Business Phone Service Providers: Making the Right Choice

With the increase in technologies, the business landscape is becoming more interconnected. As a result, businesses need an efficient and reliable phone system. A business phone system does much more than making and receiving phone calls. It can enhance your business productivity, communication effectiveness, and customer satisfaction. Cloud-based phone systems like VoIP have become popular among businesses in recent years. It can be the best decision for your business to shift to VoIP Service because it brings numerous advantages. With the increase in popularity, the number of business phone service providers has also increased, making it challenging to choose the right one. 

This article will describe some aspects you must consider when choosing a business phone service provider. 

Criteria For Choosing a Business Phone Service Provider 

A cloud-based business phone system offers users more than only a telephone service. These are unified communication platforms that offer businesses instant messaging, video conferencing, and many other ways of communication. Because of these advanced feature sets, you need to consider a list of criteria when choosing a business phone line provider UK. 

Now, let's have a look at the criteria that you must keep in mind: 

Know Your Requirements

It is best to write down your business communication needs so that you can easily find a provider that matches these needs. You may want to switch to VoIP from traditional landlines for many reasons, such as reducing cost, improving customer services, providing a unified communication system to your employees, or having an easy-to-use and scalable phone system. By writing down all your requirements, you ensure you do not miss anything important when analyzing a business phone service provider. 

Costs Involved 

The price is the most significant factor when finding a business phone service provider. However, you should not only choose a provider offering the lowest price but also consider other factors such as service quality, pricing plan options, and customer support. Here are a few fees and costs associated with VoIP phone service: 

• The installation cost for a VoIP system is minimal, often just involving a one-time account activation fee, as it relies on internet connectivity instead of traditional copper wires used by PSTN phones.

• A VoIP line usually costs around $20 to $30 per monthly user. It includes essential features like unlimited outbound calling (usually for the U.S. and Canada), toll-free minutes, auto-attendant, call forwarding, caller ID, call waiting, call recording, and more. You can choose to pay monthly or annually for your PBX service.

• Apart from installation and per-user charges, you may have to pay other potential VoIP service fees, such as fees for hardware, toll-free numbers, and upgrading plans. 

VoIP Features 

Every business needs different features, so looking for features that a business IP phone service provider offers is essential. If you do not know which features you exactly need, here are some features you must consider:

1. Automated attendant: An automated menu system directs callers to the correct department, saving time and costs compared to a live receptionist.

2. Call forwarding: Ensures calls are always answered by forwarding them to another extension or different number.

3. Call analytics: Collects data on call metrics, behavioral trends, and agent performance to inform data-driven decisions.

4. Softphone: Use a WiFi-enabled device to make calls and send messages.

5. Business text messaging: Send SMS messages directly from the VoIP platform, eliminating the need to switch between apps.

6. Voicemail-to-text: Transcribe voicemails and deliver them as SMS texts to your phone.

7. Video conferencing: VoIP systems often include video chat tools for convenient collaboration with customers and colleagues.

Third-Party Integration 

VoIP tools offer valuable built-in third-party integrations to enhance your daily communication. These integrations include:

• CRM Integration: Many business phone systems seamlessly connect with your CRM, enabling data tracking and improving the customer experience by linking agents with caller profiles and creating support tickets.

• SMS and Fax: Most VoIP platforms include SMS and fax features; if not, they should integrate with third-party SMS and fax platforms.

• Email Software Integration: Synchronizing your email tool with VoIP allows efficient email and call management. For example, integrating Microsoft Outlook enables audio file reception from VoIP in your email.

• Cloud Storage: VoIP tools easily integrate with cloud storage services like Dropbox or Google Cloud, ensuring the security of phone recordings and protection against fraud or legal issues.

When choosing a business phone service provider, ensure it offers these integrations or the specific ones you require. Look for VoIP software that provides third-party API integrations for customizing your tool.

Customer Support 

Customer support is crucial for your VoIP tool, ensuring swift issue resolution. Some providers offer 24/7 support, while others offer telephone support during business hours.

When assessing a VoIP provider's customer service, consider these factors:

1. Simplicity: Minimize on-hold time during calls and streamline call routing to multiple agents.

2. Live Representatives: Ideal for comprehensive issue discussions, live representatives provide direct communication for problem-solving.

3. Self-Service Options: A robust customer service offering includes online portals, video tutorials, FAQs, and web-based alternatives, giving you the flexibility to find solutions independently.

VoIP Uptime 

Uptime in VoIP measures how often the service is operational and online. While no provider can assure 100% uptime due to internet-based operations, most can commit to around 99.9% uptime.

The difference in those decimal points carries significant implications. For instance, 99.999% uptime means just 5.26 minutes of unplanned downtime annually, whereas 99.99% equates to 52.56 annually.

It is vital to ascertain the precise uptime percentage your provider guarantees and whether it includes maintenance and upgrades. Unaccounted-for maintenance can lead to additional downtime.

Also, inquire about when downtime usually occurs, as this can impact your customers, especially if it falls on weekends or off-hours.

VoIP Security 

To secure VoIP services, select a provider that prioritizes data protection. High-level encryption is essential for call data security, requiring an encryption key for decryption.

Having multiple data centers in different locations is a vital security practice, ensuring service continuity even in failures.

Other security measures include data center audits, multi-factor authentication, and advanced account management, safeguarding your data from potential threats.

Conclusion 

Selecting the right business phone service provider is critical for any organization. With the rise of advanced technologies and the growing importance of communication, a reliable and efficient phone system is essential. Transitioning to a cloud-based VoIP service can bring numerous benefits, but the increasing number of providers can make the decision challenging.

When choosing a business phone service provider, you must consider your specific requirements, costs, features, third-party integrations, customer support, uptime guarantees, and security measures. By carefully assessing these factors, you can make an informed choice that enhances your business productivity, communication effectiveness, and customer satisfaction.