Selecting the correct phone system can be tricky with all the different brands and websites out there selling their products and services. In some organisations you may not even require a business telephone system for example if you work for yourself or only have a few people working for you its probably not worth spending money in a business system up until you know you are busy enough and it is worth buying a system.
For comparatively larger or busier companies it is vital that you invest in a solution that works for you and not just the ones that cost the most or the least or the ones that have the most recommendations on the internet.
Existing in a society where social media and social networking sites like Twitter consume a good percentage of our time on a daily basis, it is important to use these tools to get advice from like minded companies. A simple method of doing this is sending out a tweet on Twitter asking to view another company's system with the same sort of sized company in your locality. You could be surprised at the responses you receive.
If you are based in a site where other companies are located then asking them about their phone solutions would probably provide you some vital information regarding whether certain technologies or phone systems are even compatible with the site or even that area. Ask the organisation owners about the advantages and disadvantages of the phone systems they are utilising as well as looking at innovative ways those businesses are using their phone systems and that you never thought about.
Now that you have some sort of knowledge as to what others are using and the advantages and disadvantage they have pointed out about the systems they are using then next it is important for you to sit down and write down your system requirements:
1.How many people will be using the phone systems?
2.Can a group of employees use the same phone?
3.Are your employees on the go?
4.How many people do you expect to join your company in the next few years?
5.Do you have a budget to stick to?
6.Do you need a system that you can add to easily yourself?
These are general queries and some may not apply to your business telephone system but you get an idea as to the questions you need to ask yourself.
Next consider the other methods by which the organisations were using their telephone solutions. Here are a few added extras that can help to make your business more efficient and ultimately more profitable:
1.An auto attendant answering service and menu option will redirect calls to the right person in the organisation by the customer choosing the service or department they are looking for. This not only saves you and your customer time but also provides the customer the impression that they are calling a large business.
2.Call forwarding will redirect the customer to the next best employee to assist with their question if the first person is unable to get to that call. This helps with efficiency and results in a happy customer.
3.Conferencing can be cheaper when done in-house as opposed to paying a third party service.
Now that you have finalised your business phone needs you need to pick the type of system you would use. Here are some of the main kinds of systems that you could implement:
1.VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol), this system basically uses the Internet as a phone system and in most cases can be very cost effective to setup and run. If you are looking to cater for a small business with a few phone lines then this would be the solution for you. However you would need to look into the equipment required and whether or not your current equipment would be compatible with a VOIP system.
2.PBX (Private Branch Exchange), this system is mainly suited to medium and large companies and involves having switches installed on the premises that redirect calls to the correct person in the organisation.
Next you need to match your requirements with the telephone system you want to go for and once you have selected the system you would like then its time to start searching for the best price. When searching to buy a business phone system from a company then do make sure to check whether or not the phone system price includes installation and maintenance.
For comparatively larger or busier companies it is vital that you invest in a solution that works for you and not just the ones that cost the most or the least or the ones that have the most recommendations on the internet.
Existing in a society where social media and social networking sites like Twitter consume a good percentage of our time on a daily basis, it is important to use these tools to get advice from like minded companies. A simple method of doing this is sending out a tweet on Twitter asking to view another company's system with the same sort of sized company in your locality. You could be surprised at the responses you receive.
If you are based in a site where other companies are located then asking them about their phone solutions would probably provide you some vital information regarding whether certain technologies or phone systems are even compatible with the site or even that area. Ask the organisation owners about the advantages and disadvantages of the phone systems they are utilising as well as looking at innovative ways those businesses are using their phone systems and that you never thought about.
Now that you have some sort of knowledge as to what others are using and the advantages and disadvantage they have pointed out about the systems they are using then next it is important for you to sit down and write down your system requirements:
1.How many people will be using the phone systems?
2.Can a group of employees use the same phone?
3.Are your employees on the go?
4.How many people do you expect to join your company in the next few years?
5.Do you have a budget to stick to?
6.Do you need a system that you can add to easily yourself?
These are general queries and some may not apply to your business telephone system but you get an idea as to the questions you need to ask yourself.
Next consider the other methods by which the organisations were using their telephone solutions. Here are a few added extras that can help to make your business more efficient and ultimately more profitable:
1.An auto attendant answering service and menu option will redirect calls to the right person in the organisation by the customer choosing the service or department they are looking for. This not only saves you and your customer time but also provides the customer the impression that they are calling a large business.
2.Call forwarding will redirect the customer to the next best employee to assist with their question if the first person is unable to get to that call. This helps with efficiency and results in a happy customer.
3.Conferencing can be cheaper when done in-house as opposed to paying a third party service.
Now that you have finalised your business phone needs you need to pick the type of system you would use. Here are some of the main kinds of systems that you could implement:
1.VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol), this system basically uses the Internet as a phone system and in most cases can be very cost effective to setup and run. If you are looking to cater for a small business with a few phone lines then this would be the solution for you. However you would need to look into the equipment required and whether or not your current equipment would be compatible with a VOIP system.
2.PBX (Private Branch Exchange), this system is mainly suited to medium and large companies and involves having switches installed on the premises that redirect calls to the correct person in the organisation.
Next you need to match your requirements with the telephone system you want to go for and once you have selected the system you would like then its time to start searching for the best price. When searching to buy a business phone system from a company then do make sure to check whether or not the phone system price includes installation and maintenance.
Buying A Business Telephone Systems