There is certainly something to be said for centralising resources in business, keeping everything tidy and close to hand. This is undoubtedly one of the largest advantages in on-premises telephone solutions over hosted telephony, allowing you the opportunity to be entirely self-reliant and rarely waiting on other people to resolve problems. However, this way of working is highly dependent on a well-trained and highly skilled IT department who don't have too many other demands on their time.
A hosted telephony service uses the support and facilities of an external provider, which often means that trouble shooting, though conducted remotely, is efficient. It is also provided with customer service as a priority which often results in a fast, friendly and very helpful service. Hosted telephony providers are also able to spend time monitoring usage ensuring that you are getting the best deal for your dollar. Moreover, businesses investing in hosted telephony are likely to save a great deal of money in the short term; not only are the costs of purchasing hardware or software limited to almost nothing as you are simply using those already put in place by the provider, but you also only pay for what you use with most hosted telephony providers working on a "per-seat" basis. This means that you only pay for as much of the equipment as you yourself are using as a business, rather than incurring costs for the system as a whole. Moreover, when it comes to deployment of hosted telephony systems, transitions made from traditional phone systems are easily done, and with all the details and logistics managed by the providers, you can sit back, relax and wait for the new phone system to be up and running.
Though there are many arguments for a hosted VOIP service, there are also some things to bear in mind before going for this over on-premises solutions. The first thing to consider, is how well the external supplier understands your business and its needs; can they provide the administrative functions that they need, and most importantly can the respond to your requests and tweak the services you require effectively, factoring in elements such as seasonal fluctuations in your data and call traffic. Whilst hosted VOIP services may be a great deal simpler initially, they potentially lack the element of customisation that on-premises solutions offer. They also lack the same level of flexibility as rather than flagging the IT guy when he next walks past, you are reliant on somebody offsite. Another thing to consider is the longer term cost implications.
Whilst the initial outlay for on-premises solutions is undoubtedly higher than for hosted VOIP services, the ongoing costs are less. On-premises solutions incur only operation and maintenance costs plus the salary of the IT department that is going to be responsible for it. Hosted VOIP services will involve regular fees which may add up to more than the cost of the equipment itself over the course of a few years. Moreover, there is an ongoing concern that the providing your hosted VOIP services may run into trouble and go under, or perhaps even consolidate with a competitor which may leave you with an increase in your fees which you were not expecting.
Emily Collins writes on behalf of Britannic Technologies. To discover more on the benefits of hosted telephony or what hosted VoIP can do for your business visit their website.
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