Tag Archives: Telephony

Have You Made The Switch To VoIP In Your Call Center?

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The businessman chooses VOIP button on the touch screen with a futuristic background .The concept VOIP

Are you ready to make the move?

If you are currently operating an in-house call center and you are still using legacy contact center solutions to perform all your communication tasks, we think it is time for you to rethink your situation. When you adopt Voice over Internet Protocol technology, you will immediately be able to notice the difference. Voice over Internet Protocol technology can do amazing things for your business and you will have the powerful tool you need to deliver outstanding customer service and functionalities to your call center.

VoIP services will provide you with the dependability, flexibility, and mobility you need to reach a high level success in the modern business world. A Voice over Internet Protocol solution will route the different voice communications over your internet connection. The solution will also use the same lines that can be merged on your utility bills.

Not only will Voice over Internet Protocol technology give you the opportunity to reduce costs, you will be provided with a variety of capabilities and features that you will not be able to get on the traditional phone systems you are currently using.

Monitoring Tools

If you want to make sure your call center agents are taking the proper approach when they are answering phone calls, you can use the reporting and monitoring tools to listen to conversations. When you hire new employees, you can also use these tools to give them an understanding of what the right approach should be. When you upgrade your communications to a Voice over Internet Protocol call center, you will be equipped with a variety of monitoring and reporting tools that will provide you with the data you need to serve your customers better.

On The Go(Mobility)

You will not have a strong call center if you do not have strong and productive employees. Your call center is going to need to retain your star employees for as long as possible. When you use Voice over Internet Protocol technology, you will be able to retain those employees even if they move or become remote workers. A hosted PBX solution will allow them to do everything they would do if they were actually in the office. Since calls are routed through the internet, your employees will be able to work from any location, as long as a strong internet connection exists. When you can create a great team of remote workers, you will have a strong and productive call center.

UC(Unified Communications)

When you have multiple ways to interact with your customers, they will be more likely to reach out to you because they will be able to contact you using a method they are comfortable with. The right cloud technology will allow you to integrate unified communications. When you properly integrate a Unified communications strategy, you will be able to use messaging, email, chat, social media, voice, and other communications methods to interact with customers. Not all customers are comfortable reaching out to business over the phone, but when you give them more communication options, they will be able to choose their preferred method of communication.

When your Voice over Internet Protocol is going to be provided by an outside supplier or vendor, you will need to make sure you will receive the best services. You are going to need a supplier and provider who will make sure your call center will stay online, even during outages or bad weather. Are you ready to always be there for your customers, especially during the times of the year when calls are constantly coming in? Do not hesitate to contact us today for more information on VoIP.

How Does Voice over IP Work?

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Voice over IP, communication support, call center and customer service help desk

Voice Over IP

You’ve heard a lot about VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol. It saves money while giving you features that the traditional phone network can’t provide. But just what is it, really? How does it work?

The short answer is that it’s digitized sound sent over the Internet. A device at your end samples what you’re saying and converts it to bits. It gets bits back and converts them to sound. But what makes it useful is that you can treat it just like a phone call. You can call landline phones from your VoIP phone, and they can call you. You can make calls between phones from different manufacturers or use an application on your smartphone or desktop computer.

The office VoIP network

An office phone network, whether it’s based on traditional or VoIP technology, is called a private branch exchange or PBX. The Internet version is called an IPBX. Its central equipment can be in the office, in a remote data center, or in the cloud. VoIP phones are connected to the PBX over data connections such as Wi-Fi and Ethernet. Sometimes the phones use the same local network as the computers; sometimes they use a separate network for more consistent quality.

Either way, your phone converts what you say into data and sends it to the IPBX, which is really just a server running specialized software. If the equipment is based in your office, your call goes out onto the public telephone system when it leaves the building. If it’s cloud-based, your voice may travel almost the entire distance as data, saving the cost of a long-distance call.

The conversion to data uses compression techniques, so the bandwidth needed for one conversation isn’t very high. If an office has a lot of phones, though, it needs to have enough bandwidth to let many conversations keep up and should have a router with VoIP-friendly features.

You may have heard of VoIP phones referred to as SIP phones. SIP is one of two common protocols for making VoIP connections. The other is called H.323. The phone has to be compatible with the protocol your exchange uses, but phones from different manufacturers for the same protocol are interchangeable.

You don’t actually have to give up your old phone. Devices called Analog Telephone Adapters (ATAs) let you plug in one or more ordinary telephones and convert their audio signals to data. It’s less expensive than buying VoIP phones, but not all the features are available.

What happens when you make a call?

When you place a call, you might hear touch tones, but they’re just to give a sense of familiarity. The keys you press are converted to data, and the exchange determines whether you’re making an in-office call or outside call. If the call is within the IPBX’s area, it handles the whole connection. It isn’t restricted to voice data in this case; many IPBXs can carry video and documents as well. The ability to combine these is called “Unified Communication.”

If the call goes through a cloud-based service, it may emerge on the public telephone network only at a point local to the receiving party — possibly in another nation. If you’re calling another VoIP exchange, the call may not have to go over the public network at all. Sending data is very inexpensive, so VoIP calls cost much less than regular long-distance calls.

To get a clean-sounding conversation, you need an Internet connection that has enough bandwidth and will move the data along at a consistent speed. A poor connection may sound choppy, parts of the conversation may drop out, or you may hear an echo. Equipment which is designed to deliver “QoS” (quality of service) for voice data will reduce the incidence of problems.

If you want to learn more

Several websites have good introductions to VoIP for the non-technical reader. Here are a couple to look at:

Whatever you need to run on your network, SystemsNet keeps it running. Contact us for details.

What Can VoIP Offer You?

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Woman using internet based phone services

Voice Over Internet Protocol phone systems

We are sure you have been told about the numerous benefits and advantages of Internet-based phone services and features. However, are you aware of how impactful these services and features can be to your business? Voice Over Internet Protocol phone systems can offer your business a variety of benefits, including the following:

 

 

  • Getting notified of your voicemails through email or cell phone notifications
  • On-hold music that you can customize
  • Auto attendant services
  • The ability to make changes to your telephone
  • Cordless telephones

While these features and services are great for helping your business for the entire year, the VoIP services can greatly impact your business during the holidays. During the holidays, many businesses will have different opening and closing hours than they do for the earlier part of the year.

Business Hours

If you have plans to close your business during the holiday season, change your hours, or schedule events for certain days, your customers can always be in the loop. You will not have to worry about your customers being placed on hold or being sent to voicemail because VoIP will allow you to remain in contact with them at all times. It does not matter if your business will take a break during the holidays or if you will have events scheduled, you can answer your customers’ phone calls even when you are not in the office.

Route Your Calls

If you will have a business event or a Christmas party on a particular day and you do not plan to take any phone calls, you will be able to route your office phone calls to your cellular device. If you receive phone calls that you do not want to answer, you can route those phone calls to your voicemail. You can answer the phone calls that you feel are important and should be answered immediately.

Take Your Work Home

If you have plans to work from the comfort of your own home during the holiday season, you will be able to do this and not worry about the progress of your business. You can answer your office phone calls on your cell phone from the VoIP control panel in your office. You can also make the decision to take the office VoIP phone home and use it on your home’s router.

Who’s Working?

Not only will you be able to answer phone calls on your cell phone while you are home, you will also be able to use your system so your loyal customers do not think you are not accepting any business during the holidays. You can make sure all of the phone calls are routed to the employees who are working. You will not have to worry about phone calls being sent to employees who are off for the holidays. Your customers will always have their questions answered when you ensure that you are routing your phone calls to the right people.

You Have A Message

One of the great things about VoIP is that it will allow you to customize your business message. You can even record a holiday greeting for your answering machine or your voicemail settings. There are various things you can include on your answering machine or voicemail, including announcing sales, promos, etc.

VoIP gives any business the flexibility, dependability, and reliability they need in a service. If you want to ease the pain and frustrations of the holiday season, VoIP can certainly alleviate some of that stress for you. If you want to keep up with the holiday pace, please do not hesitate to contact us today for additional information about VoIP.

Answers To Your Hosted VoIP Questions

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VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Dialing on phone system

What are the most common VoIP questions?

VoIP(Voice over Internet Protocol) has been around for many years now, but many business owners and business managers are just now gaining an understanding of how essential VoIP can be to their business models. More businesses are adopting VoIP solutions so they can reap the benefits that their competitors are reaping.

We know there many things that you will need to consider before you make the decision to use VoIP for your business. It can be a tricky process for many business owners, but we hope we can make the entire process a little easier for you.

How Quickly Can You Get VoIP Services?

We recommend that you avoid rushing into the process of implementing VoIP services, especially if you do not have the full understanding of VoIP, as well as the equipment and infrastructure to support it. If you want to avoid a huge letdown and if you want to avoid seeing VoIP services in a negative light, you should ease into the implementation process.

We would not recommend installing a new infrastructure overnight, so we do not recommend switching to VoIP overnight without knowing the ins and out. Your business needs to make sure all the pieces are in place. One of the best things you can do is to connect with the staff of the VoIP provider you are considering using. The expert staff will be able to answer any question you may have, and eventually lead you in the right direction. You may find that you are not quite ready for VoIP, but you can still get everything prepared for when you are fully ready.

Will I Need Backup?

VoIP is known for its reliability, but we all know that natural disasters and accidents can happen at any given moment. A hosted VoIP solution will still be impacted if there is a power outage in your area. Power outages do not occur often in many areas, but power outages can occur more frequently during the winter. Will you have the equipment you need to manage power outages when you implement your hosted VoIP solutions?

What Type Of Hardware Do I Need?

When you use Hosted VoIP infrastructure, you will definitely phones. So, it is important that you have a clear idea of how you plan to connect with your staff. If you want to use soft phones with USB headsets, you will have this option. You will also have the option to use digital IP phones. If you have employees who are working from home, you should make sure they will have the necessary equipment as well.

Can I Use My Current Equipment?

Many businesses have quickly discovered that their VoIP solutions have been negatively impacted by their decision to use old equipment. In order for your VoIP solution to be effective, your routers will be a critical part to your infrastructure. If you want VoIP to be installed in your entire workplace, we would suggest that you stay away from the cheaper routers. You will discover that you can find great quality routers that are in your budget range. You will be able to find various sites and reviews that will give you insightful information on affordable and high-quality routers.

When it comes to VoIP, many people think that this solution is only for the larger business. However,this is not true. If you have a small business with only a few employees, you will find many benefits to using a hosted VoIP solution. You do not need to have hundreds or thousands of VoIP users in order to enjoy the benefits of VoIP. Even if you have a few users, you will still be able to find a VoIP solution at an affordable rate.

For more information on VoIP services, contact us today.