Whether your current handset is a Yealink IP Phone, Polycom IP Phone, Grandstream IP Phone, Cisco IP Phone, Snom IP Phone or Aastra IP Phone, we can streamline the move from your current provider with our FlexPBX automatic provisioning templates.
Our team are experts in telephone system migrations. Our project management team will move you from your existing system in record time all with keeping you on the air.
If you have an IP Handset not listed and would like us to certify it for use on FlexPBX, simply complete the form below and our team will contact you to arrange certification.
Given the fact that the world is getting globalised rapidly, there are more and more businesses that have offices around the globe. Even smaller organisations reach out to outsourcing services abroad and collaborate with international companies. This means that companies have expanded their communication needs to an international level.
This has created a new reality for business; they need to have a lot of international calls to be able to organise themselves properly. However, finding reliable and affordable phone systems for these constant international calls is not easy. This is where VoIP, or voice over internet protocol, comes into the picture.
This is a system that transmits audio communications over long distances using the internet instead of mobile or telephone networks. This type of phone system has changed many things and created a lot of solutions for companies looking to maintain cheap international communications that are reliable.
In my experience, a company can save from 25% to 65% on communication and these are great numbers. Although these numbers can vary, it’s still a great way to cut down costs. So, let’s see what the reasons for these cost cuts are.
Why VoIP is the best solution for international business communication
A lot of business owners, managers and employees alike are familiar with communication systems that have voiceovers or messaging such as Skype, however there are much greater and more advanced systems that work on similar methods.
All of these systems rely on fast internet connections that allow companies to quickly make calls and have a stable connection. All of these systems transform analog signals to digital signals which then go through the web and reach a distant destination.
These systems have audio streams which are instant, meaning that the calls can be placed from any location which has a stable internet connection. A business can harness many benefits from these kinds of phone systems, especially when talking about saving money. On top of that, they are more flexible and scalable.
How Cloud VoIP communication systems cut costs
The majority of VoIP communication systems are hosted on the cloud. This means that your whole system and database will be located on one server through which all of you communication processes will operate. The first thing that saves money here is that you simply don’t have to install any phones or phone lines on site.
You won’t have to purchase any hardware for offices around the world, nor ship it and pay for its installation. Everything is taken care off by the provider. On top of that, your provider will also be in charge of maintenance, meaning that you won’t have to pay for IT experts to do this for you or waste your IT department’s resources to deal with these issues.
VoIP communication systems can also be installed with a business that has pre-existing traditional phone system. The only thing a business will have to get is an adaptor that costs around $40 which is used to connect all phones to the web, enabling them all to send and receive VoIP calls.
What to look for when choosing a good VoIP system
When looking for the best package for your business, the most important things you will have to consider are your budget and the costs of these services. On top of that, you also need to check whether the provider can cover a certain country, give you special features, and allow you to scale your package how you see fit.
It is also important to analyse what your needs are so that you can get the right type of service for your company. Not only that voice over IP systems are much cheaper, but they can come with some amazing features. When opting for a quality service, you should look to acquire things such as call forwarding, call transfer, tele-conferencing, data sharing, and caller ID perks.
These are all the things that traditional phone lines don’t offer. On top of that, the level of security and reliability is much greater, given the fact that VoIP systems have encryptions.
Not only that you will directly pay less for all of these amazing features, but these features will allow your organisation to be more efficient and achieve better results, while relying on a comprehensive communication system capable of handling a whole business spread around the globe.
Even employees will be able to respond more quickly, as they don’t have to be present within their offices to use this system and talk to their coworkers. These are all some of the things you should look from your VoIP provider.
Scale with minimal costs
Given the fact that users are added to the VoIP system quickly and that providers offer maximum customisation and flexibility in terms of how many people can use your system and communicate, you will have a much easier time of adjusting your service with your current needs. If a business is growing rapidly and it’s in need of more communication channels, it can quickly change it’s package that will be available almost instantly.
The same thing applies for when the needs are smaller. Not only this, but the price can literally be changed per user, and the cost of changes simply don’t exist; if you add more people, you will just have to pay for every individual and get on with your everyday work, no additional costs, no setup costs.
These hosted systems are always administered through an online control panel, located remotely, meaning that the scaling process within an organisation and throughout various offices is almost instant and quite easy.
It is very important that your do thorough research regarding usability and pricing that providers offer so that you are able to choose the VoIP solution that will completely suit your business. It’s generally a good idea to start with one office and see how the system proves itself before you start implementing it globally in all of your offices.
Given the fact that all modern business offices and spaces have stable internet connections, why not exploit this cheap resource even further and improve your communications as well. Don’t waste time, switch to a VoIP system as quickly as possible.
Good communication is the most valuable asset in any business. Businesses seek new ways to improve it and bring it to the next level. But, at one point, when it gets perfected, businesses have to turn to technology in order to improve further.
And technology is the only thing that can unravel the secret of staying connected at all times, despite the geolocation of the people communicating. And, most of the technology I am going to write about in this article is already in our hands. When put to proper use, the employees can communicate by using in-house phones or softphones on their PCs, laptops, Android and iOS smartphones and Macs.
Here are the technologies and the preferred mindset, both of which are the root of the “staying connected, wherever you are” secret.
Identify Your Business Needs
There are a lot of technologies that can enable your business communication to be geographically unrestricted. But, before you pick one, you have to identify your business needs. Here are some questions and answering them will significantly narrow your search down.
Are your offices scattered across the country/world?
Is your business growing rapidly?
Is your market local, national, international, or all three?
How often are you and your employees on the go?
Are you selling exclusively online or in physical stores? Maybe both?
Does your company have an in-house customer support call center?
After answering these, you will know to identify the communication system able to meet your business needs. Furthermore, when you know what you need, communicating with vendors will be way easier and they will able to offer you custom tailored solutions.
At this point, you should also start considering software designed to make communication and collaboration streamlined and easy. But, let’s not get into this right now. We will come back to it later in the article.
Web Based Technologies
Voice over IP (VoIP)
A typical conference or small meeting room won’t cut it if your employees and managers are on the go, nor will they help if you are working with a remote team. Also, knowing the number of each employee or office can be a daunting task, especially for large businesses.
Thanks to VoIP technologies, the conference room has been reinvented and placed in the cloud. You won’t be able to see the people participating in the conference call, but you will be able to hear them loud and clear even if they are thousands of miles away.
VoIP powered communication happens through the web. They are established via a local network connection. One of the neat perks of using VoIP is the ability to assign one single office number to an office which routes to cell phones of that department’s manager, workers – everyone.
The system is able to send voicemails via email, route calls to any assigned number, and deliver calls to workers despite their location. One thing is certain, VoIP is capable to keep you connected.
Video Conferencing
Video conferencing technologies are similar to VoIP, except they bring the camera into the picture. This solution is excellent for firms that emphasise on vivid interactions even between remote workers and teams.
With video conferencing, workers don’t need to be physically present in the offices. Whenever they are needed, they can be called to interact with their colleagues in real time. Video conferencing allows for a better connection, as it allows staff to see each other’s facial expressions and hand movements.
PBX Phone System
The PBX Phone system is capable of bringing the much needed competitive advantage to a corporation that installs and starts using it. When it comes to phone systems, the PBX system is a cutting edge cloud based technology available at low
With PBX phone systems, employees can stay as efficient as they were in the offices. All of the communication is established through the Internet, which makes this type of phone system very flexible and efficient. And, upgrading from legacy systems to a PBX is really simple and easy.
If you want to stay connected, you have to start using premium business internet services. If you are basing your communication over the Internet connection, you should really make sure that you get the best one for your company. There are several options on the market:
IP VPN Private Network Solution – if you have scattered offices and a remote data center, this type of network solution will enable your employees to share files instantly and use emails, video and voice communication options. This type of private network solution works on both Fibre and Ethernet connections.
Ethernet and Fibre – this type of Internet service will get your business a high quality, reliable, super-fast Internet connection.
Mobile Internet – if you want to experience communication without any obstacles by using internet over your mobile carrier networks, you should go with a carrier that supports a 4G connection.
ADSL – this type of connection was proven as reliable over the last decade. If you are not in need of high internet speeds, ADSL is a completely viable solution.
Business Software
Software as a service (SaaS) companies have flooded the market with all kinds of business software solutions. There are literally thousands of them, so thread carefully. Here are the tools that can improve your communication and streamline your work process:
Project Management Software – this tool makes project planning, task delegation, and task tracking easier.
Knowledge Base Software – a great tool to start building a knowledge sharing culture in your business. It can also be used to publish a self-service help centre webpage and improve customer support.
Instant Messaging Software – Classy chatting software tailored for business. Some advanced tools even have the GPS feature; quite a neat option if you want to track your sales teams.
The bottom line would be to keep your company’s communications infrastructure updated at all times. But, there is another important side of the story. You also need to identify your business needs and goals so that you can invest smart.
When you are faced with these types of decisions, it is important not to rush them. Take your time, get help from managers, do some research, or ask for a professional consult. Only then you will be able to settle for a reliable and effective communications system that can meet the needs of your business model and your customers.
VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, is an emerging technology that is literally reinventing the wheel and completely changing the way we take and place phone calls. This technology refers to an amazing method of IP telephony, that is, the method of using the Internet to place phone calls that are transmitted into digital data.
Namely, when you switch to a VoIP telephone system, you can place free phone calls, and all you need is a good Internet connection. You can say goodbye to costly traditional phone lines and say hello to a free phone call system, which can not only help you save a lot of money, but also help you become significantly more efficient and productive.
However, despite VoIP’s raise in popularity, a number of small businesses are still sceptical about it and choose to remain on the bench while the big guns keep playing the game. They are mostly concerned with the costs of implementing new technologies and they think that the quality of VoIP audio is not as high as it is when it comes to traditional telephone systems. Most importantly, they fear that their phone services will suffer greatly should they experience a power outage.
The truth of the matter is that switching to VoIP is extremely beneficial and all of the benefits it can provide you with significantly outweigh the potential disadvantages. Therefore, take a closer look at the importance of VoIP and the outstanding impact it can have on your business.
Why Is VoIP Really Important?
By switching to a VoIP telephone system, you will provide your business with several very useful benefits. It doesn’t matter what size your company is, since VoIP is designed for everyone, as its primary goal is making phone calls more efficient and effective, while making them free at the same time. Here are the most essential reasons why you should definitely make the switch as soon as possible.
Reducing Your Telecommunication Costs
Instead of using the services of traditional phone companies, a VoIP system turns your phone calls into data sent over the Internet. Therefore, by switching to VoIP, your telecommunication costs will be considerably lower, since you will no longer have to pay for traditional phone lines.
This is especially important for long-distance calls, which, as you must already know, can be quite expensive. What’s more, with VoIP, there will be no reason to maintain two different networks, one for data and the other one for phone lines, so you will save even more money down the line.
Taking Calls On-the-Go
With VoIP, you can take your calls while you are on-the-go, as long as you have a reliable Internet connection. No matter where you are, you can take full advantage of your VoIP telephone system and never miss an important phone call.
This is because VoIP provides you with an amazing call forwarding feature, so you can forward all calls to you mobile phone or even your laptop, since a VoIP system comes with computer software. Therefore, all your customers and clients will always be able to easily reach you by simply dialling your regular business phone number.
Forwarding Faxes and Voicemail to Your Email Inbox
Yet another great reason for making the switch to VoIP is that the system enables you to forward all the faxes and voicemail you receive directly to your email inbox. Having all of your emails in one singular place will greatly help you become more efficient and productive, not to mention that you can easily forward any email or fax to other members of your team.
Virtual Phone Numbers
This is very important for your long-distance customers and clients, as VoIP enables you to have a business phone number with any area code that you want, instead of having only one assigned area code for the location where you operate. Getting those virtual phone numbers means that people who are not in your region can easily contact you without any charges whatsoever.
You certainly realise how important that is for your business growth. Moreover, if you happen to move your business to another location, that would require assigning a new area code to your business phone number, you won’t have to go through all the trouble of transferring your phone services to the new location, changing the number and notifying all of your customers and clients about it.
How Can You Know When Your Business Is Ready for the Switch?
If you are not sure whether or not VoIP is the right choice for your business, the aforementioned benefits it can provide you with will certainly help you make an informed decision. However, there are certain tell-tale signs that can help you know if your business is ready for VoIP, so you need to pay close attention.
If you are getting so many phone calls that you keep a number of your customers on a busy signal, you can lose a lot of them. They won’t have the patience to wait for someone to pick up the phone. VoIP is very useful in such cases, because it includes auto attendants, as well as call recording, which can help you keep your customers satisfied, and happy customers are loyal customers.
If you feel like you are spending too much money on your traditional phone system (just think about all those long-distance calls and mobile phone bills), then VoIP is definitely the way to go. Not only will you cut down on all those costs, but you will also significantly improve your customer service, since anyone who wants to contact you will be able to do so completely free of charge.
Conclusion
Trying out new stuff can be scary, especially when it’s about your business. You don’t want to expose your business to risks, but you also cannot afford to sit idly on the sidelines. No battle is ever won without risk. You need to embrace new changes and, more importantly, embrace the future.
Switching to VoIP may seem like a major decision, but it is definitely a huge step towards improving your business and leading it to greater success. Therefore, don’t hesitate any longer, but step up your game and enter the grand playing field by switching to this amazingly flexible and cost-effective technology. Make sure you know what to look for when upgrading your phone system and find a VoIP provider that can offer you the best services for your needs.
At Summit, we’re making it easy to bring your existing Aastra handset to FlexPBX so that moving from another provider is a streamlined process.
Simply select from our FlexPBX Pay as you Go (PAYG) plan or FlexPBX Max plan and we’ll hook your current Aastra handset up at no extra charge.
Aastra Mitel
Aastra 6755I
Aastra 6757ICT
Whether your current handset is a Yealink IP Phone, Polycom IP Phone, Grandstream IP Phone, Cisco IP Phone, Snom IP Phone or Aastra IP Phone, we can streamline the move from your current provider to FlexPBX with our automatic provisioning templates.
Our team are experts in telephone system migrations. Our project management team will move you from your existing system in record time all with keeping you on the air.
If you have an IP Handset not listed and would like us to certify it for use on FlexPBX, simply complete the form below and our team will contact you to arrange certification.
SIP Trunking is a relatively new technology that has a host of benefits for organisations. To gain a solid understanding of what it is, how it can benefit an organisation and what it’s benefits and drawbacks are, it’s important to understand how traditional phone systems work. This will aid in drawing comparisons between the two systems while giving context to the differences between them.
A traditional phone system is quite simple. The paradigm has not changed much in the past hundred years. In theory, it’s possible to take an old landline phone from the 1960s, plug it into a phone line and make a call.
A telephone handset is used to convert voice into analogue signals that are passed over a copper wire, to a gateway or exchange, through the public telephone network to the outside world.
Traditional telephone systems depend on the traditional infrastructure, service providers and gateway equipment. In a large company, installing, operating and managing telephone infrastructure can be expensive and time consuming.
Using SIP trunking can reduce costs considerably by simply removing most of the components needed in a traditional telephone system. It’s much easier to install and upgrade, and provides more functionality than a traditional system. It also costs far less to make calls
What is SIP Trunking?
SIP trunking is a protocol or communication standard that sends information over the internet, rather than over a fixed line telephone network.
When comparing it to a traditional telephone line, it converts voice into a digital signal which is sent directly from the handset, over the internet to the outside world. It bypasses gateways and exchanges as well as the public telephone infrastructure.
How does SIP trunking benefit a business?
Cost reduction. In a traditional telephone system, ISDN and PSTN lines carry high monthly rental charges and high call costs. The cost of making a call to another country is usually very high. Using a SIP system, monthly rental charges are reduced and included value plans are more common. This gives business a known monthly cost for all of their rental and call costs.
Scaleability. With traditional ISDN and PSTN, scaling up was timely and expensive. Not only did you have to wait for more lines to be installed, but typically you had to purchase additional equipment for your PBX. With SIP, scaling up is as simple as making a phone call to your provider. Within minutes, you can have additional SIP lines added to your account.
Reliability and ease of use. In modern cities, it is usually fairly easy to get a good quality, high bandwidth internet connection. Most companies also have redundant connectivity methods. This means that a SIP system has a high quality, redundant connection. In a traditional system, if the phone lines are damaged outside a building, all telephone communication is cut off.
What are the drawbacks of a SIP system?
A SIP system depends entirely on the internet connection it uses. If a company uses a low bandwidth connection, voice quality and reliability can be negatively affected. In some instances, you may also need to purchase additional hardware to interface legacy PBX’s.
With the roll out of the Australian National Broadband Network, reliable connectivity will make SIP trunking a very real possibility for most companies.