Perhaps you've been hearing the entire clamor about hosted phone services that operate over the internet. Many small business owners have turned to virtual phones to manage their communications needs. If you aren't sure if a hosted small business phone service is right for your business, here are some questions to help you consider.
Are You Outgrowing Your Phone system?
Customers who can't get in touch with a company when they need to are very likely to take their business elsewhere. If your phone service is overrun by too many calls, you may be hearing about it from some of your customers, but there are probably more of them who simply gave up and didn't look back if they couldn't get a hold of you. Additionally, as a business grows, sometimes it resorts to patchwork style fixes to keep an outmoded system running, which results in an unwieldy mess that is difficult to run, and nearly impossible to explain to new employees.
Do You Need Something User-Friendly?
Implementing a new phone system can be difficult. If you have the training and the patience, it can be very cheap to create a system tailor made for your company. However, not everyone has the time or abilities that are required. If you have a hard time understanding the technical stuff, a hosted small business phone service takes the responsibility for maintenance and programming and gives it to a dedicated team of professionals. It's the host's job to make sure the system is easy for everyone to use. There's no need to pay for a separate IT expert because there is nothing technical for you to handle on your end.
Do You Work Outside the Office?
Virtual phones are especially useful to anyone who works outside of the office, as most providers allow you to connect any number of different phones to the service. They do not constrain you to phones physically located in the office space, but can be adapted for use with cellular phones, or the home land line, or anywhere else clients or employees need to reach you. This allows customers to only need one number to call whoever they need, rather than making a series of calls to different numbers, or dealing with being forwarded through a series of extensions.
Is Your Business Growing?
Traditional phone company contracts can be very restrictive, locking you in to service packages for months or years, and upgrading can be very difficult. Sometimes, even the hardware of the phones themselves need to be tinkered with or replaced. Hosted small business phone service is much more flexible and easier to upgrade than traditional phones. If it's probable that a business is going to need different service in six months, this may be a good choice. Virtual services also tend to offer more "pick and choose" style options, tailoring service to the needs of the business.
In the end, only you can decide if you small business requires small business phone service, or if a hosted service is right for your needs. If you answered yes to even one of the above questions, a virtual telephone service may be right for you.
Are You Outgrowing Your Phone system?
Customers who can't get in touch with a company when they need to are very likely to take their business elsewhere. If your phone service is overrun by too many calls, you may be hearing about it from some of your customers, but there are probably more of them who simply gave up and didn't look back if they couldn't get a hold of you. Additionally, as a business grows, sometimes it resorts to patchwork style fixes to keep an outmoded system running, which results in an unwieldy mess that is difficult to run, and nearly impossible to explain to new employees.
Do You Need Something User-Friendly?
Implementing a new phone system can be difficult. If you have the training and the patience, it can be very cheap to create a system tailor made for your company. However, not everyone has the time or abilities that are required. If you have a hard time understanding the technical stuff, a hosted small business phone service takes the responsibility for maintenance and programming and gives it to a dedicated team of professionals. It's the host's job to make sure the system is easy for everyone to use. There's no need to pay for a separate IT expert because there is nothing technical for you to handle on your end.Do You Work Outside the Office?
Virtual phones are especially useful to anyone who works outside of the office, as most providers allow you to connect any number of different phones to the service. They do not constrain you to phones physically located in the office space, but can be adapted for use with cellular phones, or the home land line, or anywhere else clients or employees need to reach you. This allows customers to only need one number to call whoever they need, rather than making a series of calls to different numbers, or dealing with being forwarded through a series of extensions.
Is Your Business Growing?
Traditional phone company contracts can be very restrictive, locking you in to service packages for months or years, and upgrading can be very difficult. Sometimes, even the hardware of the phones themselves need to be tinkered with or replaced. Hosted small business phone service is much more flexible and easier to upgrade than traditional phones. If it's probable that a business is going to need different service in six months, this may be a good choice. Virtual services also tend to offer more "pick and choose" style options, tailoring service to the needs of the business.
In the end, only you can decide if you small business requires small business phone service, or if a hosted service is right for your needs. If you answered yes to even one of the above questions, a virtual telephone service may be right for you.
