What is SIP Trunking? Part 4 – The benefits for larger Businesses

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Netcelerate

large-company

We have now explored SIP trunking in depth, and we are going to explore how the benefits of SIP trunking can be seen by a larger organization, as opposed to a small one.

In general, the benefits of SIP trunking will apply to the same degree to Small business and to Large Enterprises. Cost reduction (lower access costs, trunk pooling, lower Long Distance, etc.), flexibility (burstable trunks, response to dynamics of business needs, affordable market presence), feature content (all features offered by PRI for extra fee available in the base offering), simplification due to single infrastructure and management.

Small and large companies with multi office set up will be the real benefactors of SIP trunks as there is no charges for on-net calling, trunks can be shared between locations and transparent integration between locations, common dialling plan are affordable with SIP trunks. These are benefits that could never have been utilized with a traditional analog phone system.

Large businesses leverage SIP trunks unparalleled scalability when managing dynamic requirement for network capacity, they benefit from single network infrastructure (both LAN and WAN) and ease of integration with business processes due to internet based protocols, and centralized management.

Now, if there were any terms there that were confusing, please click here for more information on SIP trunking.

What is SIP Trunking? Part 3 – The Benefits for Small Business

Posted on April 1, 2013 by Netcelerate

Netcelerate Advantage

Any small business will be looking to reduce costs as much as possible while being able to reach the largest number of potential customers possible. SIP trunking can achieve both of these, increasing the amount of money you can use on the rest of your business.

Unlike PRIs offering a fixed number of 23 channels (or lines), SIP Trunking gives the business freedom to choose how many trunks they would like to use. As such, you no longer need to oversubscribe and pay for lines that will only be used during peak times!

Due to the high costs of Integrated Services Digital networks (ISDN) (especially in Canada), small and medium size businesses could not afford to deploy PRI technology into their voice networks. The only viable options for them was to use analog lines which offer quite limited functionality. SIP trunks, with lower access and usage costs than analog lines deliver unmatched functionality allowing SMB customers to deploy solutions only available to large corporation in the past.

By making the switch from your traditional network to a SIP-based system, you are able to achieve the following benefits as a small business:

Pooling your channels across multiple locations, avoiding the need to pay for services at each site.
Having multiple phone numbers go to one SIP trunk, saving money on phone lines and increasing your reach to customers.
Remove the need for toll-free numbers by having local numbers across Canada that will all reach your system as a local call.

There are many benefits of SIP trunking for any size of business. These are three prominent one, but to learn more, click here.

A Shift in Technology Part 3 – The Benefits of Going Hosted

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Netcelerate

In parts 1 and 2 we have gone over the history of business phone systems, and explained some of their main downfalls. Our next step, naturally, is to talk about the new alternative that is gaining traction and market share around the world, the Hosted PBX.

IP Phones

It’s no mystery why businesses in Canada and the US have taken an interest in Hosted PBX. The new solution takes away the physical PBX in your office. That expensive box that had to be maintained on a regular basis is now history. All of the technology, call termination, and everything else that reaches you to your customers is done in a Data Centre away from your office. No more maintenance or repairs, as it is all done seamlessly in the Cloud.

What this does is allow the business owner to focus on their business, and not on their phone system. This plug and play model gives business flexibility and eliminates the up-front cost of purchasing the PBX.

Traditionally calls that are made to your business would terminate through the PBX on-site, and be transferred to the intended party. With a Hosted System, the termination is made at the data centre of the service provider, and is converted into IP (the Internet language) that deals with the call from there. Having the termination occur in the cloud means the technology needed on-site is reduced and the business is able to utilize features they may never have been able to afford in the past.

Voicemail

A business with a PBX would need to purchase a separate module to be able to give callers the opportunity to leave voicemail. With a Hosted System, there are dozens of features that are included with the service, giving every business the opportunity to use advanced features.

Overall, this shift in technology is great for businesses. No longer are you paying for anything that you don’t need, and no longer are you missing out on features that would benefit your business.

For more information on Hosted PBX systems, please click here.

A Shift in Technology Part 2 – The Problems with PBX

Posted on February 7, 2013 by Netcelerate

old_big_phone_system Have you ever had one of those friends who can solve any tech issues with a few simple clicks, or who made something seem simple when he installed it but then you couldn’t change anything the next day? Well, this is the problem with a PBX system in an average business. There is a range of functionality that can be confusing to implement, and can only be managed by a professional. Combine that with hardware obsolescence and support for the systems and you might find yourself lost in the world of business communications.

A PBX is expensive to begin with, and needs to be regularly maintained, upgraded, and often completely repaired when something fails. This will either require an expensive technician or a knowledgeable IT manager. Either way, the costs can be daunting.

When you launched your business and created the product or service you thrive on, business communications probably was not the main focus of your growth strategies. As a business owner, you should be looking for a system that is cloud based, avoiding the need to maintain, upgrade, and repair it. This will bring us to part 3 shortly, with the emergence of Hosted PBX.

Understanding Hosted PBX

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Netcelerate

Outside of the IT world, terms like Hosted PBX are still a mystery to many small business owners. More easily understood are applications like Skype, and even the term VoIP. To understand how VoIP plays a role in business telephone systems, we’ll be exploring the basics of a Hosted PBX system, beginning with the meaning of a PBX.

What is a PBX?

PBX stands for Private Branch Exchange which is a piece of hardware (telephone box) that makes connections among the internal telephones of a business and connects them to the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) or public telephone network. This is done via trunk lines, otherwise known as phone lines. A PBX can incorporate multiple telephones, fax machines, modems and more, and the term extension is used to refer to any end point on the branch. Extensions are also commonly referred to as the 3 or 4 digit number associated with an individual telephone within the business phone system. For example, your telephone number might be 613-355-1234 extension 123. Depending on the configuration of your PBX, you can transfer phone calls between extensions and reach extensions individually through the Auto Attendant: the automated greeting played to callers when they first call in to your business.

The Hosted in Hosted PBX

A hosted PBX >> provides all of the same functions (and many more) as a PBX however the system is delivered as a service. This means you can eliminate the need to buy and install a physical PBX (phone box) since the hosted PBX is provided and managed by your service provider. Instead of buying a PBX, installing and configuring it, with a hosted PBX system you are only required to purchase telephones and have an internet connection. Not only will your business save money by eliminating the need to buy a PBX, but it’s estimated that yearly updates and repairs can cost between 10-20% per year of the original purchase price of the traditional PBX. With a hosted PBX system, updates are managed by the service provider without additional cost to the customer. This is only one of the ways in which the longevity of a hosted PBX system can benefit your business.

Longevity and Scalability

Any type of investment in telecommunications or IT can impact how you operate your business and can impact your business for years to come. A major benefit to a hosted PBX telephone system is its ability to grow with your business; meaning telephones and phone lines can quickly and cost effectively be added or removed from your system whenever you need them. To read more about the benefits of hosted PBX, read Why Companies are Switching to Hosted PBX >>