The modern business phone system is all about more than just speaking voice. It now includes applications that can be used for VoIP or Voice Over IP, which allows you to make phone calls using your internet connection instead of traditional phone lines. You can now connect your phone system to your personal computer (laptop, desk top PC, or even a smartphone) and have access to over one billion phone numbers from almost every country around the world. Additionally, the phone systems that come with IP phones are able to make VoIP calls without the need for a phone line, making them the perfect alternative to landline/mobile phone services.
What most Business Phone Systems offer today has evolved to become much more advanced than the traditional PBX systems. The biggest change is being able to receive calls on your mobile phone at the same rates as your landline/mobile phone calls. Additionally, the systems are integrating with VoIP applications to allow you to use your computer as your home phone and even get voicemail when you’re out of the office. Additionally, business phone systems offer hosted VoIP services, where you pay only for the minutes used and never for long distance calls, unless you’re on a very large plan. Finally, business phone systems offer a plethora of options such as multiple extensions, call forwarding, extension dialing, call waiting, call return, caller ID, and more.
As mentioned earlier, business phone systems offer the ability to integrate with different applications. For example, you can use a web browser and your web browser to call VoIP services, VoIP providers, and your regular phone. This is called application integration. Most business phone systems now include at least one application that integrates with popular applications including: Skype, Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger, Tapioca, Vonage, and others.
Many businesses also use unified communications systems to interconnect with their network and other businesses. By doing so, business phone systems allow customers to make local, long distance, or international calls to the companies’ internal numbers and network locations. Businesses can also connect with other local, regional, or international businesses to extend their reach.
With the integration of VoIP technology into business phone systems, you no longer have to own or manage expensive PBX equipment or have it deployed and integrated into your network. Instead, all the devices that make up your company’s communication systems are virtual. By leveraging cloud technology, you can provide real-time phone services to customers even while they are on the go. This eliminates the need to purchase additional hardware and software and eliminates installation costs.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has released guidelines for evaluating phone services. Among these guidelines are third-party data points that can be used to evaluate phone services. The three criteria that the FTC uses to evaluate business phone systems include customer satisfaction, cost, and revenue. According to the FTC’s guidelines, third-party data points must “provide sufficient evidence to show that the proposed action would not have a negative effect on the balance of consumer satisfaction, cost, or revenue.” To meet this standard, a business phone system should “exceed” the expectations of its consumers, as well as meet cost, revenue, and safety requirements outlined in the United States Federal Information Security Act (FISA).
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