Every business – no matter how big or small – will eventually need an enterprise phone system to meet their needs. Whether you have dozens of employees or thousands of customers, consumer-grade services just don’t suffice. Business phone systems have many features that make them more suitable for organizations than individuals.
Unfortunately, traditional phone systems don’t let you select the most useful features for your business requirements. It’s an all or nothing deal. You either pay for every feature (more than half of which is useless for your particular business needs) or settle for using ad-hoc tools. What’s worse is that the features you do get are severely limited by the technology.
Crucial Office Phone System Features
It’s time to face facts – traditional PBX systems are out of date and offer very little to most business users. That’s one of the many reasons VoIP technology has become so popular so quickly. These phone systems offer so much more than transferring calls or putting customers on hold with nice music. So how can modern office phone system features contribute to your company?
Read on to find out 12 office phone system features that are available with VoIPstudio.
Reception console
The reception console is made for organizations that have a receptionist to handle a large volume of calls. The console may be a hardware unit but most frequently, it is software-based with support for many SIP phones. Most consoles are meant to be used with a headset to make it easier for receptionists to forward or route calls.
The reception console is designed to minimize the amount of time that the user spends on a call. They feature several tools that allow office receptionists to perform their job efficiently. While older reception consoles were expensive and thus only used by large companies, VoIPstudio offers this feature for all clients. No matter the size of your business, your employees and customers can benefit from the reception console.
Conference calling
Conference calling is not news to business users. However, what is new with conference calling in VoIPstudio is how quick and easy it is to use. Business users can schedule virtual meetings instead of in-person status updates. This feature alone can help your business save thousands of dollars each year, not to mention the time your employees can save on travel.
Conference calls can be a critical feature during a disaster, especially when employees need to work from home or remotely. Users can convert an audio call to video and vice-versa. You can also add participants or remove them as per your needs. Everything works out of the box without the need for new software or expensive cameras.
Voicemail
Voicemail is yet another old-school office phone system feature that gets an update in VoIPstudio. Visual voicemail allows users to get voicemail messages in text form right in their email inbox. Employees can respond quickly to customer queries without having to dial a number and listen to messages in a loud room.
When you combine visual voicemail with automatic transcription, you have a powerful feature for your users. This update brings voicemail into the 21st century alongside newer digital tools like email and instant messaging.
Call recording
Businesses record calls for a number of reasons. From quality assurance to training to new employees, recording certain or all calls is almost a necessity. In fact, many businesses operate in industries where call recording is mandated by legislation. The GDPR and MiFID II both have call recording stipulations such as what calls to record and how long the recordings should be stored. VoIPstudio enables call recording for your business in a straightforward manner.
IVR
Do you remember the last time you called a large company? You likely encountered a recorded message asking you to select the most appropriate option (press 1 for sales, 2 for support, etc). This feature is called Interactive Voice Response and not many small businesses could afford it in a traditional phone system.
VoIPstudio brings this professional feature to all business clients. Organizations can use this feature to create a good first impression on customers and to convey a sense of professionalism. Offer superior service for your customers even if you lack the resources of a large office.
Virtual numbers
What exactly are virtual numbers? With legacy landlines, phone numbers are connected to a physical address. Users cannot really take their phone numbers with them when they move. Virtual numbers, on the other hand, are not restricted geographically. Users can purchase and use numbers with an area code you like, regardless of your actual location.
VoIPstudio offers virtual numbers with area codes from different countries. Businesses can use these numbers in a variety of ways. Start market research or even operations in a new country even if you don’t have an office there yet. You can use local numbers to show customers you are not far away, even if your physical office is. Some businesses even use virtual numbers to run multiple ad campaigns and see which one offers better returns. This way you can clearly see which campaign is doing better in terms of generating new leads.
Ring groups
Ring groups are another interesting feature offered by VoIPstudio. Businesses can create ring groups based on departments, projects or even ad-hoc teams. Ring groups are a great way to distribute incoming calls amongst a specific group.
What can you do with this feature? You can make sure every agent in the office gets a fair chance at new leads. Or make sure that incoming support calls are distributed between all customer service agents.
VoIPstudio ring groups are very flexible. You can change settings like the order in which devices ring, the duration of the ring for each device, the number of devices in the group, and what to do with a call if there is no answer.
Contacts directory
VoIPstudio offers an integrated contacts directory that is automatically updated. It contains far more information than a traditional system. Business organizations can allow employees to take their numbers with them when they move to a new office. The contacts directory will stay updated throughout all moves, additions, and deletions.
ACD queues
Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) queues are similar to ring groups but offer a better experience for companies with a large call volume. It’s useful for distributing calls within a group and commonly used by sales and support reps. For instance, If all support agents are busy handling queries, the next caller will go into a hold queue. Any free agent can then pick up the call.
Supervisors can monitor calls in the queue and help agents if they’re having trouble with a particular problem. Whisper allows them to give tips to the agent without the caller’s knowledge. Barge enables managers to take over the call at any point, thus saving the customer from having to repeat their problem.
Hold music
We’ve all heard it and most people really dislike waiting on hold, especially if the music is not to their taste. VoIPstudio lets clients record custom musical clips or choose from available options. You can even create and use custom playlists tailored to your audience. For example, a business selling to teens may focus on pop music. Another whose audience is older people may prefer to use classical music pieces.
Time-based routing
Businesses have always wanted a way to route calls based on specific criteria. Time-based routing is one such advanced option. This feature allows customizing how your business handles calls based on the time of day. You can set different rules for each of your offices, depending on their time zone.
For instance, suppose a customer call comes in after business hours on Friday evening. Normally, the call might go to voicemail or the IVR may ask them to call back. Quite often, that means missing out on a crucial deal. With time-based routing, you can forward calls to your other office that is still working (as they’re in a different time zone) and close that deal!
Emergency Calling
Traditional phone systems have always offered a way for users to reach emergency services. Since the numbers have an address, dispatchers can send personnel to help even if the caller cannot give a location. VoIP phone systems struggled at the beginning to match this feature.
VoIPstudio, however, offers E911 access. It means users can attach an address to their account, so emergency access is still a call away. Protect your employees and get peace of mind that help is nearby, no matter where they are.
The best part of VoIpstudio’s offering is that we don’t lock any feature with extra fees. There is nothing to unlock or upgrade to. You can use any feature as and when you require it. There is no need to switch plans or pay extra. VoIPstudio is so much more than simple phone service. Sign up for a 30-day free trial today and start reaping the benefits!
