The Covid-19 pandemic made the concept of work from home and flexible workplace a major thing. As a result, the Australian government has mandated most employees work from home for the rest of the year. This has impacted how small and medium businesses work and communicate as they need to find alternative ways to adapt and keep the business going. Those businesses that used to work solely on the on-premises phone system have been especially challenging to work remotely. However, the rise in cloud computing technology has led to the advancement of VoIP solutions in the phone systems for medium business, making the transition easier.
What is VoIP?
VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol system uses a technology that allows it to transmit information through the internet and not phone lines. It uses the IP address to connect with all the computers and devices of the company to communicate with each other. It is known for its features and the ability to retain the phone functionality of an office while allowing employees to work from any location with an internet connection. This enables them to connect with their co-workers and clients through conferences, video and audio calls, call recording, call forwarding, files and photos transfers.
The VoIP phone connects to the router in the LAN, which communicates to the VoIP service to contact the party that the employee has dialled. The service establishes a call connection from the IP phone through data packets and converts it into sound signals that both parties can hear. Communication channels like Skype, Whatsapp, Facebook Video, Voice Chat, Google phone and more are also allowed through some VoIP.
How Does it Help Medium Businesses?
· It Allows for Easy Monitoring and Transparency
Businesses that have had employees working on location might feel that monitoring and managing them remotely would be challenging. However, VoIP is equipped with excellent visibility features that allow the management to oversee the productivity and the progress of the remote workforce with ease.
The call statistics feature provides information about the number, time and duration of the employees’ calls and information about the people’s identities with whom they made inbound or outbound calls. In addition, virtual switchboards allow the management and technical help to assist employees on some calls or issues that they face during their work in real-time.
- Mobility and Versatility
As mentioned above, VoIP evades all the restrictions that traditional phone systems pose due to the simple use of the internet to connect the lines. In addition, this allows for the easy transfer of the communication systems from the workplace to home, allowing them to continue conducting their business.
- Advanced Phone System Features
VoIP allows the employees and the management to conduct conference calls, have caller IDs, advanced call queuing, dial by extension, automatic call routing and rerouting, call recording, auto attendance, call centre features and integrate with the company cloud software.
- Installation, Configuration and Maintenance Made Simple
VoIP phones are relatively easy to install and configure. It is as simple as unplugging the configured phone from the office and reconnecting it with the router at home, which allows them to attend calls and perform all the tasks from anywhere. This makes it an effortless task even for those who are not tech-savvy and are new to this work environment. It is also easy to add new users, make changes whenever necessary.
This makes VoIP a great remote solution to phone systems for medium business to manage multiple office locations.
