If you look into what phone vendors are doing, you will see that they are unilaterally scrambling to alter their business strategy. The market they had enjoyed for so long selling on-premise PBX phone systems is rapidly eroding to a new class of Hosted cloud VOIP solutions. Tacking into a headwind is hard in any weather, but especially difficult when there are faster ships with motors right on your tail. Managed Services IT providers like Upward Technology have the relationships and technical prowess to install Cloud Communications products like Ring Central, 8×8 & Vonage. These solutions offer very compelling features and price points that make old-fashioned on-premise solutions from companies like ShoreTel, Cisco and NEC obsolete. Many traditional phone vendors, including the internet service providers of the world, are now scrambling to enter the Managed IT Services business, offering Office 365 migration services or otherwise struggling to reinvent themselves. If you are a customer, here are 3 reasons a cloud communications platform needs to replace your phone system:
Unified Communications- Rather than just phones and conferencing from your office, unified communications means the solution goes with you everywhere and encompasses numerous communication channels including your office handset, a mobile app (so you can communicate from the office anywhere), video and voice conferencing and instant messaging. So instead of just getting a phone solution, the customer gets an entire integrated platform.
Over the Top- These solutions are transmitted entirely over the internet you already have. This means you don’t need to carry the expense of dedicated phone lines or SIP trunks, your bills not only get smaller but they get simpler to manage. With the solutions being entirely hosted over the internet, the user interface for making changes like adding users, changing voicemails or forwarding calls is handled through an easy-to-use webpage. This also saves employee time and eliminates the need to have a maintenance agreement or outsourced support contract, further saving money. If you are concerned about the internet being a single point of failure, there are inexpensive redundancy solutions that can ensure that your internet is always up, and even if it goes down, all calls can be redirected to your cell phones without an incoming caller ever knowing your systems are down.
Appreciating Asset- Just like a computer, with a traditional on-premise phone system the depreciation begins the moment you purchase it. Hosted VOIP solutions, on the other hand, are entirely software driven. The companies behind these hosted solutions have hundreds of developers working tirelessly on improving the software. Much of this work is in creating API’s, connecting middleware, to other common software solutions. In fact, Ring Central claims that over 1 million times a month, their API’s are used by users.
These solutions are the way of the future. They give customers more options and power for less money and allow them to get out of the business of owning hardware. Interested in having a conversation about how Upward Technology can help update your voice systems and integrate them with the rest of your business technology. Contact us today!
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