PBX and Small Business Professionalism
A Customer Center entry from March 27, 2007
by Stefania Viscusi - TMCnet Assistant Editor for Channels
Who says that just because you are a small business you can’t present yourself and operate just as “professionally” as the bigger guys? Sure, when it comes to small businesses, keeping costs low is essential. And yes, the infrastructure may not be there to house a giant solution. But that doesn’t mean professionalism must be sacrificed.
One of the most important elements of any business, large or small, is customers. With the majority of customers today reaching out to businesses via telephone, it becomes essential that a company’s phone system be ‘best in class.’
Phone systems for larger companies were traditionally more intricate and needed more fundamental options to handle communications. Today’s small businesses, however, are now finding it possible and convenient to obtain a feature-rich phone system that does more than just route callers to their destination.
In the past, it was difficult for smaller operations to have such a phone system because of the cost; today, however, the availability of IP-PBXs (private branch exchanges that bring together voice and data using IP technology) means businesses of any size can benefit from improved phone systems that meet their specific business needs.
PBXs (essentially, private phone networks) allow companies to share phone lines internally rather than subscribing to separate lines for each employee. PBXs also makes it easier for co-workers to call one another by using extensions. This makes it easier and faster to reach someone in the same building.
As VoIP is entering the businesses world at an increasing pace due to its cost savings, many companies are also migrating to IP-PBXs, which converges data and voice networks to offer a single line for all users within the office. This line can be utilized to access both the Internet and voice services.
A PBX solution from Switchvox makes it possible for small businesses to benefit from advanced phone capabilities with a solution that is affordable, and easy to set up, configure and maintain.
Aside from just being able to more effectively handle calls, Switchvox’s PBX also offers advanced features—like music on hold, voicemail to e-mail, digital receptionist, and one-touch voicemail—so small business and small office/home office (SOHO) owners can both look and play the part of a professional operation.
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Stefania Viscusi is an established writer and avid reader. To see more of her articles, please visit Stefania Viscusi’s columnist page.
— March 27, 2007
