Reliability of these services is the lifeblood of any organization, service providers understand this and have made great strides in creating cost effective services that have ultra high levels of quality of service and up time. That is not to say that all services or companies are created equal, make sure you understand clearly any service level agreement (SLA) you sign. Many companies in this field are great on the sales side, but once you are a client under an SLA it’s like a game of where’s Waldo. However, there are many reputable companies out there that provide quality customer service throughout the SLA.

Do not be overly enamored with price, because that may ultimately be the best part of the service. Quality, customer service or even the livelihood of your service company may be limited. Learn your needs, evaluate how important these services are to your organization and then make an educated decision.

Try and think of the decision in the context of a business decision that will affect your clients should a problem occur, which in turn may drive them directly into your competitions doors. Consider the value that may have versus the cost savings.

All small businesses need reliability and quality, a little preparation and education will provide you with the knowledge to make the correct choice. When looking beyond the basic needs of your organization (listed in the first paragraph) consider whether they actually are needed and provide value. Bundling by service companies may seem like a great deal, but if you do not require the services it is actually money flushed.

In addition you can have a presence virtually from any location called what else than a virtual business presence. So you can have employees scattered throughout the country, some in remote offices or telecommuters all sounding like they are under one roof for both clients and employees alike. This helps add flexibility to employees looking to communicate, transfer calls, etc. all from unique locations. An additional benefit is the reduction in cost to set up physical systems in each location. The flexibility you experience for growth or downsizing of your business based on your unique needs helps keep you agile. This virtual system really allows you to keep you focus on client needs, as well as your business needs and not the technical aspect.

Features of a hosted PBX phone system can be functional and usable in a very short time. The ease of set up and understanding for the user is greatly reduced over time normally spent on learning of traditional phone systems. There is also no need to house expensive equipment locally, since all equipment and maintenance happens on the service provide site. Because the service is hosted, it’s shared by many users which make the business expenses reduced because you are only paying for a small portion. Likewise, the reliability of the hosted PBX phone system is very good, usually your PBX host provider will offer redundant (mirrored) services at different locations, so if one went down the other would stay up. This provides you with a level of comfort knowing your system should experience 99.99999% up time.

Making the choice to go with a host PBX phone system grants you flexibly, both economically and in use and provides peace of mind. As a business you have many options available to choose from, a simple Internet search will yield countless choices. As always, do a little research and know your needs. This will give you greater leverage in speaking with the host company.

You have a few different options when choosing a virtual auto attendant, you can go with the PBX system which can efficiently handle any task like a real person, such as dial by name and extension, prove a company directory for individual guidance and much more. You can easily create custom voice prompts unique to your business needs and automatically set it up for non-business hours too. You can use software functionality to manage it on an individual user basis, so they can have it ring to their cell phone, deliver voice messages as emails, screen calls, do not disturb, fax services and a host of other functions.

As an alternative, hosted PBX phone systems can be relatively inexpensive and can be set up quickly. Some are as little as $10 a month for a few users and offer good functionality with options to upgrade should you find the need to add more.

Some of the features available to you at a very low cost to enter point are:

• Day and Night Greetings and Menus
• Dial-by-Name Directory
• Unlimited Extensions
• Follow-Me
• Custom On-Hold Messages
• Call Routing
• Automatic Call Distribution
• Call Screening
• Live Call Transfer
• Voice Mail
• Zero-out to Operator or Attendant
• Message waiting notification by email, phone or pager
• Sends your messages to your e-mail
• Receives your Faxes
• Delivers faxes to your e-mail
• Announcement-Only options
• Question and Answer message taking format
• Send Talking E-mails
• Tickler Reminder Service

So consider a few things, do you have more value in a real person taking on these tasks? It may be part of your business and something longstanding customers enjoy. You may find that automation has a place, if so consider a low cost hosted PBX solution.

For small companies, a few people you can consider services like Vonage, which as good quality voice as well as functionality. Another option, such as Skype can be even less expensive, however the quality of voice may be too low for even the most patient and understanding user. Remember that whichever direction you go you will be using the phone every day, so feel comfortable with the quality you will receive. For more dynamic organizations companies such as Cisco, Avaya and others offer a full scale implementation for your enterprise needs.

The great thing about VoIP is it can be used in almost any situation, the technology isn’t hard to understand and on small levels the implementation can be done by most any person. Soft phone technology allows you to access your phone over the Internet or where ever you are. So you could be sitting in your office or in a bubble bath at a five star hotel and no one would know the difference (assuming video technology isn’t enabled). On a large scale enterprise level it’s no difference, the ability to take and go with your phone makes the phone much more usable than ever before.

The federal government and military were some of the early adopters with VoIP technology; they experienced difficulties in quality of service and uptime. The potential value and functionality outweighed the technical impact, although few ventured into full implementation. Today the technology is fully baked and ready for business of all size. However, quality of service on the very low end is still a major concern.

Making the decision to choose VoIP will be a rewarding choice, you will find the quality great and the features outstanding.

The difference between VoIP systems and traditional phone systems is that VoIP travels over IP networks (the same as your computer network systems) and can access common telephony features such as teleconferencing, hold, transfer and the like. VoIP is a legitimate system that can be considered by large enterprise firms down to sole proprietors. Depending on the size of the organization the infrastructure to support VoIP can be extensive (in the case of large enterprises) or as basic as a handset, computer and the Internet (for sole proprietors).

For small companies, a few people you can consider services like Vonage, which as good quality voice as well as functionality. Another option, such as Skype can be even less expensive, however the quality of voice may be too low for even the most patient and understanding user. Remember that whichever direction you go you will be using the phone every day, so feel comfortable with the quality you will receive. For more dynamic organizations companies such as Cisco, Avaya and others offer a full scale implementation for your enterprise needs.

The great thing about VoIP is it can be used in almost any situation, the technology isn’t hard to understand and on small levels the implementation can be done by most any person. Soft phone technology allows you to access your phone over the Internet or where ever you are. So you could be sitting in your office or in a bubble bath at a five star hotel and no one would know the difference (assuming video technology isn’t enabled). On a large scale enterprise level it’s no difference, the ability to take and go with your phone makes the phone much more usable than ever before.

The federal government and military were some of the early adopters with VoIP technology; they experienced difficulties in quality of service and uptime. The potential value and functionality outweighed the technical impact, although few ventured into full implementation. Today the technology is fully baked and ready for business of all size. However, quality of service on the very low end is still a major concern.

Making the decision to choose VoIP will be a rewarding choice, you will find the quality great and the features outstanding.

First, some things are going to be constants no matter whether you choose a tradition PBX system or a new VoIP system. You need to consider whether your company is in growth mode or if employee size will stay pretty steady.  Some things like hold, transfer and conference call functionality are a given.  Voice mail, auto-attendant and hold are all givens too.  However, when you start to discuss multi language, ring groups, mode scheduling and many others a small business owner may not be able to assess whether it’s needed or not.  Be careful when choosing, many companies will do groupings and up charge you without your knowledge for services you will never use.

Makes sure you clearly understand the phone installation process and the expenses surrounding it, many times this alone can be an unknown and unpleasant experience.  It’s best to make sure your telephone provider clearly states the expected costs.

The main benefit of a VoIP system is that it charges differently for calling out of state and country.  The first thing small business owners see is the significant cost savings because the rates are just so much lower.  In a head to head comparison VoIP will come out ahead every time.   When you look at this it becomes clear quickly that your profits are being eaten up through a PBX system.

VoIP systems tend to have less installation needs, thus a reduction in installation cost and another financial win for you.  Since VoIP services connect through an Ethernet and you already have a connection that installation cost mostly goes away.   There is the possibility that with increased usage from the VoIP system you will have greater bandwidth needs, however that cost will still be less than a PBX phone system.

When considering a phone system look at what you need in the way of extensions and other applications it may be more difficult to get it through a VoIP system.  In this case you may want to consider sticking to a traditional PBX system.

The best thing to do is understand your needs, ask your employees which functionality they really need and learn from a reputable company that can help you weigh the pros and cons for your business.