Senior Writer: Paras Kela
Date: February 9, 2024In this era of the internet, the traditional phone system has become outdated.
Tied to landlines on a desk in the office is no longer appreciated by people, employers, managers, or people in the business. Operating the traditional phone system doesn’t fit the way businesses work these days. Today people can get their work done sitting from anywhere across the globe, thanks to technology.
The rise of cloud-based phone systems had enabled users to answer the phone from any device. It gives all functionalities of a telephone in your smartphones, desktop, or tablets. It eliminates the need to be tied up to the desk phone.
You will not be tied up to the desk phone any longer.
What Is Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP)?
Most small businesses start by purchasing a single landline with a dedicated business phone number. The drawback here is that the line is shared by every employee working for the firm, and when the line is busy, they have to wait for their turn.
As soon as the company starts to grow, you might require a server and a desk phone for each employee, many cables, and an answering machine to route calls. This may cost you around $1000 for cables and servers, $50 per phone, and $20 per month per line of service. And, we haven’t added the installation and maintenance costs yet.
So, what’s the alternate option? Implement a VoIP phone system in your organization.
A VoIP, or virtual phone number, will remove the need to install dedicated servers and miles of cables and move all your calls to the cloud. It is one of the most economical choices as it is available for a small setup fee. Most software vendors follow the subscription model, where you can either choose to pay monthly, quarterly or yearly.
How Does a Virtual Phone Number System Work?
A short and sweet explanation of this cloud-based telephony is Skype on Steroids. Instead of the Physical Phone server, there will be a single dashboard to manage your customer accounts, company’s number, and menu system that will route calls to the right person.
Employees can then use virtual phone system apps to make and receive calls from their devices.
Even if any employees go on unplanned leave, you can forward their number to another employee in the company. Furthermore, the system allows you to record the calls and much more. This technology is a full stack of voice communication and makes sure that the clients are never left with a dead number.
The Benefits of Using VoIP Phone System
Keeping in mind the pace with which technology is advancing, the significant difference between the traditional landlines and the virtual phone system is its portability and mobility.
Today’s VoIP phone system uses multiple channels of communication, such as the internet. We all know that data is getting cheaper every day, which makes the virtual phone system more affordable than any other means of communication.
In this ever-changing business world, the essence of a formidable brand can never be overemphasized. This is where a portable business phone system will help get one step closer to achieving a brand identity.
It is usually recommended to make outgoing business calls from a universal phone system. This not only adds credibility to the business but also brings a level of professionalism to your operations. Besides, it enables you to make multiple calls at the same time using the same number.
The main reason why businesses are running away from the legacy systems is that of its rigidity. Those can only be accessed at the office premises and, in most cases, at particular office locations. But a virtual phone system is extremely flexible and can be accessed on the move.
You can access the VoIP system apps from any part of the world. This ensures that you are connected to your clients even when you are on the move.
Steps to Switch From Traditional Phone to a VoIP System
Previously, switching your traditional phone system to a virtual phone system used to be a massive project. You had two dozen other steps to set up a private branch exchange at the office. The VoIP requirements and hardware costs alone were insurmountable for small or medium-sized businesses.
With a cloud business phone system, this is no longer the case. All you need is a stable internet connection and an internet-enabled device, and you are all set.
Here is a step-by-set guide to set up your cloud-based business phone system.
i. Choose the Right Phone System Service Provider
The foremost thing to do is to choose the right service provider for your business phone system. CallHippo is one of the most trusted and popular virtual phone service providers that has its operation spread across 50 countries.
Signing up on CallHippo is quite easy. It can get you running in under three minutes.
ii. Select Your Business Number
Once you have selected the service provided, the next step is to choose a business phone number. You can choose a local phone number to create a local market presence in various countries worldwide without moving an inch.
Or, you can opt for a toll-free number so that your customers can call you freely without having to worry about pesky call carrier charges.
iii. Identify Your Preferred Devices to Host the Business Phone System
Generally, with CallHippo, you don’t need any additional hardware or equipment to install the business phone system. You can use it on any of your smart devices with an active internet connection.
However, some headsets are designed especially for cloud-based, virtual phone systems. These devices can amp up the quality of calls by a couple of notches. Besides, it lends a more professional look.
iv. Add Extensions for Your Employees
With a business phone system, you can set up individual extensions for various employees. In fact, you can also create department extensions for larger offices.
You can even set up IVR to allow customers to route themselves to the correct agent or department.
v. Start Making and Receiving Calls
You can now start calling and answering calls. It will save a significant amount of expense on your phone bills.
The Bottom Line
If you are looking for an office phone system that backs you up every step of your way, nothing can be better than a VoIP telephone system. The regular flow of communication will ensure the efficient running of business processes.
Paras Kela is a highly skilled SaaS content writer with over 7 years of experience in the IT field. His expertise lies in simplifying complex technical concepts for easy comprehension. With a portfolio of over 100 high-quality blogs covering various SaaS topics, Paras’s writing style is engaging, informative, and SEO-friendly, ensuring maximum effectiveness. He continuously updates his skills and knowledge to stay current with industry trends, making his writing relevant and reliable.
