Cloud telephony is an innovative solution that can significantly reduce costs while improving your business’s flexibility and performance. If you’re thinking about switching from your current business phone service to cloud telephony, you’ve come to the right place.
In this article, we will cover everything you need to know, including the basics of cloud telephony, how it operates, and its advantages for businesses.
What is cloud telephony?
Cloud telephony, also known as cloud calling, falls under the category of Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS).
It provides voice communication services through a third-party host, replacing the need for traditional enterprise phone systems like Private Branch Exchange (PBX).
Cloud telephony services can be accessed through web applications or dedicated applications. It simplifies your business communication and can scale alongside your company’s growth.
Whether you’re opening new offices, hiring remote employees, or expanding your in-house teams, cloud telephony makes expansion easy and cost-effective.
Cloud communication providers create, manage, and maintain standardized telephony platforms on their servers. Customers can access these platforms remotely via the internet, either through subscriptions or on an as-needed basis.
This model allows organizations to move away from their conventional, on-premises telephone systems like PBX, which are often expensive and time-consuming to set up and maintain.
How does it work?
Cloud telephony operates through a VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) service provider. When you dial a phone number, your service provider manages the connection.
It transforms voice signals into data packets and sends them over your internet connection, connecting your phone to the recipient’s phone. Initially, an organization selects a provider capable of offering a complete telephony platform.
On your side, you replace traditional phone extensions with a VoIP desk phone. Instead of linking to a landline, you connect your phones to your existing network. Alternatively, you can use a softphone, which is an application installed on your computer, tablet, or smartphone.
In both cases, you make calls through a modern, user-friendly interface, establishing connections almost instantly.
Cloud telephony allows users to make calls from any device with an internet connection, eliminating the need to purchase and store expensive standalone hardware like traditional PBX systems and handsets.
Benefits of Cloud Telephony
The following are the main benefits of using cloud-based phone systems. Discover how they offer flexibility, cost savings, and resilience, helping businesses communicate more efficiently and stay connected. These benefits are especially obvious for companies that run a cloud-based call center.
Flexible
The rise of remote working trends has made it crucial for teams to be able to access their office phone system from anywhere. VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) solutions offer this vital capability, which greatly enhances productivity and business continuity.
Moreover, VoIP enables employees to securely use instant messaging for data sharing and communication, make both incoming and outgoing calls from anywhere with an internet connection, facilitating more seamless mobile work.
Traditional landline systems, with their lack of flexibility, are increasingly hindering business growth and scalability.
You don’t need to be an IT expert to benefit from these advantages. For instance, if your call volume increases significantly during busier periods of the year, you can easily add or remove phone lines.
This flexibility allows you to maintain a positive customer experience by adapting your system to changing business needs.
Cost effective
Cloud telephony services offer numerous cost-saving advantages. You can potentially reduce your traditional phone bill by up to 65%. Compared to traditional on-site solutions, cloud telephony is a more cost-effective option.
Notably, VoIP is a cloud-based phone system that eliminates the necessity of purchasing expensive equipment and undertaking costly maintenance.
This advantage becomes even more significant if your organization has multiple locations, as you won’t need to invest in and maintain duplicate equipment in various places and countries.
Additional opportunities for cost savings include reduced rates for long-distance calls and the efficiency of pay-as-you-go pricing.
Resilient
If a power grid failure or any other unforeseen event occurs, it can have serious consequences for your business. Natural disasters, overheating, or wiring problems can disrupt your communication and harm your reputation.
However, cloud calling services typically offer more resilient and reliable business continuity. Reputable cloud telephony solutions guarantee an uptime of 99.999%, ensuring that you can continue working without disruption, regardless of the circumstances.
They also incorporate redundancy measures, so even in the case of issues like jitter or similar problems, your calls remain online, and there’s always a backup available.
Most cloud telephony services come with built-in failover modes to ensure that a backup connection is ready if any connection problems arise.
Final takeaways
When considering a transition to a cloud telephony solution, especially for a cloud-based call center, potential disruption is a major concern for organizations.
However, using the services of an experienced provider remains the most effective way to ensure a smooth and seamless process, avoiding downtime that could impact both your operations and customer experience.
It’s necessary to note that not all providers offer uniform levels of support; while some offer 24/7 service monitoring, others might have a 48-hour assistance turnaround.
