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

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.

Series: Specialty Configurations for your Hosted PBX

Netcelerate PhonesPart One: Real Estate
In this series, we’ll be exploring how you can make the most of your new business phone system with our specialty configurations that have been tested and proven by our customers in their respective industries.
In the first post of this series, we’ll be discussing the Hosted PBX phone system currently in use by Century 21 in Ottawa, Canada and how this strategy can be duplicated for your real estate business to maximize the efficiency of your phone system.

Key Communication Issues
Let’s start by examining the key communication issues faced by the real estate industry:
1. Multiple locations: multiple offices within one city or larger geographic area
2. Agents that work remotely: realtors who work from home and are constantly traveling to meet with homeowners and buyers
3. A missed call could be a missed sale: many people shy away from leaving voicemail messages. In a competitive industry, a potential seller/buyer may call another agent or another brokerage if their call goes unanswered during business hours
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Virtual Numbers: Expand your Market and Increase your Reach

The best way to explain virtual phone numbers is to outline an example of how they are used. Let’s say you’re a self-employed consultant working out of Toronto: it’s likely that most of your business is local, but maybe you have a great website that attracts clients from all over Canada and the U.S. Perhaps you’ve reached your maximum potential in acquiring local clients the traditional way and you’d like to expand your geographic reach.

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What’s the Difference Between Hosted PBX and SIP Trunks?

IP Telephone for a Hosted PBXIt’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.

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