Attention Small Businesses, You Can No Longer Deny it: VoIP Phone Systems Just Make Sense

Among the many enterprises out there are millions more small businesses all working to compete in today’s ravenous economy. Sure, larger companies have some significant advantages when compared to their smaller brethren – such as a more expendable budget and room for market flexibility – but small businesses can quickly gain steam simply by investing in the right technology. One such move that will yield plenty of benefits is making the switch to a VoIP phone system.

Small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have unique needs, and therefore, face unique challenges. Having said that, let’s take a look at how switching to a VoIP phone system can help meet and exceed these commonly-faced issues of the SMB.

The No-Brainer: Cost-Savings

Do we really even need to go into detail with this very self-explanatory point? If you are a small business, your very first call to order should be nurturing your budget and finding ways to cut costs. Conversely, no small business is in the position to lose money (nor are their larger competitors; however, the results may not be so drastic). Telonium, a hosted phone system provider for SMBs, only further cements this point in a blog last week.

 If there’s any way to save money, small businesses should take advantage. One cost-cutting measure is changing your phone service to VoIP. Simple installation and tons of features for one low price is much better than paying a higher cost for a phone line. Here are some more reasons to make the switch…

The blog continues:

Temporary prices such as installation will save the company more money in the long run. Paying a monthly charge for one or two features on a standard small business phone will eat away at the budget.  Long distance calls, international calls and other phone features small businesses use costs extra.  VoIP is about getting more features and making calls at a lower price. 

Get it? Got it? Good.

Ditch the Traditional Hardware

Moving outside of the financial side of things, VoIP business phone systems mean no traditional phone hardware. Various reports boast about this very advantageous plus, which many consider a “lesser-known” reason why VoIP can be so useful for small-and/or medium-sized businesses.

Mashable reports:

Not only are phone switches and their maintenance expensive, but they are also slow and difficult to fix. Your system could be down for a significant amount of time before a technician arrives to diagnose and fix the problem – all the while losing productivity … With VoIP, the system is the phone switch. The provider’s network transmits voice data over the Internet (like email and web data), and replaces the switch entirely.

The report goes on to explain that this is important because it allows for more room and open space, as well as provides you with a host of features that are otherwise difficult to access using a traditional system (i.e. making calls from computer/laptop, forwarding calls to your mobile phone).

Telonium adds to this sentiment, explaining that when working with traditional phone hardware, it could take technicians hours or even days to resolve problems, and in the meantime, your business is losing potential customers and sales. “VoIP transmits phone signals over the internet replacing cords and the phone switch. More space in your office and no downtime mean better productivity,” the company reasons.

VoIP is User-Friendly

The last point flips the switch and allows us to see it from an internal perspective – from that of the employee.

Telonium explains that not only can small businesses handle VoIP more easily and smoothly, as it “blends right into computer and mobile programs the company already uses therefore making it easier to manage.” Additionally, “businesses can train their employees to use and troubleshoot the VoIP account while training management and a few employees how work the administrator features.”

Mashable similarly explains how “VoIP technology is integrated into systems that you and your employees are already using, like the web and mobile devices. Management portals that are customizable to your business provide a simplified interface to administer your communication needs.”

As mentioned in the beginning of this article, investing in the right technology will yield all of the results needed to achieve your desired outcome in the long-run. The key is taking it one step at a time – or as my mother always said, “You eat an elephant one bite at a time.”

And when that first bite is delicious and saves your business money, what’s there to dispute?

To check out some leading business phone systems specifically developed for the SMB, click here.