Why hosted Phone systems are better
PBX v Hosted telephony
If you are still relying on a traditional PBX in your organisation, it could be time to consider moving to a hosted solution to realise all the benefits that cloud-based telephony has to offer.
Hosted telephony is a telephone system that resides in the cloud rather than in your office. Users access the system through a standard IP handset or a softphone – a screen-based virtual phone with headset. Calls are made and received over a broadband connection to the Gamma network. From there they are routed to PSTN fixed and mobile devices.
Hosted telephony means no costly PBX maintenance or upgrades. We are responsible for the hardware and software, including system upgrades.
As well as giving your organisation access to low-cost and free IP calling, a hosted system puts a huge range of smart call management features at your fingertips. Mobiles and other devices can also be integrated.
Perhaps most important is the degree of control a hosted system gives you. Your organisation’s entire communications, across multiple sites and countries, can be managed easily, right down to the individual user level, through a simple interface.
There is no up-front spend on hardware, software or maintenance and it’s great for businesses with multiple sites and remote/mobile workers.
Technology has always been an enabler for small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Advances such as the personal computer, mobile card readers, and e-commerce have created new possibilities for business. However, in many ways, the business phone system is still a remnant from the past.
There have been advances in business telephony, but the business model for the office telephone system has remained largely unchanged for decades.
Renting a centralized phone system often creates more problems than it solves. Hosted business phone systems promise to free businesses from the hard-wired bonds of the office private branch exchange (PBX), but even hosted business phone systems can be expensive, and they have limitations.
The evolution of hosted PBX
The PBX telephone system has been with us for decades. It started out as a replacement for the old manual switchboard system and has evolved over time, adding features such as voicemail, call waiting, teleconferencing, caller ID, and other features we have come to take for granted.
In the late 1990s, PBX phone systems started to take advantage of Internet technology, ultimately evolving into Voice over IP (VoIP). VoIP offers the added advantage of sending digital signals over the company’s computer network. With VoIP, the telephone system became part of the network infrastructure. There was no additional wiring, and everything could be serviced by the IT department. Now the business phone system could support other IP-driven capabilities such as video conferencing, chat, and file-sharing.
Once the business phone system migrated to IP, there was no longer any reason to maintain the telephone system in-house. Rather than purchasing and maintaining computerized switchboards, companies could use virtual hosting, renting telephone services from cloud-based telephone providers just as you would access any other cloud-based service. Adopting hosted business phone systems freed organizations from having to rent costly and complex telephone hardware and still provided access to features such as voicemail, faxing, conference calling, and call logs.
Call us today @ 240-329-9424 or visit https://elitecardprocessing.com/phone-systems/