We all get frustrated at some point or another by an automated voice that gets on the phone and tries to direct our call. More often than not, this occurs when calling a large organization with dozens of specialized customer service departments and the prompts rarely get us to the right place. Not to name any names, because I’m sure you can fill in the blanks!
You can still dial 911 when you use a VoIP service like hosted PBX (also known as virtual PBX or IP centrex) or SIP Trunks (also known as SIP Trunking or IP Trunking). However, there are a few considerations that are worth noting if you’re thinking about switching to a hosted telephony service for your office, especially if you’re routing calls to your home office, mobile device or laptop.
It’s All VoIP
The term VoIP refers to a few different services that all involve placing calls over the internet instead of the traditional copper wires of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). Which means, to install VoIP services, you need to be connected to the internet. The two main services are hosted PBX and SIP trunks, which can involve a variety of different features and functions depending on your service provider.
From telecommunications companies to executive suites and business centres, we often hear or read about how easy it is to maintain professionalism by running a virtual office. Many start-ups, home-based entrepreneurs, mobile salespeople and a multitude of other professional service organizations run their business out of a virtual office to reduce their office costs.
But what exactly is a virtual office?
You don’t have to spend a penny to get your office PC’s and laptops up and running. There’s some great software out there that is 100% open source – that is, it’s FREE! Sometimes it is nice to go with the tried and tested paid versions of software, but for those of us who are more budge-conscious, 2012 is a great time to try some of the open-source software that is readily available online. So, here is a list of productivity-enhancing and cost-saving tools that you should be using in your office.