When was the last time you upgraded your phone system? 7 years ago? 10 years ago? Or was it so long ago you’re not quite sure? Your aging phone system may be costing more than you think. Not only do you have higher resource costs, higher maintenance costs, infrastructure costs – you also have outdated features, limited mobility capabilities, and fragmented applications and tools. The total costs of not having a unified communications solution to support your business and your customers is likely dragging your organization down.
Let’s start with having a leading phone solution to give your customers the best possible experience
The right cloud phone solution isn’t just ANY cloud phone, it’s one that gives your customers:
A single, simplified way to manage their phones, contacts, instant messaging, conferencing, scheduling and video. Collaboration as easy as making a phone call. Your customers will also have the ability to check for presence, search for experts, send a quick instant message, turn it into a call, add participants, share their desktop, and get a problem solved pronto.
A secure and reliable phone solution. Making sure a hacker doesn’t tap calls on a Wi-Fi hot spot, and a plethora of any other security concerns go out the window because of ShoreTel’s Secure-Real-time Transfer Protocol SRTP. Reliability with the highest call quality, phones that are always up and running, reliable service, and an optimally balanced network.
Next, let’s talk about your phone system costs
- Maintenance
Once your warranty expires, your options are limited to a maintenance contract or paying for time and materials. When the manufacturer stops providing replacement parts, you’re stuck sourcing used parts on the internet. And, when you find the right part, you’re left wondering what condition it’s in and how long it might last – what a hassle…shopping eBay for parts.
- Moving, adding, or changing lines
Scaling up and scaling down is part of doing business, and moving is also part of business. You need a provider that is not going to charge you additional fees for each configuration change. Costs of redundant equipment and trunks to ensure your phone system is always on can be significant. With ShoreTel Connect CLOUD you don’t have additional costs. It’s just always on. And, with Connect CLOUD, your phone can automatically route to a mobile location, adding another layer to your availability.
- Voice and data fees for existing services
Being charged extra for more voice, data, or other services may be how your current phone solution works, but not with ShoreTel. A single, predictable, monthly fee allows you to know exactly what you’re paying, and makes budget planning a snap. Additionally, with ShoreTel, network status is available to anyone in real-time on shoreteltrust.com. Any service interruptions, outages, and operation information is viewable live – this is how confident ShoreTel is about its network.
- Carrier contract auto-renewals that lock you in
When is the last time you audited your existing bills? Do you know when your current contract renews? Most business owners don’t realize their existing carrier contracts auto-renew 60 to 90 days before the contract anniversary, triggering early termination fees if you switch providers before the next renewal date.
Now let’s talk about these additional costs
- Delays and missed deadlines
With all the other priorities and responsibilities in-house staff have on their plate, it can take longer than necessary to complete simple moves, additions, or changes. Adding new features, if they’re supported, can lead to significant delays and there may be unplanned expenses. Whether your in-house team needs a feature that wasn’t purchased, or requires additional training to implement the feature, you’re left with more surprises and delays.
- Quality of service
Bad quality equates to a bad customer experience. Don’t have your customers experience poor connections, blocked calls, and other frustrating call issues that cause them to question the quality of your own offerings.
Finally, we need to talk about the biggest cost of all
1. Opportunity Costs
Putting off moving to the cloud because you’re focused on other things, such as core business? Why not focus on your core business priorities and let an expert move your phone system to the cloud?
With ShoreTel Connect CLOUD, these costs are obsolete, and what becomes relevant is having modern technology to support your business and your customers. As a hosted managed VoIP phone service, you can choose a service plan that fits your needs and your budget, without all of the hard costs, soft cost and opportunity costs.
You’re a small business owner who knows you need to start reaping the benefits that come with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). You also know the old way of analog phone lines and expensive equipment just doesn’t make sense for your business anymore. But there are so many choices out there today, you must evaluate your options so you select the right provider for your particular business. Here are some tips to help you begin your VoIP comparison:
Any change to your business means assessing the initial cost, the long term costs, and the potential savings. Your company’s phone system is critical to your ability to run your business efficiently – connecting with clients and customers reliably. If you switch to a VoIP system, will that help or hurt your business efficiency? And most importantly, what will it do to your bottom line?
