Professional organizations always have a wide variety of options to choose from when they’re investing in a business phone system, and it can sometimes be increasingly more difficult to find small business phone systems for organizations with less than 20 employees.
Investing in a new phone system can come with many different hurdles and considerations that business leaders need to keep in mind, and below are eight tips to help you maximize your small business phone system investments!
Phone System Plan Features
One of the first things that you should look into while investing in a new phone system is the features included within your potential new plan. Does your new phone system come with the features that your team absolutely needs? Are there any other additional features that your team could find useful?
Always be sure to double-check with your telecom provider about any additional fees that might come with specific features and tools, because some features might not be included with basic plans that you’re most interested in. You should also ask your telecom provider about update schedules, maintenance windows, and the general roadmap toward obtaining new features as they’re introduced.
Total Ownership Costs
Certain business phone systems are more feasible and affordable for small businesses than others, which is why business leaders need to pay very close attention to a phone system’s total cost of ownership (TCO).
Be sure that you understand what your first year of expenses will look like while using a new phone service, and also be sure to consider the equipment investments that might be required for these new systems. You should also factor in any upgrading costs that might be needed for your existing data network. Employee training and other smaller costs can also add up over long periods of time, which can significantly add onto your overall investment budget.
It’s also important to estimate your investment’s ROI, and hopefully you’ll be able to see how a new small business phone system will help you obtain positive returns.
Existing Infrastructure Cohesion
It’s also a good idea for business leaders to take a close look at how a new phone system might coincide with their company’s existing infrastructure. Does your company have older equipment that needs to be upgraded or replaced?
It’s possible that you could invest in a second Web connection that’s solely dedicated to your new VoIP technology, and it’s important to remember how these changes will take up your time and financial resources.
If your team doesn’t include in-house tech experts, you’ll likely need to outsource your telecom needs. The good news is that there are plenty of third-party telecom providers out there that provide comprehensive phone system services for small monthly payments.
Your Company’s Current & Future Needs
It’s a lot easier to verify whether or not a new phone system serves your company’s current needs, but it’s much more difficult to understand how a specific system will cater to your company’s future growth. Although you might technically have a small business today, you can never know just how much your company might grow in the next 5-10 years.
Your business phone system investments should be capable of accommodating your company scaling, and this is typically very simple when you invest in VoIP phone systems that can be scaled with just a few clicks!
Mobile Device Support
About 43% of Americans are working remotely these days, which means that your business phone system needs to accommodate these ongoing changes in workplace flexibility.
Mobile device support is now a significant factor for business leaders to keep in mind while they’re making telecom investments, because top-quality mobile device support will allow your employees to stay connected via their smartphones, laptops and tablets while working from home or on the go.
This essentially means that your new phone system will likely be connected to a third-party app that everyone logs into on a daily basis, and this type of app goes a long way to keep businesses teams connected with one another—no matter where everyone is physically located!
User Experience
One reason why VoIP phone systems have grown in popularity throughout recent years is because of their easy user experience. A lot of today’s small business phone systems don’t require any extensive training, which means your team can get the ball rolling from day one.
However, every phone system is unique. This means that you’ll need to evaluate different systems from each other in order to determine the type of user experience that you want for your team members. It’s also possible to test out new phone systems via 30-day trial periods if you need hands-on experience to better understand which type of phone system works best for your business.
Support For Other Business Capabilities
A lot of companies utilize their phone systems for so much more than communication purposes, and this can include security systems and other types of data storage. Even in 2024, some businesses still need faxing capabilities for one reason or another. If your business has these types of requirements, you’ll likely need to confirm that your new phone system will support these needs.
Digital faxing is now a major trend for a lot of businesses of all sizes, and VoIP phone systems can accommodate these types of services—without needing physical fax machines!
Vendor Support & Expertise
Another important factor to keep in mind while you’re investing in a small business phone system is your telecom vendor’s track record and overall level of expertise. You should verify that they have a good history of supporting small businesses similar to yours, and that they’ll help you comply with any regulations or requirements associated with your industry.
Customer support is another huge investment factor to keep in mind, and you can usually learn more about a telecom provider’s customer support by reading their online reviews. You’re going to need professional support when things potentially go wrong with your new phone system, which means that your vendor should be there for you when you need them!
Contact Data Talk To Learn More About Small Business Phone Systems!
Small business leaders have a lot of telecom options to choose from these days, which is why it’s so important to take your time and do your research while narrowing down your top phone system investment options.
One of the top-rated small business phone system providers in the United States is Data Talk, and their team can be contacted when you click on the link located at the beginning of this article!
