All ContentThe Small Business Guide to Cloud Communications
The Small Business Guide to Cloud Communications
In comparison to an on-premises phone system, the right cloud
communications solution—also known as VoIP or a hosted PBX—
provides the flexibility and power that allows your employees to work
smarter and be more productive. That’s a must for today’s modern
workforce, which is more mobile and often works flexible hours
from home or while on the road. At the same time, moving to cloud
communications relieves small business owners and IT staff of the
headaches of managing IT equipment, including upgrading systems
and dealing with security issues.
Not all cloud communication providers are equal, though. Many
cobble together their products from other vendors and don’t
guarantee service quality for your phone calls.
Many cloud
communication
providers do not own
their data centers and
are not able to provide
uptime and call
quality guarantees.
Here are five key considerations to keep in mind to make sure your
company connects with a provider that will bring the future you want
for your business to life:
1. COLLABORATE MORE FREELY.
Manage critical collaborations with greater fluidity. You should
be able to stay connected while you’re out of the office—allowing
you to receive and make business calls on your mobile devices
while still appearing as if you’re calling from the office. You
also should be able to configure your desk phones and mobile
phones to ring simultaneously when a call comes in. With email
notifications of voicemails, your team can quickly respond to
missed calls. Additionally, ring groups can effectively distribute
calls throughout departments or work groups so incoming calls
can quickly be picked up by the first available team member. No
more missed calls.
Be more productive across your on-the-go organization. Business
texting, chats, instant messaging, availability status updates and
virtual online conferencing with video can empower workers to
collaborate and work more efficiently. These capabilities should
be integrated into your cloud communications solution. Virtual
meetings, which allow people to connect with each other from
almost anywhere using video conferencing, help employees
working in different offices or from their homes feel as if they’re
in the same room. Put it all together and there’s no limit to your
team’s ability to be united in working towards critical end goals,
wherever individuals are located.
Don’t overlook reliability. Many cloud communication providers
do not own their data centers and are not able to provide uptime
and call quality guarantees. Geographically redundant data
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centers, encryption across your communications, and security
compliance are also very important. With these capabilities in
place, you can be sure that a snow storm or natural disaster won’t
leave your business with a busy signal.
8x8 Virtual Office addresses all of these fronts. It offers the latest
features to ensure that you can communicate and collaborate in
multiple ways, including providing premium voice quality. And you’ll
get it all without risking security or service availability. 8x8 delivers
its solution via its own comprehensive platform using redundant
data centers in multiple supported global regions.
2. EXPERIENCE EASY DEPLOYMENT AND MANAGEMENT.
If you have limited
IT staff or none at
all, it’s important
to choose a cloud
communications system
that’s easy to deploy,
use and manage.
Choose a cloud communications service that’s easy to use
and administer. When you have limited IT staff or none at all, it’s
important to choose a cloud communications system that’s easy
to deploy, use and manage. Your provider should manage all the
hardware, software and upgrades behind the scenes so you don’t
have to. Also think about issues such as whether you’ll have easy
access to a technical installation support specialist, to deal with
challenges such as porting phone numbers from your legacy PBX
or setting up call routing for an auto-attendant feature.
Centralized management is essential. Make it as easy as possible
for your office manager or other administrator to directly support
changes without having to rely on technical staff. Of equal
consideration is that no one should be burdened with separate
systems to manage different offices or devices. It’s also valuable
if potential providers offer a customer knowledge base to walk
you through your help questions and requests, whether you’re in
search of troubleshooting advice or how-to guidance.
8x8 Virtual Office makes it simple to get your phone system up and
keep it running smoothly. 8x8 manages cloud communications for
you in its own data center, takes all the responsibility for fixes and
upgrades and puts a priority on providing customers with whatever
technical support you need.
3. GET EVERYTHING YOU NEED COMPLETELY INTEGRATED FROM
ONE PROVIDER.
Be sure you know what you’re buying. Many companies sell
cloud communications systems that are actually made up of
other companies’ products. Perhaps they’re responsible for one
part of the solution, such as the cloud PBX, but they bundle other
capabilities—say, online meetings—from different vendors.
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