PBX will ensure that the systems that are being used are the best. However, you will need to make sure that the company that you choose is a reliable one and that you have put down such specifications in the contract that you have drawn up.

Some of the hosted PBX companies also offer free and regular servicing for the equipment that is located in your office. With so many benefits you can be sure that when you opt for a hosted PBX you do not have to worry about costs, servicing, upgrades and even depreciation.

Factors to Keep in Mind When You Opt for Equipment Hire

There are many reasons why people opt for equipment hire. One of the most compelling reasons for the same is the fact that when you opt for equipment hire, you save a lot of capital. Invested well, this capital can be used as emergency funds or come in handy when the business is going through a rough patch. It is also known that when you choose equipment hire you obviate the need to look at your assets depreciating.

When you choose a vendor for equipment hire, you need to keep some things in mind. Make sure that you choose someone who is reliable and trustworthy. You do not want to land up with outdated and roughed up equipment that you do not like or equipment that makes your office look shoddy.

Laying down the specifications of each and every piece of equipment is important. This should go into the contract that you sign with the equipment hire company. So if you are buying laptops, you need to specify the brand, the processing speed and much more. It is a good idea for the IT specialist to draw up the details based on the input of the people who will need those systems.

The contracts that you draw up should clearly state the terms and conditions with regards to maintenance and service. You need to decide whether the payment for the maintenance shall be made separately or whether it shall be included in the overall contract for equipment hire. This is something that can make a lot of difference to your experience of equipment hire.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Business ADSL - Avoiding Misuse

A business ADSL is one of the most important things in a business. This is because it allows you to connect with the outside world via the internet. It is important that all employees have internet access through the business ADSL because there is almost nothing that is possible without such a facility. The requirement to be connected to clients, vendors, customers and stakeholders is extremely important for the success of any business.

It is not uncommon for business ADSL companies to have issues pertaining to the manner in which the business ADSL is being used. Companies feel that the charge that has been levied is too high at times and then there is a dispute about how this can be resolved.

A better way to handle such issues with the business ADSL is to take preventive measures and ensure that the business ADSL is used in the proper way. This can help in ensuring that issues do not occur later. Some large downloads like movies, games, complex software can take up a large amount of bandwidth. This can cause issues later. Sometimes you may not even know and the business ADSL may be downloading heavy files into your system.

To give you an idea, online gaming chokes up the business ADSL by consuming between 10 and 60 MB per hour. Imagine when there are a larger number of people playing in the office. It is obvious that the business ADSL system will break down and perform at a less than optimum level.