Tag: cloud based

  • Why You Need a Cloud Phone System: Exploring the Benefits of Hosted Telephony

    Why You Need a Cloud Phone System: Exploring the Benefits of Hosted Telephony

    lady on the phone - Benefits of Hosted Telephony

    Introduction

    In today’s fast-paced and interconnected business landscape, effective communication plays a vital role in the success of any organisation. Traditional phone systems are no longer sufficient to meet the evolving needs of businesses. This is where cloud phone systems, also known as hosted telephony, come into play. These innovative solutions leverage the power of the cloud to deliver seamless and efficient communication experiences. In this blog post, we will delve into the benefits of hosted telephony and explain why it is a must-have for modern businesses.

    Cost Savings

    One of the most significant advantages of a cloud phone system is the potential for cost savings. Traditional phone systems often require substantial upfront investments in hardware, infrastructure, and maintenance. In contrast, hosted telephony eliminates the need for expensive on-premises equipment, such as private branch exchange (PBX) systems. With a cloud-based solution, you can access enterprise-grade communication capabilities through a simple monthly subscription. Significantly reducing your upfront and ongoing expenses.

    Scalability and Flexibility

    As your business grows, so do your communication needs. Hosted telephony offers unparalleled scalability and flexibility to adapt to your evolving requirements. Cloud phone systems allow you to easily add or remove phone lines, extensions, and features without the hassle of physical infrastructure changes. Whether you are opening new offices, expanding your team, or exploring remote work options. A cloud-based solution ensures that your communication system seamlessly scales alongside your business.

    Business Continuity

    Unforeseen events, such as power outages, natural disasters, or network failures, can disrupt traditional phone systems and negatively impact business operations. Hosted telephony mitigates this risk by offering built-in redundancy and failover capabilities. In the event of a disruption, calls can be automatically routed to backup numbers, mobile devices, or alternative locations, ensuring uninterrupted communication and business continuity. By relying on the cloud for your phone system, you can maintain seamless connectivity even during challenging times.

    Advanced Features and Integration

    Another benefit of hosted telephony is it provides access to a wide range of advanced features and integrations that can enhance your business communication. These features include call forwarding, voicemail-to-email transcription, auto-attendants, call recording, and more. Additionally, cloud phone systems seamlessly integrate with other business applications such as customer relationship management (CRM) platforms and help desk software. This integration streamlines workflows, improves productivity, and enables better customer service by providing a holistic view of customer interactions.

    Mobility and Remote Work

    In an era where remote work and mobile connectivity are becoming increasingly prevalent, hosted telephony offers the flexibility and mobility that modern businesses require. Cloud phone systems allow employees to make and receive business calls from their mobile devices, laptops, or even softphone applications. This empowers your team to work from anywhere, ensuring continuous communication and collaboration across geographies. Whether your employees are on the road, working from home, or at a client’s location, they can stay connected seamlessly.

    Simplified Management and Maintenance

    Managing and maintaining traditional phone systems can be complex and time-consuming. With a cloud phone system, the responsibility for system updates, security patches, and infrastructure maintenance lies with the service provider. This allows your IT team to focus on core business activities, rather than dealing with the technical intricacies of phone system management. Additionally, cloud-based solutions often provide user-friendly web portals or mobile apps, enabling easy administration and self-service options for users to manage their own features and preferences.

    Conclusion

    The benefits of a cloud phone system, or hosted telephony, are clear and compelling. From cost savings and scalability to advanced features and mobility, adopting a cloud-based solution can revolutionize your business communication. Whether you’re a small startup or a large global organisation, the benefits of hosted telephony are sure to be useful for your business.

    To find out more, contact our team today!

  • Take business calls, from anywhere!

    Take business calls, from anywhere!

    take business calls, from anywhere

    In today’s fast-paced business environment, it is becoming increasingly expected that business calls are not missed. As we see an increase in hybrid working, it is important for businesses to adapt to ensure employees can work from anywhere. Ensuring no calls are missed. Did you know a cloud-hosted phone system could be the solution to your problems? Allowing your team to take calls from anywhere, at any time?

    In this blog, we cover exactly what a cloud-hosted phone system is. As well as, how implementing one in your business, means you’ll never miss a call again!

    What is a hosted phone system?

    A cloud-hosted phone system is a communication solution that operates over the Internet instead of relying on traditional phone lines. It involves storing and managing all phone system components. This includes hardware and software, at a remote location provided by a third-party service provider. Like ourselves here at The Unite Group. Users connect to the system through their internet connection and access features such as call management, voicemail, and virtual extensions. As a flexible and scalable solution, hosted phone systems offer businesses the advantages of cost-effectiveness, mobility, and easy management without the need for extensive on-premises infrastructure.

    Never miss a call again!

    Hosted phone systems do not require a desk phone! Therefore, the software can be added to your staff’s existing devices for example their phone, laptops etc. Saving you on the cost of expensive hardware. Not only this but also, meaning your team can take business calls anytime, wherever they are! Whether in the office, working from home, or even abroad! Since cloud-hosted phone systems work over the Internet, calls can be taken from anywhere that has access to the Internet. Correspondingly, statistics show businesses that use a cloud-hosted phone system increase productivity by up to 20%. With the ability to allow agents to take calls anywhere around the world. Meaning you can be assured your team is equipt no matter where they are working to pick up those all-important phone calls.

    Hybrid Working

    Since the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a shift worldwide of more and more businesses accommodating hybrid working. Having a cloud-hosted phone system means your staff working from home can be on hand to take calls as if they were sat at their desk in the office. Meaning your customers will not be aware of your team’s working location. No matter where that may be.

    Moreover, this in turn ensures that your team has the ability to work efficiently. Ensuring a call is never missed! Unlike traditional phone systems, where a desk phone must be attached to a physical line. Your team can access calls on the go using their mobile phone.

    Adopting a cloud-hosted phone system is essential for any modern business that wants to ensure it can continue to provide high levels of customer service in the ever-changing current business climate.

    So, how can The Unite Group help?

    Our team here at The Unite Group has a large team of highly skilled engineers who can implement a cloud-hosted phone system into your business, stress-free. Our projects team will plan all steps of the migration to ensure a smooth shift over for your business. Whether big or small, a cloud-hosted phone system can accommodate your business.

    Want to learn more?

    If you’re interested in learning more about Cloud Hosted Phone Systems, click here to head over to the page on our website. Where we break down further the benefits of ditching the traditional telephone system.

    Or alternatively, pick up the phone and chat with our experienced team who would be happy to have a no-pressure conversation and answer any questions you may have. Call us today on 0191 466 1050.

    Ensure your business never missed a call again! Stay ahead of competitors and implement a cloud-hosted phone system in your business!

  • Hosted telephony and the BT Switch off explained…

    Hosted telephony and the BT Switch off explained…

    BT has recently announced that they are switching all their customers from PTSN and ISDN services to a fully digital network, as Openreach are discontinuing the old phone analogue lines by 2025.

    This therefore concerns all small to medium-sized businesses, and even affects home services too. If you are a business, this affects everything that uses old phone networks including alarm and door entry systems.

    By switching to digital phone services, you are able to make calls from any device in any location, using the same phone number.

    This allows you to be able to link business applications and systems with video chat, calls and collaboration – which is a necessity in the workplace since the pandemic.

    The technical term for this digital phone service is hosted telephony.

    Hosted Telephony means that your phone system is hosted in the cloud. This is instead of physically in your office.

    The installation process is simple, there are no physical cables to install and connect. All that is required is an internet connection.

    Hosted Telephony provides a flexible and reliable way to manage your communications in the workplace.

    One of the benefits of hosted telephony is that once it is installed, it can be easily managed and tailored to your business. You will also have the option of adding extra features.

    Calls can be made and received across multiple devices including your phone and desktop.

    The flexibility of hosted telephony allows small and growing businesses to scale up. You also then don’t have phone numbers that are tied to one location.

    Advanced features of hosted telephony include SMS messaging, voicemail, Microsoft Integration, call recordings and more.

    Hosted Telephony also reduces maintenance and IT costs for your business.

    How can we help?

    At The Unite Group, we use Voice 365 to provide our customers with hosted cloud telephony service.

    Voice 365 provides a range of features including, call centre and remote working, receptionist software, call management, and more.

    We provide Voice 365 phones with no purchase cost. All of the payments are billed monthly, this allows you to spread out the cost for your business.

    If this is something you might be interested in learning more about, why not give us a call on 0191 466 1050. Or email us on info@theunitegroup.co.uk.

  • The Cloud – What is it and How will it Transform Hybrid Working?

    The Cloud – What is it and How will it Transform Hybrid Working?

    We always hear people talking about the cloud, iCloud, the ones in the sky – it can be somewhat confusing.

    Therefore, here at The Unite Group, our aim is to remove all the jargon and to make understanding technology simple.

    The cloud is essentially like a filing cabinet, with all your business’ files inside. Except there is no physical cabinet and everything is accessed via the internet.

    Therefore, it enables multiple users to access the same files and applications across a number of devices.

    Using a cloud computing service allows companies to stop making use of physical servers and allows them to migrate their data and files onto an online server that can be accessed from anywhere.

    As long as you have internet access, your company’s files and data will be readily available to be accessed from the cloud.

    By migrating your data to the cloud, hardware costs are reduced for small to medium sized companies. Therefore the need for these businesses to maintain and update their own servers is removed.

    Not only is the cloud so easily accessible, 94% of businesses report to have seen improved online security since they migrated to the cloud.

    Microsoft 365 is a widely used example of an app which allows you to store your files in the cloud.

    Likewise, Google Drive is an example of a cloud computing service. Consumers often use Google Drive to store their files, photos and more.

    So, now the question is how will it transform hybrid working?

    Well it already has. At one point, everyone except essential workers were working from home and computing services, like the cloud, were an essential.

    The past year the cloud has been vital to helping companies tackle one of their greatest challenges yet.

    Hybrid Working Life

    Office workers are now adjusting to a life of hybrid working models. Individuals may find that they spend two days in the office and three days at home.

    Due to employee expectations since the pandemic, we are very much expecting hybrid working to stay.

    But in order for this new working model to work both effectively and efficiently, businesses need a service like the cloud.

    Cloud computing services make alternating between remote working and office working a smooth and simple process.

    The main benefit being that the files and applications stored in the cloud can be accessed anywhere so long as there is a strong internet connection.

    How can The Unite Group help?

    Here at The Unite Group, we can migrate your data from your current mail server to the cloud. We can make sure that you take all your emails and contacts with you to avoid disruption.

    Our specialist service allows collaborative working from any location to be immediately available for you and your business.

    If you choose to migrate your data with the Unite Group, we will do all the hard work for you.

    We will create and implement a seamless migration plan with little disruption to your working day.

    If migrating to the cloud sounds like something you and your business would be interested in. Get in touch and contact The Unite Group today on 0191 466 1050 or email us on info@theunitegroup.co.uk.