There was a time when VoIP was looked down upon and considered insufficient for a business phone system. But times and technology have changed, and today VoIP phone systems are used by large companies like Apple to enable entire customer support teams and all customer communications.
The pandemic has illustrated clearly how important it is for businesses to have flexible cloud systems that allow their teams to work from anywhere. When employees needed to go home to work in droves due to COVID-19, landline-based phones became an impediment. Many companies now consider them obsolete.
In a survey of business phone use, it was found that 90% of IT leaders plan to stop purchasing any on-premises communication tools by the end of 2021.
While many businesses of all sizes have realized the need to let go of their analog on-premises systems for cloud-based phone platforms, they haven’t all figured out how to optimize VoIP.
With the tips below, you can make your company’s use of your VoIP system more efficient, reliable, and productive.
Use Quality of Service (QoS) Settings
The more cloud processes you put in place, the more flexible your company operations are. But in addition to flexibility, you are also placing more load on your router and the bandwidth it’s allocating to your various internet-connected devices and systems.
Using Quality of Service (QoS) on your router can improve reliability for VoIP and any other critical cloud processes. For example, it will keep your VoIP calls from getting dropped due to a large file download initialed by someone at the next desk over.
QoS settings on a router provide rules for prioritizing how bandwidth is allocated. So, you could make your VoIP application a top priority and make large data backups a lower priority.
Take Time to Train Employees on the New System
While VoIP is designed to be simple to use, it also comes with several features. If you want your employees to take full advantage of things like ring groups, voicemail transcription, and other helpful tools, you should take the time to have them trained on the system.
This will avoid questions later and ensure everyone is making the most of the platform and using it in a consistent way.
Have Your IT Partner Set Up Your VoIP Extensions, Company Directory, etc.
Some of the enterprise-class capabilities you get with VoIP include the ability to use extensions, hold music, company directories, an auto-attendant, and more. You can set these up yourself, but it will take a lot less time if you get help from your IT provider.
Unity IT offers expert VoIP solutions and can get your system all set up with your voicemails, hold music, department extensions, and more so you can just enjoy the new system and get on with running your business.
Put a Redundant ISP in Place
With the near 100% reliance on an internet connection that a majority of companies now have, it’s important to ensure that connection remains in place.
To keep VoIP and all your other cloud systems up and running, it’s a good idea to have a redundant internet service provider in place. This gives you a broadband connection you can quickly move over to in a few seconds should your main ISP have an outage.
Removing “single point of failure” areas in your technology infrastructure is a business continuity best practice that keeps your company resilient and mitigates costly downtime.
Consider an Upgrade to Wi-Fi 6
If you’re still using a router with the older Wi-Fi 5 protocol, then you may want to upgrade to Wi-Fi 6. This new standard includes an advanced security protocol, WPA3, that provides a significant increase in network security.
Wi-Fi 6 is also built for better speed and performance (up to 40% better), which equates to all your cloud applications, including VoIP, performing better with less latency (lag time) and more consistent reliability.
Give Employees Three Use Options
You can help your employees make the most of the convenience of VoIP by giving them all three use options and supplying them with headsets and desk phones.
The flexibility of VoIP means that employees can make and receive calls from:
- Their mobile device
- Computer
- VoIP desk phone
The various options help employees be more productive because they can make and receive business calls in several ways. They can also easily transfer calls from one device to another as needed.
Learn More About VoIP Solutions & Services from Unity IT
Getting your VoIP services from a local provider means a world of difference when it comes to ongoing support. Unity IT has cost-efficient VoIP options for your Fresno area business and backs them up with expert technicians that are only a phone call, text, or email away.
Contact us today to schedule a technology consultation at 559-297-1007 or reach out online.