Businesses in Wabash, IN and the rest of the country got a wakeup call earlier this year when the COVID-19 pandemic caused nationwide lockdowns. Many companies had to scramble to enable employees to work remotely.

This unexpected transition included figuring out how to keep their business phone lines answered. Companies using cloud VoIP systems had minimal disruption, since these lines can be answered from any internet-connected device. But companies with landline phone systems had a much harder time.

Technology solutions have become a vital part of every type of business. Imagine what would’ve happened during a multi-month shutdown if there were no cloud solutions to rely on and keep everyone connected.

What the pandemic has revealed is that for many companies, it’s time to transition to a cloud-hosted phone system to be more agile and keep their business running during crisis events like COVID-19 and other disasters.

How VoIP Can Make Your Business Resilient & Save You Money

During the last decade, companies have been adopting cloud business solutions and seeing the benefits in both productivity improvements and cost savings.

Cloud tools are also a vital part of business continuity, ensuring that no matter what happens to your physical location (or everyone’s ability to work there), your company can still function.

In 2020, its expected that 83% of all company business processes will be performed using cloud technology.

If you’re still attached to that landline phone system, read on for some compelling reasons that now is the time to upgrade to VoIP.

Significant Cost Savings

There are a number of areas where companies save money when using a cloud-hosted phone system. These include:

• Ability to choose rate plans that best suit your business needs
• Lower prices on dedicated phone numbers vs landline service
• Lower pricing on long distance and international calls

Capability to Answer Phones Anywhere

A cloud-hosted phone system gives your company the flexibility and agility it needs. Your phone lines and all phone system capabilities (hold, transfer, etc.) can be accessed from anywhere.

This means that in the case of a natural disaster, power outage, or another pandemic, you don’t have to miss important business calls and your employees already have a system built in to allow them to make work-related calls from home.

Convenience for Better Call Handling

When employees are tied to a landline-based phone system, that means if they need to be reached when away from the office, they have to give out their cell as an alternate contact to vendors or customers.

When you use a VoIP phone system, the desk number assigned to each employee can be answered on any device, so no secondary contact number is needed.

Cloud-hosted phone systems can be answered via:

• Computer
• Mobile Device
• VoIP desk phone

Enterprise-Class Features

Small businesses in Wabash are often pleasantly surprised with all the features they get with VoIP that would cost them a fortune if added to a landline PBX system.

VoIP also provides special features that only cloud-based phones can offer, like voicemail to email.

Here are a few of the many phone system features typically offered with VoIP:

• 3-way calling
• Call hold and transfer
• Auto attendant
• Company directory
• Custom hold music
• Multi-department greetings and voicemails
• Automatic voicemail transcription
• Simultaneous ring
• Ring groups
• Automated open/closed greetings

Scalable

When adding a new landline phone line to your office, you have to schedule installation, pay setup costs, and wait until the line can be installed.

When you need a new VoIP enabled phone line, you can simply log into the interface, choose the number, and get your new line in minutes.

VoIP also allows you to easily scale up or down as you need to so you’re only paying for the lines you need.

Excellent Quality

The quality of VoIP has come a long way over the last twenty years. Today, large companies like Apple and U-Haul use cloud-based phone systems. They have crystal clear quality powered by advances in technology.

Many providers also offer 99% uptime guarantees, using redundancies in their datacenters to keep your lines working.

Keep Your Numbers

Some companies avoid switching to VoIP because they don’t want to change phone numbers that they’ve had for years.

Another advancement in phone technology has been the ability to port landline numbers to VoIP systems. You won’t have to worry about having to change your business phone numbers when switching, they’ll just be transferred to the new cloud-based service.

Improve Your Business Resiliency and Prepare for Anything

Skyline Business Technology can help your company be prepared for anything through smart and strategic use of cloud technologies, like VoIP.

Contact us today to schedule a consultation. Call 260-225-3133 or reach us online.