Business grade data communications services often come with Service Level Agreements (SLA), but SLAs are a joke. As an example, Verizon promises 100% availability but they back up their SLA with this commitment:

For each cumulative hour of Network Unavailability or fraction thereof in any calendar month, Customer’s account shall be credited for the pro-rated charges for one day of the Verizon monthly recurring charge.

So if your business data services cost $500/month, Verizon will credit you less than $17 for each hour their service is down. What’s your cost in lost productivity? In being unable to process credit cards? For many businesses the answer is hundreds or thousands of dollars per hour, or more.  Asking Verizon to make a commitment for a larger credit only results in a long-term re-evaluation of monthly pricing essentially making you pay the difference somehow.

Best solution? Redundancy.

With two independent sources of Internet, when one service fails you’re still connected. Only if both services fail at the same time do you lose Internet connectivity. With redundancy, your effective connection is more reliable than the better of the two services!

Of course there’s a catch. The services must be “independent” meaning a failure of one is not tied to a failure of the other. In real life, this means the two services must come from different vendors via different paths – such as fiber and coax, or copper and coax. Having services that use different strands in the same cable bundle, such as a DSL line and a T-1 line, doesn’t help if that cable is cut.

Implementation.

The most common approach uses the dual wide area network (WAN) capability built into most modern “firewall” appliances. For example, the SonicWALL or Zyxel ZyWALL or PepLink security appliance includes dual WAN connections with a choice of active-active load sharing or fail-over configurations. As a less expensive alternative, there are even separate dual-WAN “routers” available from Cisco and others for less than $150.  Phonewire has the expert knowledge and close relationships to configure the equipment you need and coordinate with the many available Internet service providers to make sure it all comes together.

Numbers don’t lie.

We actually use the formula for calculating the probability of system failure given failure rates for each of several replicated services that make up the system. The formula is:

P = P1 * P2 * P3 * …

Where P is the probably of system failure and P”i” is the probability of the “i”th service failing.

This formula assumes independence of failure events. That means that the probability of service B failing, given that service A has already failed, is the same as that of B failing when A has not failed.

For example:
Let’s say your first service, which is advertised as “99.99%” reliable, is really only 99.95% reliable, i.e. the service is not working for 4-5 hours each year. Now you add a second service with only 99% reliability (i.e., it’s out of service 1% of the time) but you configure a reliable dual WAN router for redundancy. Now the combined failure rate is:

0.05% * 1% = 0.0005%

A 0.0005% failure rate means the combined service is available 99.9995% of the time. That’s better availability than provided by any single service offered by any Internet service provider in the United States! And with your business at stake, the incremental cost is tiny.  You may have never experienced an Internet outage ever — but what happens on the day you least expect?

Business telephone systems have come a long way over the past few years.  With features usually reserved for more expensive systems, the more affordable small business systems have adopted a feature set very competitive to their larger cousins.

The benefits of cordless phones are especially compelling in today’s business environment where every dollar counts and increased productivity is a top priority. Beyond the typical features expected from any standard Caller ID speakerphone, our criteria for this evaluation for the best small business phone system are:

• Initial support for 3 external phone lines.
• Ability to transfer calls to other phones and voicemail.
• Music-on-hold functionality.
• Integrated cordless phones.
• Option for adding a wired or wireless headset for receptionist.
• Private voice mailboxes for every user.
• An automated attendant to direct calls when receptionist is unavailable.
• Total budget of $2,000 or less, including installation costs.

Here’s the most popular phone systems for small business today and our reviews of each…

Thinking about the cost of a new phone system?

When discussing the cost phone systems, wiring and installation, purchasing the actual phones, the system itself (cabinet), programming, configuration testing, optional accessories, potential cost savings, gains from increased employee productivity, and costs to maintain quality and ensure reliability must all be considered.

Ultimately, how much you pay for a phone system will depend on which system you choose and the number of employees you have. Phone system costs are often displayed as the total cost per employee or user.  Call the manufacturer or locate a professional who is certified by the manufacturer to ensure your purchase is protected by warranty and your installer is competent.

Average Phone System Costs

Again, keep in mind that while there are average phone costs, how much you will end up paying for a phone system is dependent upon the size of your office and the features you require.  Just like all other electronics purchases, a well-known brand name does not necessarily equate to a reliable product — an when your business relies on its phones, do not risk it with someone without a proven reputation you can personally verify.

Most phone systems with typical Voice-over-IP capabilities such as SIP trunking and integration with mobile or home office “teleworkers” can cost anywhere from $300 to $1,000 per employee. Any specific features or integrations needed by your business will require play a major role in the pricing for this type of system.

Pure-IP phone systems with enhanced Unified Communications features start at around $600, but you will generally pay an average of $1,000 per employee for this system. If your business has at least 100 employees, the cost of these phone systems may be less, due to scaling.  These systems promise many features, but usually those features are locked initially and require software license keys to enable those features.  Make sure you discuss exactly what functionality you can use immediately and what features you must pay later to “turn on”.

KSU-less systems, like the AT&T SynJ wireless phone system, are usually the least expensive type of phone system because the only things you will be paying for are setup, installation, and the telephones themselves. Telephones for this type of system usually range from $100 to $250 per phone.

Don’t Forget About Installation

The cost of installation is often included in the overall cost of a phone system, and, in some cases, installation fees can be just as costly. Phone systems, VoIP, and Unified Communications systems are very complex, and require professional expert installation, so paying installations fees will be necessary. Look for a company with a reputation in telecommunications who will provide a flat-fee installation bid.  Be suspicious if they are a young IT company trying to “expand” into telecommunications or quote you a per-hour installation rate as most businesses that primary provide IT services and install phone systems on-the-side may be learning the technology as-they-go and using your business as their “guinea pig” risking the financial success of your business on their lack of telecom knowledge.

Wiring costs are usually your second-greatest expense.  If you are building a new construction building, putting in more wiring before the framed walls are enclosed will always be less expensive than trying to add wiring later.  You may also be required to pay additional charges if your existing wiring is not compatible to your new phone system.

Most people take the telephone for granted. It is the business tool that has always been there for you. Long before computers, fax machines or the Internet, everyone conducted business on the telephone or in person — and still does! The telephone is the most important asset your company has and sets the stage for the relationship with your client in that ever critical first-impression.

Functionality

There is only one reason why your company would need a new telephone system: Functionality. Most companies need a phone system to do something that an ordinary phone line doesn’t do. Common features of business telephone systems include: call conferencing, call transfer, intercom, hold, multiple lines, voice mail, paging, music-on-hold, etc.  But today’s business telephone systems do so much more…

New telephone systems and cloud-hosted communication services, like the ones sold by PhoneWire, add the latest technology such as wireless DECT phone handsets for employee portability, instant messaging and push-to-talk radios built-in for faster employee communication, outlook e-mail and calendar integration for better time management, SIP trunking for cost savings, high-definition voice for future communications clarity, cellular/mobile phone connectivity for truly unified communications, and so much more!

Whether your company uses one or hundreds of these features, a new telephone system from PhoneWire is required to run and process all the features that your competitors may already be using now. Most businesses need a new telephone system for one or all of the following reasons:

• Present equipment does not function as it should
• Present equipment is outdated and does not accommodate new technology
• Company has outgrown current system
• Company is looking for their first telephone system

Question: So, when do we need a new telephone system?

Answer: When the functionality of current equipment does not meet the needs or wants of the company.

What to Consider

If we assume the “Functionality” is the sole reason to buy a new telephone system, then we must establish what “functionality” means to your company. Here are some suggestions:

Pick a specific day (say Monday) to assemble all the people who use the telephone system. Please include more than just the people who answer the phone. Sales people, executives, warehouse staff, etc. remember everyone uses the telephone. Present the word “functionality” to this group of people in the form of questions you are not looking for answers yet. Give everyone the week to investigate and think about the questions you have asked.

1. What didn’t the old equipment do that you wish it did?
2. What would you like the new equipment to do?
3. Have you heard of new technology that would help our business?
4. What color telephones are best for the office and why?
5. Are there features about other businesses that you frequently call, that you like or dislike?

After establishing what you would like your new telephone system to do, there are many other considerations that need to be addressed and answered. The following is a checklist of common questions that you as a customer should know and discuss with PhoneWire:

• How expandable is the system?
• What is the system resale value?
• What exactly will the Voice Mail do?
• How durable is the system? References?
• Do you need Battery Backup?
• Are all your phone jacks the proper size?
• Does all existing cable terminate where you think it does?
• How much does it cost to expand/upgrade?
• How much does service cost after the sale?
• Is the Voice Mail able to be upgraded & cost?
• How fast is your vendors’ emergency response?
• Does the system have power fail auxiliary telephones?
• Is the current wiring adequate?
• Is additional wiring required?

PhoneWire is one of the few business technology solutions companies who have a live, 24/7 answering service covering our office lines at 1(877)877-9473 around-the-clock for any emergency!  Customers who elect the security of a maintenance agreement receive the personal cell phone numbers of our executives.  We have the resources that many others don’t.  With a technology as critical as your business communications, we take our job very seriously and respond to the call!

With small to medium sized businesses in mind, Panasonic has created an IP phone system with wideband high-definition call quality known as the Panasonic KX-NCP series. Up to fifty-eight stations can be held with the NCP 500; however, with the NCP 1000, that number increases to one hundred and eight. Many applications are available with the NCP range. For example, you can enjoy a variety of telephony opportunities, built-in management tools and a number of interesting applications and features. This phone system offers many options to users: e.g. Voice over IP (VoIP) as well as the option to use analogue lines. This system is quite simple for IT and telecom administrators to manage. This was a priority for Panasonic when designing this system.

The Panasonic NCP 500/1000 phone system is rack-mountable and is equipped with a built-in main processing card. This card makes it possible to incorporate virtual SIP trunks along with IP phone extensions on-site or remote workers using VPN. KX-NCP products work with complete IP solutions and include voice-mail as well as computer telephony integration (CTI). It is simply necessary to utilize the main processing card and/or optional VoIP DSP cards.

For use with KX-NCP series, you are sure to appreciate Panasonic’s own Communications Assistant (CA) software. This software lets phone users use a graphical user interface that features point & click to operate telephone features, chat messaging with other office users, and presence for use with Outlook and TAPI-enabled CRM desktop tools. When you purchase the Communication Assistant Software, you will receive a license that includes free use for up to five users. If you need to have more users added to the license agreement, you can do so with a simple upgrade. In the event more features are needed, Communications Assistant Pro can be added, bringing greater presence functionality, call logging features, and increased contact list capacity.

Here are some of the features that the main processor runs: EVSM – Enhanced Simplified Voice Messaging, Two-Port Simple Voice-Mail that supports a hundred and twenty-five audio messages, 64 outgoing messages and has a storage capacity of a 120 minutes. You can integrate additional servers or use optional feature cards to add more features and storage as needed. Among the add-ons are support for ESVM4 4-port voicemail, remote programming & door phones. With the KX-NCP series phone systems, you will be able to integrate the KX-TVA voice processing system in order to provide advanced features like call screening, email integration, live recording, as well as greetings set according to Caller ID.

Avaya and Cisco are not as popular as you think — Panasonic is the #1 leader worldwide for phone systems of small businesses with less than 50 extensions. Panasonic has years of experience that other phone system manufacturers can’t compare. Panasonic hasn’t changed it’s name to hide from its questionable reputations like AT&T… Lucent… Nortel… Avaya… Comdial… Executone… Western Electric… Vodavi… Vertical… 3Com… just to name a few! Think about it: if these other companies made high quality products, why do they keep changing names and running from supporting past customers with older systems? Why do all these other manufacturers constantly sell new systems that are almost never compatible with their previous desk phones, expansion devices, or voicemail systems?  These other manufacturers may claim great ROI but engineer planned obsolescence to make it impossible to achieve long term return!

The Panasonic phone system can support it’s own wireless and wired handsets, a broad variety of IP phones, a good assortment of digital and standard analog wall, desk, and cordless phones. It is the easiest to use IP phone system on the market and it is also a perfect system for use in call centers, where phone usage is quite intense, and third party software can be operated along with KX-NCP series.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PANASONIC COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANT 3.0 EMPOWERS BUSINESSES TO STAY IN TOUCH WHILE ON THE GO
Industry-Leading Software Suite Enhanced to Improve Productivity of Remote and Mobile Employees

SECAUCUS, NJ, January 24, 2011 – Panasonic, a leader in business telephone systems, announced today that it has enhanced its state-of-the-art Communications Assistant (CA) productivity software suite. CA is a PC-based software application suite that allows the business user to manage their telephony needs from a desktop or laptop, with different levels of functionality available to suit a variety of business situations:

• CA Basic Express – Users can visually manage all of their individual communication needs from a PC
• CA Pro – Builds on CA Basic Express by enabling voice mail control from anywhere in the world and adds presence and chat/IM functionality to assess coworker availability at a glance
• CA Supervisor – Allows supervisors to visually manage all of their employees’ call activities
• VM Assistant – This module allows users to check voicemail messages from a PC, forward them via email as .wav attachments, and perform many other voicemail management functions (requires optional KX-TVA voice messaging solution)
• CA Operator Console –Simultaneously manages and redirects multiple calls with such features as drag-and-drop call transfer—ideal for the busy receptionist, customer service desk or support desk

“More and more businesses have been moving away from the traditional static desktop workplace in favor of a more mobile one,” said Bill Savino, marketing manager for business telephone systems at Panasonic System Networks Company of America. “In this new dynamic work environment, it’s essential for people to be able to easily manage their communications anytime, anywhere, which includes from their computers. Panasonic’s Communication Assistant is designed to offer businesses another way to stay in touch with and manage interactions with colleagues, customers, and suppliers—wherever they may be.”

CA 3.0 features point-and-click call control; instant messaging (chat); visual voice messaging; Microsoft® Outlook® integration; door telephone and sensor control; IP camera integration and control; call history, calls made/missed, and supervisor group call monitoring and management. The system also supports two types of deployments: computer telephony integration (CTI) without a server for small-to-medium-sized businesses and CTI server-based systems that can support up to four separate locations. Some of the new features available with version 3.0 include “drag and drop” on-screen icons so callers can visually manage teleconference locations; remote location call monitoring; busy signal override, and detailed status reporting.

Communications Assistant productivity software supports the Panasonic KX-NCP and KX-TDE business telephone systems. For more information on Panasonic Communications Assistant and Panasonic business telephone systems, please visit www.panasonic.com/bts.

About Panasonic System Networks Company of America

Based in Secaucus, NJ, Panasonic System Networks Company of America is a unit of Panasonic Corporation of
North America, the principal North American subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation (NYSE: PC). A comprehensive
business-to-business solutions provider, the company develops and delivers reliable, affordable, and flexible
solutions for communication, collaboration, security and productivity. The complete suite of solutions addresses
home and business communications, security and surveillance systems, retail information systems, office productivity
solutions, and high definition visual conferencing, keeping Panasonic customers connected, informed, accessible and
secure. Information is available at www.panasonic.com/psna. Additional company information for journalists is
available at www.panasonic.com/pressroom.

Our competitor service providers make a LOT of money by charging you for “unlimited” calls. But, the average business user doesn’t make anywhere near the volume of calls to justify unlimited prices. So, when paying a flat-rate advertised as “unlimited”, you are really paying for service you will never use. Yes, monthly fixed pricing is predictable… but, predictable at 2 or 3 times as expensive is hardly worth it.

There is a reason that man invented fine print.  If you find a service provider offering unlimited calling at a rate significantly less than what everyone else would charge you, be careful.  A business must be profitable to say in business, so if you are not a profitable customer expect to receive horrible customer service and call quality.  It’s not personal, it’s the way they do business.

For example, the idea of an unlimited phone service is very intriguing to businesses looking to outsource their inbound telephone calls to a call center. While some services will advertise what they call an “unlimited service” or “flat rate service”, there really is no such thing. Many businesses use the word unlimited as a marketing ploy. Imagine you hire a minimum wage employee and expect that person to be your IT department, sales department, customer service staff, and work 24-hours a day for you when you will only pay them for 8 hours. Basically, the math just doesn’t add up.

If you are being courted by a service that claims to offer you unlimited calls, the service is either horrible (and why would you want a horrible service representing your business) or they have analyzed your call volume and are giving you a flat-rate because they know your business will not exceed standard inbound call volume (which means you are overpaying) so the answering service will always profit in the end. Anyone claiming to offer an unlimited service is trying to prey on the idea of getting something for nothing.

With Phonewire, you receive exceptional service, the most reliable technology, and attention to quality while we make a modest profit.  Our strategy is to develop a relationship with each client and our customers’ testimonials attest to that success.

The decision to use a professional phone answering service can have a profound impact on the success of your business. Every time a customer calls you, whether to make a logistical inquiry, troubleshoot a problem, gather information, book and appointment, or make a purchase, they expect your business to handle their call promptly and professionally. If a customer has a difficult time reaching you, or cannot speak to a live operator, you risk losing that potential income to a competitor. Fortunately, hiring a professional phone answering service is an easy and inexpensive solution that will improve your customer service and enhance your image.

The way a business handles its incoming calls has a dramatic effect on the way customers perceive a company, and the way they relate their experience to their friends and families. A strong recommendation from a customer is a sure-fire way to increase your revenue, but in the current social media environment, bad reviews spread more quickly and easily than ever. Using a professional phone answering service is one of the easiest ways to ensure that your callers have a positive experience and pass along their approval.

With a professional phone answering service, every call is answered promptly, and highly trained representatives ensure that each caller forms a positive impression of your company. Callers are warmly greeted by experienced customer service specialists who can provide information, answer questions, resolve grievances, and even assist with your sales efforts. This gives your customers the satisfaction of knowing that you value their business, and can go a long way towards building customer loyalty.

In the current small business atmosphere, effectively managing your resources is more critical than ever. By outsourcing your telephone services to a dedicated answering service, you can avoid the expense of hiring additional staff, allow your existing employees to focus their time and effort on their existing responsibilities, and give your customers a positive experience that will keep them coming back.

• Find out about the job candidate’s career background and how they became involved in the telecommunications industry. It is important to determine if the technician has the appropriate education and career background to be successful.  Telecommunications and Information Technology are two very different worlds and require different knowledge to be successful — a great IT guy very likely has no idea about great telecommunications systems design and will cost your business more time and money than simply hiring someone who already holds the skills needed!

• Develop a list of questions that address specific skills necessary for your organization. Create a few scenarios of possible telecommunication projects or challenges that may arise and help you evaluate how the candidate will respond to situations in your project and overall understanding of your workplace. Your questions will need to be specific to the job, but here are a few ideas to get you started:

  • What are the three most important skills a telecommunications technician should have?

  • Telecommunication technicians work with fiber-optic cables, wireless networks, telephone lines and high-speed communication networks. What is your strongest telecommunications skill set?

  • How have you used your telecommunication technician skills at your current job?

  • What are your two most significant career accomplishments?

  • What qualifications and skills do you have that set you apart from other telecommunication technicians?

  • Based on what you already know about our company through the job description and your own research, what telecommunications solutions would you suggest?

  • What trends do you see emerging in the telecommunications industry and how will they impact your job as a technician?

  • How will you help our company stay on top of the latest telecommunications innovations?

  • In addition to understanding the complexities of critical communications technologies, a telecommunications technician must be able to communicate plans with a wider audience. How will you explain your work to those who may not be familiar with the technical aspects of telecommunications?

Call us at 1-877-877-9473 to find out how we measure up against these questions and what strengths we can bring to your next telecommunications project that makes us a regional leader in implementation, service after the sale, and ROI affordability.

Small business phone systems are available in a variety of configurations, offering an ever-growing range of features and benefits. The most advanced small business phone systems today run on Internet Protocol (IP) networks—the same network many small businesses use to connect employees, devices and information resources.

But how do you find the right small business phone system for your company? And what’s the best way to deploy it?

There are many things to consider when evaluating and implementing a new small business phone system.

1. Understand what your users need. The right small business phone system can give your people the tools they need to be more efficient. Does your workforce need easy access to conferencing tools? Do workers need one phone number that simultaneously rings on multiple devices? It’s important to know which tools your workforce needs, so you can choose wisely among the many small business phone systems available. Among the features and capabilities to consider are:
   • Videoconferencing
   • Softphones, using a laptop computer as a phone
   • Automated attendant
   • Voicemail transcription
   • Integration with an answering service
   • Paging and intercom calling
   • Instant Messaging and Presence technology—the ability to quickly identify who within your organization is available at any given moment, as well as the best way to reach them
   • Cell phone integration, treating iPhones, Blackberry, and Androids as integrated extensions within the business system
   • Wireless phones, enabling workers to be easily reachable, even as they roam about a sales floor, warehouse, or other locations
   • Integration with a customer relationship management (CRM) system
   • Unified messaging, with notifications by e-mail, text message, or phone
2. Be prepared for change. A new small business phone system can help your employees do things that were not possible before, and that can change the way you conduct daily business transactions too. For example, using wireless phones, your sales floor staff can quickly check if an item is in stock in your warehouse, without ever having to leave a customer’s side.  Make sure the vendor you select includes training in their proposal.
3. Talk to your trusted advisor. Consult with your local service provider or reseller to ensure that your phone system’s features and capabilities will meet your company’s short- and long-term business goals.

Call us for a free consultation at 618-628-1552 to discover a small business phone system designed by Phonewire can improve your business.