The process of choosing a phone system can be complicated, but it does not have to be - if you do your home work. Business phone systems come with a host of standard and optional features - auto attendant, conferencing, voice mail, call hold, call forwarding
No business organization can expect to stay and survive and grow unless it has an effective communication system in place. Business phone system is the single most crucial office equipment and you must therefore bestow enough care and attention before deciding on the right system to buy.
Choosing the right phone system is essential for all businesses. After all,
it is only through a business phone system that you can communicate with partners, affiliates, employees and customers. Besides, whether you operate a small business or large corporation, your business telephone system often decides how you are perceived by your customers.
The process of choosing a phone system can be complicated, but it does not have to be - if you do your home work.
Business phone systems come with a host of standard and optional features - auto-attendant, conferencing, voice mail, call hold, call forwarding, call blocking, music-on-hold, speed dial, do not disturb, call transfer, caller id, multi-ring facility, distinctive ringing etc.
There are also several advanced features like remote location access, find-me-follow me, computer telephone integration - amongst others. It is for you to opt for the features you want and not needlessly buy features that you may never use. Please know that more features are going to increase the total cost of the telephone system. The salesperson will try to oversell but you need to look at each feature and decide if it will add value to your business or save you money.
The next question you have to answer is what size of phone system your business needs. The most likely extensions you will need are - Receptionist, CEO and senior managers, select key executives, fax machine, credit card terminals, data ports, conference room, warehouse etc. Telephone system salespeople are often aggressive, but remember that you are the buyer and you have to take the right decision. Do not purchase a phone system merely based on the information contained in a brochure.
To arrive at the number of external phone lines (trunk lines) you will need, there is a simple formula. The sum total of incoming and outgoing calls at any given moment is the number of lines (or trunks) that you will need. Common configurations are 3, 8, 12, 16, 24 or 48 lines. Please bear in mind that some expandability provision for future growth will be necessary. If you opt for too small a size, your customers will get a busy signal most of the times and you may buy customer annoyance.
When budgeting for a new business phone system, you have to take into account the cost of the various components such as - basic system, hand sets, cable and wiring charges, installation and initial configuration charges.
Finding a reliable business phone system dealer is not difficult. You can look in the yellow pages of the phone directory under "Telephone Equipment & Supplies" to find a dealer close to you. Also, business / office technology trade shows are a good place where you will be able to meet the sales and support people, and also witness demo.
In order to get the best price for the system you wish to buy, obtain quotations from at least four to five different suppliers. Business phone systems are a complicated purchase as you will not get back an apples-to-apples comparison - so ask that the cost of the features be listed separately.
