It is inevitable for small businesses
to have to compete with bigger ones on the same playing field while earning
revenue. VoIP phone systems help these startups by allowing them to do so
without having to spend minute fortunes on their company phones because they
have so many features – all at a price that most small businesses can afford.
Here are some of the most popular features of a Voice over Internet Protocol phone
system and why any startup should consider them.
Automated
Directory Service (ADS)
This feature has been present in our
smartphones in recent years, often called as voice dialing. ADS functions by
allowing callers to say the name of the person they wish to speak to or the
extension number they are trying to reach and be connected to that line. As
revolutionary as this feature may be, users have to ensure that their system
manages to work effectively with various accents, voice pitches, and variations
in pronunciation. This can be done by testing the feature with employees who
have marked accents and differences in pronunciation, minimizing the risk of
annoying or infuriating callers in the future.
Call
conferencing
Regular phone service providers offer a
feature called Three-Way Calling. This allows up to three people to be on the
line during one call. However, with globalization and the acceleration of
business operations, people sometimes need to communicate with more than two
people at a time, some of them being in a different country. The ability to
communicate globally is crucial to establishing that a small is competitive and
this is one feature that VoIP system provides at no extra cost.
Employee
monitoring
This feature is in no way as severe as it
sounds. In essence, it shows employees all through the company and who among
them is available. Also, it presents the best way to contact the desired
employee, whether it is via e-mail or mobile phone, and for
inter-organizational communication, instant messenger. This is a great tool for
time management.
Automated
operator
For small companies that cannot afford to hire
a receptionist to answer calls during business hours, they no longer need to
sacrifice other employees and their time. This feature takes calls and lets the
caller hear a pre-recorded greeting and assists them on how to reach the person
they want to speak to.
Call forwarding
At present, this is probably the most popular
feature of VoIP phone systems. A feature once limited cellular phones, it is
now available for a company phone. This feature forwards calls from the office
straight to the recipient’s mobile, laptop, and in some instances, their
residential phone. This provides employees who are constantly mobile with a
chance to accommodate calls regardless of location.
These are only a few features and there are
bound to be much more available. However, those features must not let the user
forget the most important thing and that is call quality. Make sure the service
provider puts quality in the forefront and then feel free to choose the
features needed for the VoIP system.