“Does VoIP PBX Make Sense for My Business?”

“Does VoIP PBX Make Sense for My Business?”

“Does VoIP PBX Make Sense for My Business?”

The current COVID-19 pandemic is shifting the way businesses work. Many companies have adopted remote working practices under social distancing. The transformation requires the corresponding adaption in tools and technology they operate with every day, bringing up unprecedented challenges for some organizations which have no experience in teleworking before.

When it comes to working from home, communications is the key to keep business as usual. However, those who rely on legacy phone systems and physical phone lines find it difficult to set up a remote working environment for their employees because their communications systems are inherently incapable of completing this task. With complimentary offers provided by some VoIP and UC service providers and vendors, many businesses have taken temporary measures to handle the situation.

While the pandemic prompted the transition, remote working might be here to stay after COVID-19. It requires serious consideration for traditional PBX users to plan a system upgrade to VoIP for the future. We understand that some of you might have been using legacy phone systems for quite a long time and are not sure whether a VoIP PBX makes sense for your businesses. We hope this blog post clears your doubts.

1. “What are the differences between VoIP PBX and legacy phone systems?”

With VoIP, voice data travels through internet connections instead of plugging in traditional phone lines. That’s why you need to make sure of the quality of your network before implementing a VoIP PBX system. Though ISDN and PSTN network has proven to be resilient, it has significant limitations in terms of functionality, flexibility, and scalability. Many businesses who used to believe their existing legacy phone systems worked fine, have found it difficult to support remote working recently. What’s more, with the PSTN and ISDN switch-off underway, the clock is ticking for more legacy phone system users to consider IP-based solutions to future-proof their business communications.

Infographic: VoIP vs. Analog Phone System: Differences and Considerations

2. “What additional benefits can VoIP bring to my business?”

In terms of functionality, VoIP PBX is way ahead of legacy phone systems. Regardless of the business size, VoIP PBX users enjoy enhanced communications features that would previously only be found in an enterprise-level traditional PBX. Some VoIP vendors include unified communications capabilities, such as chat, presence, and CRM integration, in their offering, making a wealth of communications channels into a single point of access. Besides, VoIP is an emergency-proof solution allowing you to ensure business continuity through personal mobile phone connections or alternate internet connections while it may take several hours and even days to fix the problem when a traditional phone service goes down.

3. “What equipment is required to use VoIP? What about my current investments?”

When it comes to VoIP, there is a minimal amount of hardware required to get started. Besides some IP PBXs deployed as office phone systems without any analog lines, you can also migrate to VoIP without compromising existing equipment investments. Even if you are not ready for a wholesale infrastructure change or have a limited budget on a complete replacement, it is a good option to take a phased transition where you upgrade business communications to IP-based technology and have the traditional PBX integrated into it via VoIP gateways and analog telephone adapters.

4. “Can I keep my existing phone number while using VoIP?”

A phone number is an identity for a business. One of the most common concerns many companies have when switching to VoIP is whether they can keep their existing landline number. Fortunately, most internet telephony service providers in the market have the capability to port numbers with only a few exceptions. Though different countries have their own processes and porting requirements, normally, to move your phone numbers, you may need to reach out to the VoIP service provider about your port request and let your current landline provider know your plan.

5. “I don’t run a big business. Is VoIP right for me?”

VoIP deployment makes good sense for small and medium-sized businesses. One of the primary reasons is cost reduction because VoIP services cost just a fraction of an analog system considering the minimum equipment, eliminated internal calling fees, and reduced cost for long-distance calls. Cloud PBX is the other viable option for SMEs which requires no on-site equipment and installation. The service can be activated and you have a cloud-based phone system up and running within a day.

6. “Does it take a lot of effort for my IT staff to manage a VoIP phone system?”

Comparing to the legacy system, VoIP PBX is a lot easier to install and use, even if you are not particularly tech-savvy. With VoIP, your IT administrator can manage the corporate phone system from a web-based interface. It only takes a few clicks to complete many configurations such as adding extension numbers, setting up ring strategies, monitor the status of extensions, trunks, concurrent calls, and conferences, etc. A cloud-based solution also makes it extremely easy to add new users as the business demands grow.

7. “How to make sure it is well received by my employees?”

The IP-based phone system is very user-friendly. One of the biggest advantages VoIP brings to your employees, especially those who work remotely or are constantly on the go, is that it allows them to stay connected anywhere anytime. Most VoIP providers offer softphones to transform your mobile phone and desktop into office extensions so that you make and receive business calls with any device you prefer. So, instead of working 9 to 5, your employees can embrace greater agility outside of traditional business hours and locations and achieve a better work-life balance.

While adopting VoIP to address remote working needs at the moment, it is also a good chance to evaluate VoIP phone systems in the real world to see if it meets your daily business communications needs and plan for the upgrade when back to the office.

We offer our Cloud PBX free for 14 days for you to experience the fully-featured cloud-based phone system with our Linkus Softphone.

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User Login

Instantaneously receive user login credentials via email once the extension has been deployed by the adminstrator.

Log in conveniently via any web browser for access to the user portal.

Integrations

Integrate various CRM software for better customer service and satisfaction.

Enable transcription of audio messages into text with integration of third-party transcription service.

Enable API for integration with various third-party integrations for advanced performance such as call center and hotel reception services.

System

Provision email SMTP and template settings for event notifications to be sent out.

Manage storage allocation and duration of various types of data being stored on the PBX.

Determine the types of event notifications to be sent out, and the parties receiving them.

IVR

Add various audio voice prompts to be played according to different call scenarios.

Add voice prompts on multiple levels for more effecient and precise inbound call routing.

Voicemail

Customize default voicemail settings for each user extension.

Add various voicemail messages for allocation to different call scenarios and users.

Provision specific rules to how voicemail messages are played over the PBX system for better caller experience.

Reports and CDR

All call log activities are stored, with the option of having audio conversations recorded by default or for specific extensions.

Use intuitive visual call reports, to check various call statistics over extensions, trunks, queues, ring groups, and more.

Call reports can be viewed and downloaded directly from the PBX, or scheduled to be sent via email to respective parties.

Security

Restrict a general group or specific IP addresses to prevent unauthorized access to your PBX.

Limit the number of otbound calls users are allowed to make within a time period to protect against toll fraud.

Restrict certain country codes for outbound calls either company-wide or on certain extensions.

User Login

Determine extension ranges for different functions.

Define use of different voice prompts depending on call scenarios or intended function.

Provision basic and advanced SIP settings to be used on the PBX.

Recordings

Record all calls made on specified trunks, including inbound and outbound calls.

Recordings

Record all calls made on specified extensions, conferences, or call queues.

Paging and Intercom

Create different types of paging and intercom broadcast groups for selected extensions.

Set a time schedule to automatically start your broadcast.

Maintenance

Check for and download firmware upgrades to ensure that your PBX is always up-to-date.

Perform back-ups to prevent data and settings from getting lost.

Perform troubleshooting on your own to debug.

Conference

Pre-set conference settings and dial-in passwords for security, and allow internal users to send conference invites to external parties.

Speed Dial

Create multiple speed dial numbers to respective external numbers frequently used for outgoing calls.

Speed dial is activated when the set prefix (default or customized) is dialed.

Ring Group

Create multiple ring groups and determine custom ring strategies and failover settings for each.

Call Queue

Create different call queues with specific ring strategies and failover settings.

Static agents permanently answer calls in queue, while dynamic agents can log in and out. Allocate different extensions to each group.

Determine what actions are to be allowed for Mangers or Agents to manage on the Queue Panel.

Call Control

Have calls received on specific SIP trunks routed to designated extensions or destinations within the PBX.

Set-up dial patterns so that outbound calls are routed to their intended destinations.

Determine how calls are routed and received at different times of a day.

Contacts

Store, retrieve, and share company contact details easily on your PBX.

Organize company contacts into dedicated phonebooks and determine accessibility rights to extension groups for each.

Bulk import a list of contacts instead of having to key details in individually.

Role and Client Permission

Pre-defined user roles within the PBX are conveniently available for allocation, or create your own set of permissions.

Restrict users from viewing specific extensions, departments, or extension groups with Extension Visibility.

Allow or resrict specific users from managing or viewing certain company contacts

Auto Provision

Pre-defined setting parameters specific to respective IP phone models are conveniently available for easy set-up.

IP Phones can be quickly provisioned to your Yeastar PBX with just the pre-defined template and device MAC address.

Trunks

Register multiple SIP trunks on a single PBX as needed.

Different types of trunks can be created, Caller ID can be customized.

Extensions

View, deploy, add, and remove user extensions within your PBX system.

Configure default call and user settings for individual extensions.

Customize allocation of user extensions to specific ring groups.

Portal Login Page

Receive your administrator log-in credentials and set-up guide via email.

Log-in on any web-browser to get started with PBX set-up.

Installation Wizard will guide you through basic configurations.

User Login

Access all company contacts made available to you by the administrator.

Create your own personal contacts list for easy reference and dialing.

Bulk import contact details for convenient data entry.

User Login

Access and manage user settings for softphone application and voicemail.

Manage call routing and presence status for your individual extension.

Retrieve or download your personal call logs and recordings.

User Login

Receive your log-in credentials and set-up guide via email, sent by your admin.

Log-in on any web-browser to get started with PBX set-up.

Configure contacts and personal settings from the web portal.

Auto Provision

Add, remove, or modify IP phone settings from your web interface.

Upgrade IP phone firmware conveniently from your PBX.

Upload various default setting parameters specific to respective IP phone models for greater convenience during set-up.

Contacts

Store, retrieve, and share company contact details easily on your PBX.

Have detailed contact information for your vendors and clients conveniently stored .

Bulk add a list of contacts instead of having to key details in individually.

PBX Monitor

Monitor the status extensions, whether they aren idle, in use, or unavailable.

Know whether your SIP Trunk running properly, or experiencing problems.

Monitor the number of call conferences currently running on your PBX, and their individual durations.

Maintenance

Check for and download firmware upgrades to ensure that your PBX is always up-to-date.

Perform back-ups to prevent data and settings from getting lost.

Perform troubleshooting on your own to debug.

Call Detailed Report

All call log activities are stored, with the option of having audio conversations recorded by default or for specific extensions.

Filter by date, time, or extension number to retrieve specific call logs or recordings

Playback call recordings directly from the PBX or download to store externally.

Event Center

Determine what events and logs are to be recorded and/or have notifications sent.

Specify particular notifications to be sent to respective authorized personnel.

User Permission

Set up vaious groups of users for allocation to certain sets of access rules.

Determine what features a certain group of extensions can or cannot access.

Determine if users can access, play-back, or download call logs and recordings from the pbx.

Security

Restrict a general group or specific IP addresses to prevent unauthorized access to your PBX.

Determine specific the range of SIP ports for connection between your PBX and endpoints.

Restrict country codes for outbound calls either company-wide or on certain extensions.

Voice Prompt

Upload and designate customised audio recordings at multiple levels of a call journey.

Upload recorded music to fill the silence that would be heard by callers on hold.

Upload customised voice prompts to create a professional call experience.

General

Customize general call preferences either company-wide or for individual extensions.

Set-up feature dial codes for convenient user navigation to specific call features.

Determine how voicemails are retrieved, and also upload custom voicemail recordings.

Call Features

Add multiple automated responses to be played at different phases of a call journey.

Designate specific extensions to ring concurrently based on an external caller's dial pattern.

Customize messages and waiting times to keep external callers engaged when put on hold.

Call Control

Have calls received on specific SIP trunks routed to designated extensions within the PBX.

Set-up dial patterns so that outbound calls are routed to their intended destinations.

Determine how calls are routed and received at different times of a day.

Trunks

Register multiple SIP trunks on a single PBX as needed.

Provision SIP trunk settings and dedicate them to particular extensions.

Bulk add DDIs on each SIP trunk, for allocation to an individual or groups of extensions.

Extensions

View, deploy, add, and remove user extensions within your PBX system.

Allocate and deploy specific extension numbers to respective users via email.

Set-up default ring and presence status settings for individual users.

Deal One View

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View cases created for a Deal in One View.

Deal One View

View cases created for a Deal in One View.

View cases created for a Deal in One View.

View cases created for a Deal in One View.

Deal One View

View cases created for a Deal in One View.

View cases created for a Deal in One View.

View cases created for a Deal in One View.