The Future of Cloud Phone Systems and What It Means for Your Business

With most employees wanting at least part-time remote working, a scalable and efficient cloud phone system becomes more critical. This allows for seamless work from multiple locations and even across different devices.

A vital feature of a cloud-based phone system is the auto-attendant which routes calls to the appropriate customer representatives based on pre-determined criteria. 

Improved Customer Experience

Unlike traditional business phone systems that require costly hardware and on-site maintenance, virtual-hosted PBX solutions are managed off-site and accessible online.

This means time to value is significantly reduced, and the burden of system updates is shifted to the service provider, freeing up IT resources for other projects.

Cloud-based phone systems have performance-enhancing features like call recording, round-robin calling, contact tags, and a customizable app.

This allows businesses to maximize the efficiency of their teams without sacrificing flexibility or quality of service.

Cloud phone systems offer high reliability when hosted in multiple geographically dispersed data centers. If one server fails, calls can be re-routed to another, maintaining call quality and productivity. This is called “geographic redundancy.” 

Increased Efficiency

Businesses that invest in a robust cloud phone system can reap many benefits. They’ll have access to superior internet connections and advanced features that improve productivity, customer experience, and other critical aspects of business telecommunications.

Cloud systems separate voice data into packets over the internet rather than a traditional telephone network.

They also offer many time-saving features, such as automated assistants, video/remote conferencing across continents, paperless faxes, virtual voicemail, and more.

Because they’re hosted off-site, cloud phone systems are centrally managed by service providers and require less IT expertise and time from customers to update.

They also offer geographical redundancy, meaning a provider can host servers in multiple locations to keep communication running even in an emergency.

Scalability

Whether your business is growing rapidly or slowing down, you don’t want to pay for a system that can’t keep pace with your needs. Cloud-based systems offer a flexible solution. You can upgrade your service as needed and avoid expensive maintenance.

Most cloud-based phone systems include auto attendants, voicemail, chat, SMS messaging, and faxing. They also allow for geographic flexibility by allowing you to route calls locally or globally with a single number.

Because they operate in multiple, geographically diverse data centers, cloud phone systems also offer disaster recovery options. They can even help you meet regulatory requirements for customer data privacy and security.

Also Read: The Rising Threat of First-Party Fraud – What Every Business Owner Should Know

Improved Security

Cloud systems offer improved security compared to traditional landline and PBX options.

While on-premise PBX solutions require equipment to be housed in one location, most hosted PBX options utilize remote data centers with redundancy that mitigate the risk of catastrophic service interruptions and information loss due to natural disasters or power failures.

Additionally, most cloud phone system providers adhere to stringent ISO data security standards and keep the software updated to protect against hacking attempts.

This reduces the burden on internal IT departments to dedicate resources to phone system maintenance and allows them to focus on other business priorities.

Additionally, many cloud-based phone systems can integrate with business tools, such as CRMs, providing real-time access to client data and helping your team deliver personalized customer support or prepare tailored offers.

This feature could save you time and money in the long run, boosting productivity for your sales, call center, or customer support teams.

Integrations

With top cloud phone systems, your team can benefit from many helpful integrations that boost productivity. 

Moving your business communications to the cloud also enables you to consolidate voice and data lines, freeing up space on the network that you can use to increase bandwidth, keep as a backup or eliminate.

This helps you save money on monthly telecom expenses by lowering your bill and eliminating hardware costs.

Hosted in data centers around the world, cloud telephony provides geographic flexibility. Your business can stay productive even if a single data center goes down. This is a critical feature, especially for businesses that need to serve customers remotely.