Cloud based phone systems are here to stay and there are many reasons that a hosted phone system may make sense for your business (and a few reasons that it may not).
Here are some of the top benefits that may be realized by deploying a cloud- based phone system.
Cloud-based phone systems require little to no special hardware.Because you don’t own the hardware, you are not responsible for all the costs of maintaining, updating and adding new features as they come along. You are effectively future proofing your technology and assuring your business is always updated and your employees have access to the latest and greatest features available.
Premise Based systems are very dependable, but they can be physically vulnerable to issues such as localized power failure, natural disaster, fire, theft or carrier outage can take an entire on-premise PBX out of commission. Most good cloud - based systems are housed in multiple secure data centers that will fail over in the event of an issue at the main facility. In addition, if your business were to lose local internet connectivity, you could still work remotely by connecting IP Phones and Smart Phones to the cloud system from another location.
In most businesses today, employees use personal devices to conduct company business, one of the biggest selling points of a cloud - based system is their mobile compatibility. You can seamlessly integrate employees’ mobile devices without requiring them to change their numbers or forgo personal use. Many have mobile apps that allow access to most or all of the systems features on the go.
Data security is another huge business risk. In this area, cloud phone systems are clearly superior. Cloud-based providers handle data security themselves, using state-of-the-art encryption to keep sensitive company data and communications out of the hands of hackers and snoopers. They are constantly updating to keep up with the latest vulnerabilities
Most Cloud-based phone systems are far easier to administer than a traditional system. In fact, most cloud providers will make changes to your system free of charge. For those companies that want to make changes themselves, the graphical interfaces included make this simple as well. The days of the technician rolling up in a truck, making simple changes, and handing you a costly bill, are becoming a thing of the past.
Since they integrate seamlessly with mobile networks, cloud-based phone systems offer instantaneous access to remote employees and independent contractors, whether they’re located in the next county or halfway around the world. This is a huge benefit for smaller companies with dispersed work forces, as it conveys to outsiders the impression of a large, cohesive in-house workforce – accounting just down the hall from sales, and so forth.
Without any system-specific hardware to install, cloud-based phone systems are highly portable. And, since they’re fully mobile-compatible, changeover is seamless – there’s no interruption in service or accessibility when they’re turned up in new locations, as users can continue to communicate on their mobile devices.
Internet based phone lines (Sip Trunks) are less expensive than traditional phone lines. Also, with SIP lines being non location specific, most long distance charges are avoided. With this savings, many small businesses can afford a new cloud- based system and brand new desk phones without any additional monthly expenditures.
With a cloud-based system, you can avoid the “vendor lock” that often occurs. If you don’t like your cloud system, you can easily migrate to another. Most cloud systems use universal type phones that can be used on another providers system. Changing providers can be as simple as changing other utility providers
