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The Unsung Hero of Online Business: VoIP Phone Systems

Setting ambitious objectives and dreaming big is, of course, a fantastic thing. Surprisingly, many prospective entrepreneurs and business professionals at various stages of business development either do not understand or are unable to comprehend what it takes to attain their goals.

Your VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) phone systems are a vital but often unsung hero in your online business's success. Consider the case of traditional phone communications: your employees used to spend most of their days at their desks, always available.

Nowadays, it is normal to observe employees working while on the go, whether at a nearby park or a nearby cafe. When you switch to Vivant VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone systems, your staff will be able to accept calls and voicemails regardless of their location.

UsingVoIP phone systemsallows you to stay in touch with clients while still running your business. Many business owners, however, put off investing in communication for far too long. As a result, they miss out on numerous opportunities to improve strategy formulation.

Accelerated Digital Transformation with VoIP Phone Systems

As the lines between strategy and operations continue to blur in an increasingly fast-paced world, communication all too often falls between the cracks. It is commonly regarded as the final mile between the strategy team and the rest of the world.

Consumers have shifted considerably to online channels during the pandemic, and businesses and sectors have responded in kind. The significant move toward interacting with customers through digital platforms is confirmed by recent polls.

Our team at Vivant has earned a reputation as one of the industry's premier technological solution providers. We believe that using simple yet powerful technology can help a company become more efficient, save money, and improve the end-user experience.

VoIP phone systems can boost your online business

Vivant VoIP phone systems can assist you in scaling up your internet business to the level you want in a variety of ways. The following are some of the reasons why it can be effective:

Improves flexibility and mobility

One of the most huge advantages of the Vivant VoIP phone system for online businesses is that it saves money by lowering operating costs. Most traditional phone carriers would charge extra for features like caller ID, call waiting, call transfer, and three-way calling, which Vivant VoIP phone systems deliver for free.

Businesses can be more mobile thanks to VoIP technologies. Users may take their VoIP adapters with them wherever they have a stable internet connection, making it simple to make phone conversations in new offices or while traveling.

This is a huge benefit for folks who work in the field or who travel a lot and aren't tethered to a desk. It also enables you to rapidly set up your phone while transferring to a new working location.

Customer information/sales history integration

According to a Google study, 61 percent of customers believe the click-to-call button option is the most important when buying something online. Customers aren't the only ones who benefit from the click-to-call feature; your online business will as well.

It's a lot easier for your company to provide excellent customer service when they have all of the customer's information at their fingertips.Vivant VoIP solutionsmake it simple to combine your CRM and business apps with your existing phone system on a single platform.

As a result, when a client phones in, the employee will be able to instantly retrieve that customer's history. This allows them to better direct the call and reduce unnecessary chats, saving everyone time and stress.

IVR and Auto Attendant Capabilities

Long hold times, irritating background music, and a slew of transfers to different reps. Nothing is more irritating than a bad customer service experience, but it happens all the time.

To make matters worse, the customer is required to repeat their story to each new employee they speak with. This is a complete waste of both the customer's and the employees' time.

To address this issue, Vivant VoIP provides two options: Auto Assistant and Interactive Voice Response (IVR). These ensure that a customer's call is answered instantly, even if no one is immediately present to speak with the consumer.

It's similar to having a virtual assistant who can answer the phone and follow voice commands to guarantee that the first staff member the consumer speaks with is the correct person.

Vivant Phone Systems

Pleasecontact usright away if you're looking to upgrade your present phone system or save money. Vivant has a VoIP phone system that will meet your company's needs.

7 Reasons Why a Fast and Reliable Internet Connection Is Business Critical

1. Faster Business Operations:

For most businesses, the internet is the workhorse of their business operations. Whether you're a multinational firm that needs to share documents across offices, an e-commerce store selling thousands of products to customers around the world, or a small accounting firm that needs to send and receive sensitive information, a fast andreliable internet connectionis a necessity. It empowers you and your employees to work more efficiently, which ultimately leads to quicker business operations. Moreover, you can take advantage of innovative tools that save time and money, such as VoIP, video conferencing, webinar platforms, and more to further boost productivity.

2. Cloud Storage Becomes Seamless:

Cloud storage has become an integral part of how businesses operate, and the availability of cloud storage providers like DropBox, Box, G Suite Business, and OneDrive makes it easy to store, share, and access documents online. Furthermore, integrating cloud storage into your business operations can help you improve efficiency and save on costs since you don't have to pay for expensive internal server storage. However, cloud storage is only as good as yourprimary internet connection, and a slow or unreliable connection means transferring data can take longer and cause unneeded downtime. Having a fast and reliable internet connection ensures your employees and business partners can work together seamlessly while enjoying 24/7 access to files from any location.

3. Faster Data Backup & Recovery:

Your business is the epitome of your hard work and dedication to your customers. It is your livelihood and represents the fruit of your effort and labor. Therefore, you'd want to protect it at all costs. Unfortunately, accidents are not uncommon, and many businesses have suffered catastrophic data loss due to server failures, natural disasters, human error, and more. Fortunately, you can greatly reduce the risk of catastrophic data loss with regular data backups. Having an off-site backup that continually syncs up with your primary server, or an automated backup solution for your computer is also a good idea. However, for seamless and fast data backup and recovery, having a fast and reliable internet connection is essential. Any connectivity issues could lead to no up-to-date backups — putting your business and all your hard work at risk.

4. Provide a Better Customer Experience:

Customer service is paramount to the success of any business. You want to provide your customers with the best service you can to keep them coming back and increasing your profit margins. Since most of your customers are doing business with you online, having a reliable internet connection is essential to ensuring a positive customer experience. The most common way for customers to contact you is by email, or live chat, which relies on your internet connection. Therefore, slow or unreliable internet can lead to frustrated customers that have to deal with the inconvenience of delays. You can lose them for good if your customer service is poor. So, it becomes paramount to have a fast internet connection and ensure that your internet connectivity has the lowest latency to provide the best customer experience.

5. Collaboration Becomes Simpler:

Collaboration between teams, including internal staff, freelancers, contractors, and vendors is crucial to the success of a business. Today's workforce is more mobile than ever before. The ability to quickly and easily collaborate with your team and partners helps you build your company faster and make better decisions. And when it comes to collaboration, the internet is king. Having a fast and reliable internet connection will enable you to host real-time video conferences, share files and presentations quickly, create online discussions, and so much more without compromising on quality. Moreover, having a solid internet connection can boost employee morale by providing a direct line of communication with the rest of your team — even if they're miles away. And this ultimately saves time and money in the long run since employees won't have to travel back and forth between locations just to keep everyone updated.

6. Access Online Tools & Applications Without Delay

As a business, you rely on a multitude of tools and applications to stay productive. From Skype, Slack, and Office 365 to project management platforms, accounting software, CRM's, cloud storage, and more — the list of applications and tools you use are seemingly endless. And to keep your business running efficiently and successfully, you need to be able to access these tools and applications without delay. Without a fast internet connection, your employees will waste precious time trying to just log in to their applications let alone do their work. Moreover, some tools and applications require low latency to provide a smooth experience to your users. Thus, a slow or unreliable internet connection can negatively impact your business by affecting productivity and creating user frustration – something no business owner wants to deal with.

7. Faster & Better Video Conferencing:

You don't always have the time to be physically present at a meeting to communicate your ideas or present important information. Instead, you might use video conferencing to be in multiple places at once. But like any other type of technology, video conferencing is also dependent on an internet connection. Due to a poor connection, slow speeds and constant interruptions can turn an efficient business meeting into a nightmare. Moreover, if you need to present a video or file in real-time, you must have a fast internet connection that can handle the high bandwidth traffic while ensuring the lowest latency for your participants. A fast and reliable internet connection will give you and your employees an edge in business meetings by allowing you to cut travel costs and reduce the time you spend away from your business.The benefits of having a fast and reliable internet connection are immense, and it goes beyond having your employees communicate with each other and share important files. A reliable internet connection also empowers entrepreneurs to grow their businesses by accessing the tools they need to accelerate productivity and run their business seamlessly from anywhere. In essence, the importance of internet speed can't be understated — as it's the foundation for growing your business.

Enhance Your Business Operations with SmartCONNECT™

SmartCONNECT™ is a revolutionary new tool that seamlessly optimizes your business's internet connectivity, ensuring you get the fastest and most reliable connection available. For businesses with varied locations across multiple cities,SmartCONNECT™is a perfect solution since it automatically improves the robustness of your primary and secondary connection within seconds while also allowing you to configure bandwidth prioritization rules. So, if you are a business owner or an entrepreneur, SmartCONNECT™ can help your business operate more efficiently and faster so you can reach your goals on time.

Read the blogThe Advantages of Dual Internet Connections: Uninterrupted Business Operations

Why a Business Needs a Back-up Internet Connection

The internet outage will halt the sales, cause date losses, set a negative impression for customers, and can cause severe financial losses in your business.To cope with these unforeseen situations, we recommend having abackup internet connectionfor your business. A backup connection will provide an immediate solution to your business in case of any internet issue in the primary ISP. In case of any issue with your primary internet service, the data and communications will be rerouted to a backup connection and your business will run smoothly. Enlisted are some of the benefits of having a backup internet facility for your business.

Keeps the sales up

Internet outages can happen due to different reasons. They can occur due to weather conditions, construction works, or some technical faults in the service provider's equipment. Aredundant Internet connectionkeeps the orders flowing even in the absence of internet from the primary service provider. This backup connection provides your network with an instant and alternate path to the internet and helps your team to keep on working. This will help your business to keep on serving paying clients, maintain reliable connections between branch offices or retail stores and have a100% up-time.

Lowers financial loss

An internet outage can severely hit small businesses. It can make your business unable to process orders and credit card payments and can cause a big loss of revenue. Abackup internet connectionwill ensure100% up-timefor your business by allowing the staff to process orders and payments all the time. This will help your business to lessen the financial loss.

Prevents interruptions

Full outages of the internet are very harmful to your business. However, small interruptions can also have very serious implications. Aredundant Internet connectionhelps your staff to switch to a good internet connection in case of slow speed, or sudden disconnections in primary internet service. This effective and timely backup provides an immediate solution to any internet issue your business can face.

Meets legal regulation

A backup internet facility is essential for the industries relying on access to critical data and communications. For instance, regulators, in the healthcare industry, require businesses to resume operations with no disruptions. They also need to have a disaster recovery plan in place to cope up with any event of a disaster. A backup connection helps these businesses to ensure uninterrupted connections and maintain legal regulations.

Saves the data

Data, your business store and carry, is one of the biggest assets for your business. It is essential to have seamless and secure internet connections for your business to mitigate the risks of data loss. Aredundant internet connectionreduces the risks of data loss by providing an alternate and instant path for your network. So, it is necessary to ensure consistency in the internet facility to your business by having a backup connection.

Makes your business stand out among the competitors

Abackup internet connectionmakes your business stand out from your competitors. In any case of internet outage due to infrastructure failure or extreme weather conditions, the fail-over internet connection will allow you to provide non-stop service to your customers. As the availability and effectiveness of your service determine your sales, the backup connection ensures100% up-timefor your business to increase sales. This will increase your customer's trust in your business and they will choose your services over competitors.

Decreases stress:

A fail-over internet connection will save you from a lot of unnecessary stress caused by sudden internet outages. During any case of an internet outage, your employees will not be able to work effectively. This can cause a very stressful situation for you due to financial loss, negative reputation of your business, and inability to get back online. So having a backup connection will reduce stress and will allow you to concentrate on crucial business matters without worrying about internet supply.

Is budget-friendly

The cost for a backup connection mainly depends upon the bandwidth needs and budget of the business. However, a backup connection must cost less than your primary internet connection. Despite costing less in the budget, a backup connection saves you from heavy financial loss and sets your business as a reliable brand.

In Conclusion

As seen from the above-mentioned reasons, a backup internet facility is essential for the success of your business. It will keep your sales up, save you from unnecessary stress and revenue loss, and help your business grow. To help you choose a budget-friendly and reliable backup internet connection, we atVivantoffer cutting-edge solutions for 100% connectivity uptime with varying bandwidth speeds. For more information about all our services please visitwww.vivantcorp.com.

Choosing a VoIP System: Things to Consider

Know the Benefits of a VoIP System

Having a VoIP system for your business phone system can make a huge difference in the way that your company is managed. That's because VoIP systems are easy to use, affordable, and reliable. Not only that but they're set up to be exceptionally cost-effective for most business owners. However, there are other benefits of VoIP services that you should be aware of, such as the following essential features that they offer:

  • VoIP services make it possible to make calls from anywhere that there'sinternet access.
  • If you use the right VoIP services, it will be possible to ensure that you get the best possible price that you can on communications services for your businesses.
  • You can always ensure that you pick a VoIP company that offers exceptional customer service, and this will ensure that you have every question that you may have answered as soon as possible.

So, How Do You Pick a VoIP Provider?

There are lots ofVoIP business phone systemproviders that you can choose from, but each provider offers something completely different. Therefore, it's important to pick one that is set up with the needs of a company like yours in mind. Here's what you need to know to pick the right VoIP provider as the owner of a small business:

  1. Compare Prices

The price is not the most important thing to compare from one provider of VoIP services to another in many cases. However, it's crucial to ensure that you have a realistic view of what to expect. Luckily, the internet makes it easy to compare prices between a wide range of manufacturers. This can ensure that you get the lowest possible rate. Keep in mind that prices tend to be higher for plans that will allow you to use the VoIP services on multiple devices.

  1. Compare Multiple Providers

Always ensure that you compare each of the features that each plan you're considering offers. This will help to ensure that you're able to know everything that you'll be getting before you sign on. Here are a few of the most important features that you need to compare from one provider of VoIP services to another:

  • It's important to make sure that you pay close attention to the number of devices that can be included in the plan. As a small business owner, it will be essential to make sure that all of your employees have access to VoIP services.
  • It will be crucial to make sure that you compare the data limits of the provider that you're considering with its competitors. This will ensure that all of your employees have internet access and mobile data. Bandwidth limits vary significantly from one provider to another.
  • Consider whether or not it is possible to get a discount for bundling multiple devices on the same VoIP plan. Many providers offer this, and it can be a great way for small business owners to save money without sacrificing anything.
  • Always make sure that you are entirely familiar with the unique needs of your business. This will ensure that you know what to look for when you're comparing specific features that are offered by individual policies.
  1. Know How to Read Reviews

If you are reading reviews of aVoIP provider, it's important to make sure that you know what to look for. Luckily, it's easier than you'd think to pick out an exceptional provider if you know what you need to look for when you're reading reviews of VoIP services. Here are a few of the most important things that you need to look for when you're reading reviews of a service that you're considering:

  • Consider whether or not the reviews indicate that the provider will offer easy-to-access customer support if you have any unexpected problems that come up.
  • Think about whether or not the provider is generally considered to be reputable by people who have subscribed to VoIP services that they offer.
  • Consider whether or not there is a sharp divide between highly negative and highly positive reviews. If there is and some of the negative reviews refer to the company as a scam, it's important to avoid the provider for VoIP services and any other services that they offer.

Why You Should Choose Vivant Corp

If you're looking for a reputable provider of VoIP services, then you can rest assured that Vivant will have exactly what you need. There are several reasons why their services are the best on the market. However, these are a few of the most important ones to be aware of:

  • Vivant Corp is a well-known provider of VoIP services, and they offer a wide range of services for business owners. This will ensure that all employees can communicate with one another easily.
  • Vivant has received excellent reviews from people who have used their services, and you can find these reviews on Yelp, Google Reviews, and various social media websites.
  • Many business owners feel strongly thatVivant Corpis one of the best providers of VoIP services on the market.
  • Vivant offers a wide range of policies that are geared towards small business owners, and they're offered at an affordable price.

Furthermore, if you have any questions about what Vivant offers, it's easy to get in touch with one of their customer support representatives. Vivant will ensure that you get the information that you need as fast as possible, which will allow you to decide as to whether or not their services are right for you.

Read the blogUnveiling the Importance of Call Statistics in VoIP Business Services.

Why Having a Redundant Network Is a Must For Any Business

Businesses rely on their internet provider for a service that allows them to carry out cloud processing, marketing, outsourcing, eCommerce, client relationship management, video conferencing, remote operations, data storage, and communication. Consequently, a breakdown in this internet connection can cripple the business resulting in heavy losses.

The apparent problems resulting from internet breakage and downtime have necessitated an innovative solution. Therefore, redundancy is a vital consideration for all firms that have a framework that relies on a steady connection. This connection forms a vital part of business operations, and it ensures this connection runs optimally despite unforeseen mishaps and externalities. Network redundancy entails incorporating additional networking devices and configuration to ensure that the business enjoys an uninterrupted internet connection throughout its operations. This article looks at why having network redundancy may be one of the most worthwhile investments for your business.

What causes internet downtime

There are numerous possible causes for these troublesome internet breakages; a provider may be affecting infrastructural or firmware upgrades resulting in internet breakages. These outages may also result from a failed link between your devices and the internet provider. This broken link may be due to a storm or any other externality. Faulty or worn equipment can also be a notable culprit. Internet providers quite often rely on backbone networks which can interrupt internet connections when they go out. Power outages may also result in internet breakages as most internet frameworks are dependent on the availability of power. Given their nature, hardware components tend to wear out over time, resulting in failures that can sever internet connections. Upgrades may also cause problems in internet connectivity, especially when incompatible components are being used for firmware and hardware. It is a competent way of ensuring that these hazardous instances do not vastly impact the performance and productivity of your business.

Benefits of a redundant network

Having a redundant network is vastly beneficial for a business firm with notable bandwidth demands. A single connection may not be able to handle these tasking demands, resulting in slow connectivity and lagging. Processing large tasks become next to impossible in this case. Setting up a redundant network such as a Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) allows you to merge various ISP connections into one that can handle the business's bandwidth requirements. Not only will it be faster, but it will also be able to operate optimally in case one ISP connection goes out.

Internet interruptions can be quite costly for any business. The internet tends to go off for moments at a time, which can interfere with your firm's productivity levels. Once this connection is severed, it takes a considerable amount of time to return to optimal levels of operation. Utilizing technology such asSmartCONNECTallows your business framework to switch to another connection in case of internet outages seamlessly. This switch allows the business to run smoothly and consistently.

Effecting network redundancy allows you to better prepare for sudden internet outages that can last for long periods. It is not uncommon for internet providers to have downtime lasting up to 24 hours or even more. These long periods without connectivity can be quite detrimental to any business. Clients will not be able to reach your business, and you will not be able to offer your products and services in a timely and efficient way. Having a redundant network allows you to operate consistently, even with externalities that interrupt your steady internet connection.

“Redundant ISP connections allow you to keep operations even when other competitors are unable to. Offering uninterrupted services when other similar businesses can't do the same gives you an absolute advantage on the market scene. Your business will be able to pull in more clients as they seek out the next most reliable option. Clients tend to find the consistency and reliability of any business quite appealing, and this could vastly improve your sales”.

It is commonplace for businesses to lose their clients as a result of unavailability and inconsistency. A poor internet connection makes it hard for businesses to reach you and may also worsen customer experience. Bad customer experience is one of the most notable causes of any business's decline, hence the need for an efficient customer support framework.

Network redundancy can be used as a security measure for your business. Quite often, businesses allow their clients to connect to their internet via unknown devices. These devices pose an apparent risk as they can allow for espionage, infiltration, and malware attacks. Having numerous ISP connections allows the business to segment each sector based on their different connections. Therefore, clients can be given a dedicated connection that will not interfere with the business's vital sectors. Internet security is very important, and segmentation coupled with it can be quite formidable in shielding off apparent vulnerability. Having a redundant network will also keep internet traffic from different endpoints separate. Sensitive information from one department will not be relayed across the same network, which unauthorized parties can easily access.

Tips on how to set up a redundant network

A well set-up redundant network has vast benefits, as seen above. Setting up redundancy is an intricate process that professionals should do for the best results. It would be best if the entire network were made fully redundant. There should be backups for power, ISP, devices, cables, and even VoIP. This backup framework should be as simple and neat as possible to make repair and maintenance easy. Businesses may also consider using 4G as a viable alternative for backing up primaryinternet service providers. These measures will ensure that your business gets the most out of setting it up.

Conclusion

Internet downtime can result from a myriad of factors, including technological errors, natural phenomenon, or simply human error. For a business to avoid these costly implications resulting from internet downtime, it would be best to employ a reputable internet wireless provider who guarantees unlimited uptime or a competent fixed wireless provider. In the long run, internet redundancy is a worthwhile investment as it provides a competent buffer against losses resulting from a broken internet connection.

For more information about Vivant'sSmartCONNECTtechnology orSD-WANofferings, please refer to the linked pages.

What is a VoIP Business Phone System?

How does VoIP Work?

In a nutshell, aVoIP service providerroutes a call between two or more callers over the internet.
When a call is made, the analog signals are converted to digital signals on the caller end. Then the signal takes multiple different forms available in the protocol on its transit to the receiver end.
The service provider has one or many VoIP server(s), which they use to connect calls to the internet and to Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)
In aVoIP telephone system, all that is required is a desk telephone on the user end and a call routing server for service providers. With this typical setup, there is no need for an on-site PBX system which saves money and provides a more resilient infrastructure.
Data management and security of telephone systems are made possible through cloud computing technology. This means that service providers can monitor and adjust the system remotely in order to scale or fix issues much faster without sending a technician on-site
When you use a business phone system, you are in effect saving your company costly expenses since most companies have a fiber or cable broadband connection that is already sufficient to operate a VoIP phone service

The Benefits

For most, if not all companies, the goal at the end of the day is to maximize profits by cutting down operational costs and maximizing efficiency. Internet phone service systems make this possible by providing your business with reliable and flexible services at a fraction of what it would cost in traditional systems.
While it may be tempting to have an in-house server dedicated to calls, the operational costs and lack of redundancy and scalability outweighs the saving benefits you would otherwise be aiming for.
Communication requirements in the workplace are ever-present, and this means that the communication channels should always be as reliable as can be. VoIP makes it possible for your staff to work from anywhere and everywhere if they have an internet connection through smartphone integration. This eliminates the need for a company to have their staff fixed at their work desks to use the company's communication channels. The work freedom makes it possible for staff to work out new and existing business prospects from where they feel most comfortable.
With the internet being widespread and almost a need in most business environments, it is safe to say that almost every company has a paid internet connection. While a business may not maximize its bandwidth allocation, mostInternet Service Providers(ISPs) charge a flat rate for their connections. Using a business phone service system ensures it makes full use of its bandwidth.
You can tweak the existing infrastructure of a company to enable use with an internet phone system. In analog phones, you can use an Analog Adapter to make it work with the new system.
Business phone systemseliminate the need for complex infrastructure to make communication possible. While landline technology came with the need to have cables run all over the premises, most devices come with wireless capabilities or utilize the existing internet wiring in place. You can see this even from the use of integrated personal devices like smartphones.
Using VoIP, you can get detailed caller insights such as the total number of inbound and outbound per each advertising channel, the number of answered, missed and voicemail calls, each user's activity per day and hourly, and much more actionable insights otherwise not available in a traditional phone system.

Features VoIP Has to Offer

Using this type of system not only makes high-definition voice calls possible, but it also opens up a wide array of possibilities, all made possible by the internet.
Here are some of the features and benefits your company will get to enjoy when you switch to a business system:

Conference Calling

It is possible for you to have simultaneous communication with many people without loss in voice quality. Depending on the package you have subscribed to, the service providers can configure it to let you make conference calls with varying numbers of participants.

High-definition Voice-call Quality

Compared to landline technologies, VOIP lets you enjoy clear voice quality in your calls. These advancements in communication technologies make the connections less prone to external interferences, therefore, improving call quality.

Unlimited Calling

When making calls over the internet, you are not limited by the bounds of the physical locations of the connection lines. While in landlines, calls were only possible within the connection range, calls span through the breadth of the internet itself. This makes it possible for you to enjoy even international calls at near-negligible rates when compared to other technologies like landlines.

Call Queueing

Depending on your subscription, you can tweak your service to queue your calls whenever your team is held up automatically. This makes it possible for you to keep your customers engaged and patiently waiting at times when no one in your team can get to the phone.

Voicemail-to-Email

For any company, continuity is essential, and any revenue loss is not good. When using our services, the voicemails you receive can be routed to any email account, making it possible for it to be acted upon promptly, therefore maximizing your team's efficiency

Smartphone Integration

Our systems can be integrated to work on devices other than desk phones. This is possible using apps for both Android and iOS, giving you access to the communication systems whenever and wherever if you have an internet connection. You can also use built-in phones in your browser to provide you with a complete unified communication system no matter where you are.

Read the blogThe Role of a Robust Phone System in Business Performance

What is a VoIP Business Phone System?

How does VoIP Work?

In a nutshell, aVoIP service providerroutes a call between two or more callers over the internet.
When a call is made, the analog signals are converted to digital signals on the caller end. Then the signal takes multiple different forms available in the protocol on its transit to the receiver end.
The service provider has one or many VoIP server(s), which they use to connect calls to the internet and to Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)
In aVoIP telephone system, all that is required is a desk telephone on the user end and a call routing server for service providers. With this typical setup, there is no need for an on-site PBX system which saves money and provides a more resilient infrastructure.
Data management and security of telephone systems are made possible through cloud computing technology. This means that service providers can monitor and adjust the system remotely in order to scale or fix issues much faster without sending a technician on-site
When you use a business phone system, you are in effect saving your company costly expenses since most companies have a fiber or cable broadband connection that is already sufficient to operate a VoIP phone service

The Benefits

For most, if not all companies, the goal at the end of the day is to maximize profits by cutting down operational costs and maximizing efficiency. Internet phone service systems make this possible by providing your business with reliable and flexible services at a fraction of what it would cost in traditional systems.
While it may be tempting to have an in-house server dedicated to calls, the operational costs and lack of redundancy and scalability outweighs the saving benefits you would otherwise be aiming for.
Communication requirements in the workplace are ever-present, and this means that the communication channels should always be as reliable as can be. VoIP makes it possible for your staff to work from anywhere and everywhere if they have an internet connection through smartphone integration. This eliminates the need for a company to have their staff fixed at their work desks to use the company's communication channels. The work freedom makes it possible for staff to work out new and existing business prospects from where they feel most comfortable.
With the internet being widespread and almost a need in most business environments, it is safe to say that almost every company has a paid internet connection. While a business may not maximize its bandwidth allocation, mostInternet Service Providers(ISPs) charge a flat rate for their connections. Using a business phone service system ensures it makes full use of its bandwidth.
You can tweak the existing infrastructure of a company to enable use with an internet phone system. In analog phones, you can use an Analog Adapter to make it work with the new system.
Business phone systemseliminate the need for complex infrastructure to make communication possible. While landline technology came with the need to have cables run all over the premises, most devices come with wireless capabilities or utilize the existing internet wiring in place. You can see this even from the use of integrated personal devices like smartphones.
Using VoIP, you can get detailed caller insights such as the total number of inbound and outbound per each advertising channel, the number of answered, missed and voicemail calls, each user's activity per day and hourly, and much more actionable insights otherwise not available in a traditional phone system.

Features VoIP Has to Offer

Using this type of system not only makes high-definition voice calls possible, but it also opens up a wide array of possibilities, all made possible by the internet.
Here are some of the features and benefits your company will get to enjoy when you switch to a business system:

Conference Calling

It is possible for you to have simultaneous communication with many people without loss in voice quality. Depending on the package you have subscribed to, the service providers can configure it to let you make conference calls with varying numbers of participants.

High-definition Voice-call Quality

Compared to landline technologies, VOIP lets you enjoy clear voice quality in your calls. These advancements in communication technologies make the connections less prone to external interferences, therefore, improving call quality.

Unlimited Calling

When making calls over the internet, you are not limited by the bounds of the physical locations of the connection lines. While in landlines, calls were only possible within the connection range, calls span through the breadth of the internet itself. This makes it possible for you to enjoy even international calls at near-negligible rates when compared to other technologies like landlines.

Call Queueing

Depending on your subscription, you can tweak your service to queue your calls whenever your team is held up automatically. This makes it possible for you to keep your customers engaged and patiently waiting at times when no one in your team can get to the phone.

Voicemail-to-Email

For any company, continuity is essential, and any revenue loss is not good. When using our services, the voicemails you receive can be routed to any email account, making it possible for it to be acted upon promptly, therefore maximizing your team's efficiency

Smartphone Integration

Our systems can be integrated to work on devices other than desk phones. This is possible using apps for both Android and iOS, giving you access to the communication systems whenever and wherever if you have an internet connection. You can also use built-in phones in your browser to provide you with a complete unified communication system no matter where you are.

Read the blogThe Role of a Robust Phone System in Business Performance

4 Reasons Why Your Business Should Switch to a Hosted PBX System

So if you're looking for abusiness phone systemthat delivers secure and reliable services, a hosted PBX system is the solution you need. Let's take a look at some of the best reasons your business should make the switch to a hosted PBX system today.

What is a hosted PBX system?

A hosted PBX system is a cloud-based phone system that enables communication from within and outside an organization. Using Vivant's world-classhosted PBX servicesmeans that you are essentially migrating your business communication from rigid onsite infrastructures to the cloud.

That's right, all the telephony services for your business will be delivered entirely via the internet. Right off the bat, you'll be saving yourself from the extensive hardware and software costs that traditional PBX business phone systems require.

Not only that but using Vivant's hosted PBX solutions will spare you the hassle of spending time and money monitoring your on-premise PBX system or paying expensive service call fees just to make simple changes to your phone system.

At Vivant, we provide a 100% hands-off PBX solution to our clients so they can focus on their business while we provide you with business phone services with a 100% uptime guarantee. In addition, with our free support and maintenance, never pay for changes to your system or the maintenance cost of the system.

4 reasons why a hosted PBX system is right for your business

  1. Keeps costs low and predictable:
    In these uncertain times, costs are a huge consideration for any serious business owner. Fortunately, using a hosted PBX system will eliminate your long-distance cost and reduce your international call costs. The fact that calls are made over the internet means that they are practically toll-free.For businesses who regularly make national and international calls as part of their day-to-day operations, this is certainly welcome news.There are multiple cost benefits of switching to Vivant's hosted PBX solutions instead of using conventional phone services.For starters, using ahosted PBX systemvirtually eliminates having to make significant upfront investments in bulky telephone systems. Not only do these systems take valuable time and space to install, but they will also need to be maintained periodically.Of course, that may often require having to pay someone who is trained to conduct maintenance updates.At Vivant, we provide the hardware, software, and implementation services to get you up and running within a few short days. You run your business and we'll take care of operating and maintaining your business phone service.
  2. Your PBX system will grow with your business:
    The process of onboarding new staff members to an organization is notoriously slow and resource-intensive. This may put businesses at a disadvantage especially when they need to scale up or down quickly in response to current business conditions.If you're stuck using a traditional business phone system, adding a new user would require installing new phone lines and the collaboration between different staff members.Luckily, Vivant's hosted PBX solutions make the process of adding or removing staff quick and pain-free. Unlike traditional business phone systems, a virtual system can be scaled up on-demand effortlessly.Just buy as many phones that you need and simply plug into the internet connection to add the line to your system.If your business is expanding its presence with new office locations and additional staff, you can rest easy knowing that your communications capabilities will remain secure and reliable. Connecting additional offices is just as simple and all of your team will be connected as if they are in the same office.
  3. Remote working made easy and efficient:
    One of the reasons that make Vivant's hosted PBX system a top choice for local businesses is the flexibility and security it provides to employees working from remote locations.By simply using Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP), an employee can have their calls forwarded to their phone, laptop, or any other device.Vivant's hosted PBX system helps you boost employee productivity by letting remote employees communicate and collaborate seamlessly with their work colleagues. In addition, you can rest easy knowing that your remote workers are projecting the right image for your business regardless of their location.When you use a cloud-based PBX, the office becomes wherever your employee happens to be located. Even if they are located across the globe, employees will maintain access to all the tools they need to carry out their work.

Built-in analytics allows you to monitor all employees including remote employees' productivity to see how many calls they have made, answered, missed calls and a visual graph of hourly productivity throughout the day

  1. Ensures business continuity:
    Life is full of unexpected events and they can sometimes force a disruption in the operations of a business. While many big corporations may be better able to weather the storm, the effects of disruption on smaller businesses can be devastating.You never know when disaster can strike but here are a few reasons why they happen:
    Natural disasters (like storms and earthquakes).
    Technology system breakdowns.
    Communications systems breakdowns.
    Security breaches (hacks and software viruses).

    That's why having a robust, secure, and effective hosted PBX system as provided by Vivant can help ensure business continuity for your firm. When you use Vivant PBX solutions, there is no need to worry about any physical equipment on the premises of your firm. That's because there isn't any equipment.Our hosted services mean that we keep all the necessary hardware in safe storage and with expert personnel to keep them up-to-date.Should your business go through an unfortunate natural catastrophe, you can rest easy knowing that your communications system is still up and running as if nothing ever happened.

Hosted PBX systems are quickly being adopted by local businesses for the amazing benefits they offer, including the ones outlined above. The changes we've experienced these last few years have had consequential changes with how businesses are run and operated.

Switching to a cloud-based PBX service by Vivant is one of the most effective and cost-efficient ways to stay competitive in 2021 and beyond.

Read this blog:What to Consider When Choosing a VoIP Phone System

How to Choose the Best VoIP Phone System for Your Business

Choosing a Business Phone System is not as simple as it sounds

The rate of adoption for VoIP has been explosive but has also created a market that is now flooded with providers. It's one of the main factors that makes switching to a VoIP phone a daunting task for many businesses.As a business owner, you know that an internet phone system is the future of telecommunications. However, knowing how to find theperfectphone system for your businesscan get tricky.In this competitive environment, you're bound to see many providers making outlandish promises just to close that sale.At Vivant, we put our money where our mouth is with our 100% uptime and seamless connectivity guarantee.

Vivant is the leading VoIP provider

Our team at Vivant is made up of passionate technology experts who strive to help local businesses succeed in their field. We believe that our technology will help businesses be more flexible and productive while also reducing unnecessary costs.Vivant has developed strong relationships with all major carriers and hosted phone systems. This means that regardless of thebusiness phone systemyou currently use, our VoIP solutions will integrate seamlessly.Vivant's versatile VoIP solutions can enhance your current systems with features that were previously not available. For example, you'll be able to obtain valuable customer data insights from your CRM and/or help desk systems.

Key benefits of switching to Vivant Phone System

Let's take a brief look at some of the key benefits that a system can provide to your business.

  • Save on costs:

Investing in new technology solutions is often a big-ticket expenditure. However, you'll be glad to know that they are much more cost-efficient than conventional phone lines.VoIP connects calls using your existing internet network. You don't need additional hardware and your international calling rates are much cheaper too!

  • Minimal setup time:

We get it: these arebusy timesandtime is money. Traditional business phone systems could take a few days to complete. In addition, they usually require purchasing additional hardware that was expensive and bulky.A VoIP system can take a few hours (if that) to complete, and you'll be up and running before you know it.

  • Better remote work flexibility:

These days, companies need to have flexible remote working capabilities. Whether you're at home or on a fishing trip, sometimes you need to take business calls and have easy access to your work files.VoIP technology makes it easy to port a phone number to a new location or device so you can stay in touch with your colleagues and clients whether through your desk phone at the office, mobile app on your fishing trip, or the beach on your laptop, welcome freedom to work from anywhere.

Things to consider when choosing a phone system

  1. Seamless connectivity:Having a strong foundation is essential for any credible provider. Since systems use the internet to make and receive calls, you need to make sure that the networks they run on are reliable and secure.In this fast-moving world, you can't run the risk of missing important opportunities because of an unreliable network or slow internet, or poor business phone system.
  2. Get a system that grows with your business:The process of onboarding or removing employees has traditionally been a resource-intensive and expensive process. Thankfully, Vivant's DIY VoIP platform allows for adding or removing users as easily as a few buttons clicks with no disruption in your day-to-day tasks.
  3. It should make life easier:Switching should make life at the office MUCH easier. For one, you don't have to deal with bulky and costly equipment taking up space at the office. With VoIP, you'll have easy access to monitor, fine-tune, and manage your network assets.Whether you have an in-house IT team or not, you'll have an intuitive browser-based management system for hands-on control of your communications with minimal need for maintenance. Choose from Desktop VoIP phones, Mobile Apps to use on the go, or Built-in Phones into your favorite browser
  4. 24/7 Customer Support:One of the things that make VoIP such an appealing option is how easy they are to set up and begin using right away. But with technology, you'll inevitably run into issues along the way. That doesn't mean you'll have to do them on your own.With business-grade phone systems, you'll have 24/7 access to the DIY portal to make changes and to real technical experts to call on in times of need.
  5. Competitive features that end-users will love:Today's customers are usually of the highly demanding type. That means that when they call your business, they expect to talk to someone directly and quickly. Navigating from menu to menu hearing automated messages on a traditionalbusiness phone systemcan be highly frustrating.They come packed with powerful features such as automatic call forwarding, easy call transfers, and even a virtual receptionist who can assist callers in reaching the right party.

Don't just choose a system, choose Vivant

The way your business can communicate with your customers, vendors, and business partners will play a large role in determining the future success of your organization.At Vivant, we have worked hard for many years in cultivating strong relationships with our partners and clients. Our passion to provide world-class technology solutions sets us apart from the crowd.Whether you're having troublecommunicating with an overseas client or need expert assistance in setting up an important virtual meeting, our experts at Vivant have all your needs covered!Are you ready to finally make the move from the world of copper circuits and legacy switchboards? If so, get ready to be thrilled with the amazing capabilities that Vivant'sVoIP solutionscan offer your business.

Why Having a Redundant Network Is a Must For Any Business

Businesses rely on their internet provider for a service that allows them to carry out cloud processing, marketing, outsourcing, eCommerce, client relationship management, video conferencing, remote operations, data storage, and communication. Consequently, a breakdown in this internet connection can cripple the business resulting in heavy losses.

The apparent problems resulting from internet breakage and downtime have necessitated an innovative solution. Therefore, redundancy is a vital consideration for all firms that have a framework that relies on a steady connection. This connection forms a vital part of business operations, and it ensures this connection runs optimally despite unforeseen mishaps and externalities. Network redundancy entails incorporating additional networking devices and configuration to ensure that the business enjoys an uninterrupted internet connection throughout its operations. This article looks at why having network redundancy may be one of the most worthwhile investments for your business.

What causes internet downtime

There are numerous possible causes for these troublesome internet breakages; a provider may be affecting infrastructural or firmware upgrades resulting in internet breakages. These outages may also result from a failed link between your devices and the internet provider. This broken link may be due to a storm or any other externality. Faulty or worn equipment can also be a notable culprit. Internet providers quite often rely on backbone networks which can interrupt internet connections when they go out. Power outages may also result in internet breakages as most internet frameworks are dependent on the availability of power. Given their nature, hardware components tend to wear out over time, resulting in failures that can sever internet connections. Upgrades may also cause problems in internet connectivity, especially when incompatible components are being used for firmware and hardware. It is a competent way of ensuring that these hazardous instances do not vastly impact the performance and productivity of your business.

Benefits of a redundant network

Having a redundant network is vastly beneficial for a business firm with notable bandwidth demands. A single connection may not be able to handle these tasking demands, resulting in slow connectivity and lagging. Processing large tasks become next to impossible in this case. Setting up a redundant network such as a Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) allows you to merge various ISP connections into one that can handle the business's bandwidth requirements. Not only will it be faster, but it will also be able to operate optimally in case one ISP connection goes out.

Internet interruptions can be quite costly for any business. The internet tends to go off for moments at a time, which can interfere with your firm's productivity levels. Once this connection is severed, it takes a considerable amount of time to return to optimal levels of operation. Utilizing technology such asSmartCONNECTallows your business framework to switch to another connection in case of internet outages seamlessly. This switch allows the business to run smoothly and consistently.

Effecting network redundancy allows you to better prepare for sudden internet outages that can last for long periods. It is not uncommon for internet providers to have downtime lasting up to 24 hours or even more. These long periods without connectivity can be quite detrimental to any business. Clients will not be able to reach your business, and you will not be able to offer your products and services in a timely and efficient way. Having a redundant network allows you to operate consistently, even with externalities that interrupt your steady internet connection.

“Redundant ISP connections allow you to keep operations even when other competitors are unable to. Offering uninterrupted services when other similar businesses can't do the same gives you an absolute advantage on the market scene. Your business will be able to pull in more clients as they seek out the next most reliable option. Clients tend to find the consistency and reliability of any business quite appealing, and this could vastly improve your sales”.

It is commonplace for businesses to lose their clients as a result of unavailability and inconsistency. A poor internet connection makes it hard for businesses to reach you and may also worsen customer experience. Bad customer experience is one of the most notable causes of any business's decline, hence the need for an efficient customer support framework.

Network redundancy can be used as a security measure for your business. Quite often, businesses allow their clients to connect to their internet via unknown devices. These devices pose an apparent risk as they can allow for espionage, infiltration, and malware attacks. Having numerous ISP connections allows the business to segment each sector based on their different connections. Therefore, clients can be given a dedicated connection that will not interfere with the business's vital sectors. Internet security is very important, and segmentation coupled with it can be quite formidable in shielding off apparent vulnerability. Having a redundant network will also keep internet traffic from different endpoints separate. Sensitive information from one department will not be relayed across the same network, which unauthorized parties can easily access.

Tips on how to set up a redundant network

A well set-up redundant network has vast benefits, as seen above. Setting up redundancy is an intricate process that professionals should do for the best results. It would be best if the entire network were made fully redundant. There should be backups for power, ISP, devices, cables, and even VoIP. This backup framework should be as simple and neat as possible to make repair and maintenance easy. Businesses may also consider using 4G as a viable alternative for backing up primaryinternet service providers. These measures will ensure that your business gets the most out of setting it up.

Conclusion

Internet downtime can result from a myriad of factors, including technological errors, natural phenomenon, or simply human error. For a business to avoid these costly implications resulting from internet downtime, it would be best to employ a reputable internet wireless provider who guarantees unlimited uptime or a competent fixed wireless provider. In the long run, internet redundancy is a worthwhile investment as it provides a competent buffer against losses resulting from a broken internet connection.

For more information about Vivant'sSmartCONNECTtechnology orSD-WANofferings, please refer to the linked pages.

Original blog source:https://vivantcorp.com/blog/why-having-a-redundant-network-is-a-must-for-any-business/