TheDynaSisEducationSeriesforC-LevelExecutives

YourTelephoneSystemasaBusinessBuildingAssetAspartofyouroverallITinfrastructure,yourtelephonesystembecomesavaluabletool,notjustanexpense.RememberhighschoolEnglishclass?“Aroseisaroseisarose”isfromGertrudeStein’spoem,“SacredEmily,”andishermostfamousquotation.Themoderndayversionmightgosomethinglike:Aphoneisaphoneisaphone.Therearemanybusinessproductsandservicesthesedaysthathavebecome“commoditized”,meaning,theproductitself,frommanufacturer-to-manufacturer,orvendor-to-vendor,isbasicallythesame.Theonlyrealdifferenceisthepriceyoupay.Paperandpens.Toner.Merchantservices.Banking.Manypeoplethinkthesameistrueofbusinesstelephonesystems.Aphoneisaphoneisaphone.Notso.Therighttelephonesystem,withtherightfeatures,canmakeabigdifferenceandactuallyturnyourbusinesstelephoneintoapowerfulassetthatdrivesandhelpsgrowyourbusiness.TheUSAhasbecomeaserviceeconomyandnomatterwhatyourbusiness,chancesarethatinorderforyoutosucceedandgrowyouhavetoprovidealevelofcustomer/clientservicethatfewpeoplewouldhaveconsiderednecessarynotsomanyyearsago.Addtothisthefactthatnomatterwhatyourbusiness,yourcompetitionisactivelytryingtostealyourcustomers.Often,theonly“glue”thatholdsyourcustomersisloyalty,andthatloyaltyisoftenbasedonyourabilityto“wow”themwithsuperiorservice.___________________________________________________________________________________

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TheDynaSisEducationSeriesforC-LevelExecutives___________________________________________________________________________________Onanotherlevel,youneedtoanswerthequestion:howeffectiveasalestoolisyourtelephonesystem?“Butatelephoneisatelephone!”Again,notso.Let’slookatsomeofthefeaturestrulymoderntelephonesystemsofferandyoucandecideforyourselfifupgradingyourcommunicationtoolsmakessenseforyourbusiness.

“FindMe,FollowMe.”No,it’snotDr.Seuss.FMFMisanimportantfeaturethatprovidesyouthesameflexibilityyoucurrentlyhavewithyouremail.Whenanemailarrives,youcanopenitandrespondonyourdesktopcomputer,oronanymobiledevice,includingyoursmartphone.The“FollowMe”partofFMFMenablesyoutorouteyourincomingcallstowhicheverphoneyouwillbenear…youroffice,yourcell,yourhome,orwherever.“FindMe”allowsyoutosetyoursystemsothatifyoureceiveacallandyoudon’tanswer,itringsthenextphoneinyourchainand,whenyoudon’tanswerthatone,itringsthenext,thenthenext,etc.Youcanevensetthesystemtoringallyourphonesatthesametimesonomatterwhichphoneyouarenear,youdon’tmissthecall.FMFMcanbeanimportantassetforsalespeopleoranyoneelsewhocan’taffordtomissacall.VoicemailTranscription.Howoftenhaveyoureceivedanunimportantvoicemessage,buthadtolistentowhatseemedaninterminableamountoftimebeforeyouwereabletodecidejusthowunimportantthatcallwas?Or,doyoureceivealotofvoicemessagesandbythetimeyoulistentothemallyouarereadytoclimbthewall?Voicemailtranscriptionsolvesthatproblem.Usingadvancedqualityvoicerecognitionsoftware,youremailsareturnedintowrittenmessagesthatyoucanquicklyscantodeterminewhetherornotyouwanttoreadthemfullyordelete.Bytheway,itismuchfastertoreadthetranscriptionthanlistentotheoriginalaudiomessage.Itisalsowayeasiertoscrollbacktoanimportantpartofalongmessagethanlistentothewholemessageagain…andagain.Expansion.So,waybackwhenyourbusinessonlyhadfivepeople,youboughtaphonesystemthatcouldexpandto10phones.Figuredthatwouldbeenough.Butnowyoujusthiredyour11themployeeandsheneedsatelephone.Thiscouldbeanexpensivehire.Youalsofindthatyoudon’thaveenough“outsidelines”asyougrow.Today’sbestphonesystemsareeasilyexpandable.Afewclicksplusanewphonesetandyou’reoffandrunning.Andinsteadofpayingsomeonealotofmoneytorunnewlinesfromthestreetintoyourofficeforyournew“outsidelines”,thisisallhandledthroughyourcomputernetworkandtheInternet.

CallControl.Thedigitalizationofvoicecallsenablesustoquickly,easilyandseamlesslyaddfeaturesthatallowustocontrolthecallscominginandoutofourbusinesses.Italsoallowsanybusinesstoeffectivelyoperateasa“callcenter.”Youmaynotthinkofyourbusinessasacallcenter,butifyouhaveevenoneortwosalespeopleand/oroneortwocustomerservicepeople,youareacallcenter.Thinkofwhatthesenextfewfeatures,allpartofCallControl,canmeanintermsoftraining,servicequality,salesmanship,etc.First,lookattheimagebelow.ThisistheHUD,orHeadsUpDisplay,offeredbyFONALITY,anadvancedmidsizedplayerinthetelephonyfield.

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TheDynaSisEducationSeriesforC-LevelExecutives

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The12boxesrepresent12employeesofXYZCompany.(Notethescrollbarontheright.Therecanbeasmanyemployeeboxesasyourequire…alleasilyadded.)Rightnow,wearehoveringovertheboxforemployeeKevinWangandtheHUDisgivingustheoptiontoMonitor,WhisperorBargeonKevin’scall.

Monitor:Monitoringislisteningin.WehearbothsidesofKevin’scall,butneitherpartyknowswearedoingso.Whisper:WecanspeakandKevincanhearus,butnotthepersontowhomheisspeaking:“Hey,Kevin,thisguyisreadytoclose.Goforit!”Barge:Thisfeatureallowsyoutoentertheconversation,muchlikeaconferencecall.Therearediscretewaysofdoingthis,forexample,sayamanagerislisteninginasKevin,anewhire,isinadvertentlygivingoutincorrectinformation.Themanager“barges”in,stating,“Hi,John.ThisisBob,Kevin’smanager.IjustwanttosayhelloandletyouknowIamalsoavailableifIcanhelpyou.HasKevintoldyouabout…”andyoucancleverlycorrectthemisinformationthatwasgivenout.

Record:Justpressthatoldfamiliarredbuttonandyouhavearecordingofthecall.Alwaysagreattrainingtool.Inmoststates,aslongasonepartyisawareoftherecording,itislegal.Soifyouareaware,youqualifyasthatoneparty.(ThatisthecaseinGeorgia,wherewearelocated.)

Actually,allfourofthesefeaturesaregreattrainingtoolsandcanturnyoursmallbusinessintoahighlyadvanced,easilyexpandablecallcenter.Youwillalsonoteonthediagramthatyoucandoanumberofothercoolthings,likesendyournewemployeeanemailrightfromthepanelwhile_________________________________________________________________________________

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TheDynaSisEducationSeriesforC-LevelExecutives

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listeninginonhisconversation.“Kevin,remindmetoreviewwithyouallthenewfeaturesofournew1,000JigwattFluxCapacitor.”EasySystemManagement.YearsagoitseemedlikeyouneededadegreeinengineeringfromGeorgiaTechtoworkthetelephonesystem.Chancesareyoudidn’teventrytodoityourself;youcalledyour“telephoneguy”.Translation:abigbillwillsoonarriveinthemail.Notsoanymore.Today’ssystemsarecontrolledonlinethroughyourwebbrowsersothatwithafewclicks,yougiveorretractlevelsofpermission,changevoicemailgreetings,addordeleteextensions,checkoutcallstatistics,managesalesteams,etc.,etc.TheCloud.IfyoubelievethatphonesystemshousedinyourownofficearesaferandmoresecurethanthoseintheCloud,you’rewrong.It’sthatsimple.Unlessyouarealargecompanywithalarge(expensive)full-timeITstaff,itisnexttoimpossibleforyoutoachievethelevelofsecurityandreliabilityyougetfromtheCloud.(Seeourrecentarticle:TheTop3ReasonstoMovetotheCloud.)Softphone:Thisfeatureallowsyoutouseyourcomputeroryoursmartphoneasyourofficephone.Indoingso,youcancallsomeonefromyoursmartphoneandhe/sheactuallyseesyourofficenumberonthescreenontheirtelephone.Thisenablesyoutomakeacallfromanywhereandhaveitseemasthoughyouareinyouroffice.Importantly,italsopreventstherecipientfromgainingaccesstoyourcellphonenumber.VideoCollaboration:Essentially,thisworksthesameasGoToMeetingorJoin.Meonyourtelephone.Youcanschedulemeetings,inviteattendees,andyoucanevenjoinameetingfromyoursmartphone.Thisservicemaycostafewdollars,butisgenerallyalotlessthanpayingforthisfunctionalityfromathirdparty,anditiseasiertousebecauseitispartofyourtelephonesystem:itistrulyunifiedcommunication.TextMessaging:Allowsyoutosendandreceivetextmessagesfromyourdesktopcomputer,usingyourofficephonenumber.Again,itkeepsyourcellphonenumberprivate.OutlookIntegration:VirtuallyallVoIPsystemstodayincludecontactlists.OutlookintegrationallowsyoutoloadyourOutlookcontactsintoyourphonesystemforclicktocallcapability.Multi-Location:Createaconsistent,seamlesscallerexperiencebetweenmultiplelocationsorbranchofficeslocatedanywhereintheworld.Paperlessfax:Anotherservicethatisavailablethrough3rdparties,butmuchbetter,andlessexpensive,whenintegratedthroughyourtelephoneprovider.That’salotoffeaturesandmaymakethistypeofserviceseemveryconfusing.Theobjectiveistochoosethefeaturesthatcanhavethebiggestpositiveimpactonyourbusinessandgowiththosefirst.Youcanalwaysseamlesslyaddotherslateron.________________________________________________________________________________

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TheDynaSisEducationSeriesforC-LevelExecutives

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Thefirstpartofthispaperdiscussedvariousfeaturesthatmaybeofvaluetoyou.Nowwearegoingtodiscussthesystemitself.ThetelephonesystemswearetalkingaboutarewhatareknownasVoIP,orVoiceOverIP.IfyouwantalongandhardtounderstanddefinitionofVoIP,hereisalinktoWikipedia,butsimplyput,VoIPistheuseoftheInternettomakeandreceivecallsandmanageyourtelephonesystem.Aswithmanythingsthatarerelativelynew,peoplehaveawholehostofreasonstoavoidVoIP.That’stoobadbecausethesereasonsaregenerallywrong.Let’slookatthemostcommon:

Withouroldfashionedsystem,ifthepowergoesout,westillhavephoneservice.Yes,thatoncewasaconcern,buttoday’smodernphonesystemsalmostalwayscomewithbatteryback-upgivingyoumanyhoursofback-uptime(makesureyouaskaboutthat!)And,bytheway,sincemost“legacy”phonesystemsnowrunonfiberopticcable,thereisagoodchancetheywillgooutwhenthepowergoesout.VoIPcallqualityislacking.Thismaybetrueifyoudonothavesufficientbandwidth,butmostbusinessesarenowlocatedinareaswithtremendousbandwidthcapacitythatcanmorethanhandlethecalls.But,byallmeans,makesureyourcarriercansupplyyouthebandwidthyouneedbeforeyoumaketheswitch.Withproperbandwidth,yourcallqualityshouldbeexcellent.Whychangephonesystemswhenmyoldsystemstillworks,andispaidfor?Onsomelevelsthismaymakesense,butwhenyoudigdeeper,herearesomeotherconsiderations:

1:Everyyear,throughretirement,therearefewerandfewertechnicianswhoactuallyknowhowtoworkontheseoldersystems.Youngertechsarenotbeingtaughthowtoworkwiththem.Andastheseoldersystemsgetstillolder,theywillneedmoreservice.Longwaitsforservicewillbecomemoreandmorecommon.2:Aslongasyoukeepyouroldsystem,youaretiedtoyourexistingphoneprovider’sannualmaintenanceandservicecontractfees,whichareexpensivebecauseoftheservicethatisrequired.3:Youwillprobablyfindthatanyinitialcostforanewsystemissoonoffsetbythemonthlysavings,plustheconvenienceofnothavingtocallandwaitforatechniciantocomeouteverytimeyouneedtomakeachangetothesystem.4:Wewant911service.Thiswasavalidconcerninthepastbutnolonger.Properlyinstalled,yourVoIPphonesystemwillgiveyouthesame911servicetowhichyouareaccustomed.

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TheDynaSisEducationSeriesforC-LevelExecutives

___________________________________________________________________________________Ifyouarestillrunningyourbusinessonanolder“legacy”telephonesystem,itcertainlymakessensetoinvestigatethebenefitsyoumightreceivebyconvertingtoanewerVoIPbasedsystem.Webelieveyouwillbepleasantlysurprisedbytheircosteffectivenessanddelightedwiththefunctionality.Theproperbusinesstelephonesystemcanbeatruebusinessasset.

______________________________________________DynaSisisanAtlantaITservicesandcloudcomputingproviderforsmallandmidsizedbusinesses.AllofoursolutionsfocusonhelpingcompaniesachievethethreefundamentalITnecessitiesofthemodernbusiness—Availability,SecurityandMobility.Wespecializeinon-demandandon-premisemanagedITservices,VoIPtelephony,managedcloudinfrastructure,desktopsandbackups,andprofessionalhardwareandequipmentinstallation.FormoreinformationaboutDynaSis’ITsupportandservices,visitwww.dynasis.com.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_telephone_systemhttp://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=146490http://hello-operator.softwareadvice.com/6-phone-system-features-every-business-needs-1213/http://www.resourcenation.com/blog/5-best-features-of-modern-phone-systems/34958/http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7149-business-phone-system-guide.htmlhttp://www.staples.com/sbd/cre/tech-services/explore-tips-and-advice/tech-articles/pros-and-

cons-of-the-modern-day-business-phone.htmlhttp://www.resourcenation.com/blog/5-reasons-why-some-businesses-wont-switch-to-voip-

phones-and-why-theyre-wrong/35624/https://www.youtube.com/user/Fonality