Communication is a key ingredient for all successful business models. Once your business grows from small to medium, you’ll need to start investing in better communication systems to maintain optimal productivity and a smooth workflow. That’s where services such as Cloud PBX come in. Read on to learn more about this business tool and how relevant it can be in your industry.
To help define what Cloud PBX is, let’s break up the term:
What is the Cloud?
We’re not talking about condensed water molecules in the sky right now, we’re talking about the virtual or digital space where all kinds of data and software can be stored and accessed from any location via the internet. These virtual spaces are hosted on servers that are supported by numerous data centres around the world to allow for quick and user-friendly access.
What is PBX?
PBX stands for private branch exchange, a telephone network used by businesses for both external and internal calls. A PBX phone system offers more options than a residential or cell service, services such as transferring calls, call conferencing, extension dialing, routing inbound calls to specific destinations, call recording and storage after-hour call messages and routing, customer waiting queues and even playing those groovy on-hold tunes.
Traditional PBX vs Cloud PBX
Back in the day, when traditional PBX solutions were the only option, companies had to have the PBX on-site including, separate cabling. Maintenance, upgrades and changes had to be performed by skilled technicians on-site, so clients had to pay expensive call-out fees every time they needed assistance …the list of expenses goes on. Today, thanks to the Cloud, the financial strain has been lifted and there are affordable options for businesses to take their communication systems needs into the Cloud, meaning most maintenance and programming can be done remotely with no need for expensive on-site assistance! Cloud PBX also offers additional opportunities such as integrating other business software such as CRM or service software to create cross-platform integration and efficiency.
In one of our previous articles we listed the benefits of using Cloud PBX. Now, it’s time for some examples. Almost every business needs a PBX but we’ve highlighted just a few here so that you can see how some of our clients have benefited from moving to a Cloud PBX.
Wholesale
One of our clients is a distributor of a Fast Moving Consumer Goods product. He focuses on biodegradable items and with the current focus on the environment, he has experienced tremendous growth. When he started his business we provided him with a telephone number and two IP phones, each a Cloud PBX Extension. His business took off – growing quickly from two extensions to over 20. Had he started off with a traditional PBX, he would most certainly have outgrown the original PBX he had bought, which would have been limited to between 8 and 10 extensions, and he would have had to buy a second on-site PBX to replace the first! Having started with our Cloud PBX meant that he could simply add an extension each time he hired a new employee. The system was scalable and suitable to his needs and will continue to be suitable no matter how big his business gets.
Real Estate
The world of real estate can be a very chaotic one if not handled with care. Real Estate Agencies usually have many agents in their teams, each tending to a selection of sellers, buyers, investors, financing services, conveyors, all while also marketing their listings. In addition, Real Estate Agents are often out of the office showing properties to potential clients, doing valuations and hosting show-days. Our Real Estate customers are able to make use of a Smart-Phone application, connecting them with their office so that they can make business calls using their landline number as though they were in the office and also so that they can receive transferred business calls no matter where they are. Even the smallest Real Estate Agency can benefit by being able to receive business calls even when there is nobody in the office, thereby upholding a professional image and ensuring customers all always able to reach them.
Media
Content creation agencies have really boomed as internet and Cloud services are more accessible and affordable. Many of these agencies make use of outsourcing, where they take on big projects and employ a selection of freelancers to complete the work. Ensuring there is a proper and uniform workflow between all those freelancers can be tricky, and micro-managing may just upset your freelancer. Having a custom Cloud PBX solution at the ready, you can easily create accounts for all your outsourcing contacts and connect with them as needed. You can integrate solutions where you can put teams together to communicate about the project, store content, submit finals, and where you can pay them – all in one neatly managed system that saves you time and money. Be sure to read our article on the benefits of integration.
Education
One of our clients is an online adult education provider. During the COVID-19 lockdown they were forced to close their offices and have their staff work from home. If they’d been using an on-site PBX this would have been a disaster as they would essentially have been cut off from telephone communications, however, by using SIP-applications and assisting the client with interim connectivity for users who did not have internet at home, the client was able to continue answering calls from their students throughout the lockdown and transferring the calls to colleagues if need be – maintaining their communications with their students entirely, even though they were working from home. Having a Cloud PBX in place means that it does not matter where in South Africa you are geographically, as long as you have an internet connection, you can be a part of your Cloud PBX.
Want to know how cloud PBX will help your business?
Get in touch with our team of Solutions Architects here at ARC Technology. They will evaluate your business needs and objectives and offer viable, affordable, flexible and stable solutions that will ease incoming and outgoing business communication, as well as integrate services to improve your daily workflow so you can get more done while maintaining great customer care.
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