Hosted Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) or “Hosted PBX” services are increasingly popular over the past few years. For many small to mid-sized businesses they are offer flexibility as well as being economical to implement up front and maintain over the long term.
A couple of years ago a small mortgage company client of mine asked their staff to take their desk phones home with them as a massive blizzard was expected and it was certain that schools and businesses would be closed down the next day. They were not expecting to be able to staff the office.
Traditionally, this would not have done anybody any good as people would take their business phone sets home but they either wouldn’t work on a regular phone line or, certainly, their office numbers and extensions would not be magically forwarded to reach them at a different physical location.
VoIP technology has changed all of that as, under the right conditions, it allows the phone units to be moved anywhere there is a good Internet connection and the users office extension or DID (direct inward dial) number moves right along with the phone. Not only is this helpful in an office environment where moving a phone station is now just as easy as plugging it into the nearest Ethernet network plug; but, for purposes of working remotely as well.
Sure enough, the blizzard came and our customer was able to take inbound calls and conduct business for two or three days while everyone else, including their competitors, was snowed in and shut down. Not only was there no interruption in their business; but, they likely picked up some additional along the way.
While nearly everyone, including the Smithsonian Institute, Ford Motor Company and others are now using or migrating to VoIP based technology, it comes in different flavors and for the small to mid-sized business a hosted PBX option might make a lot of sense. Part of the trick is to not get locked in to one vendor’s proprietary hardware or technology and to ensure you don’t become beholden to one single provider.
Use our Hosted VoIP quotes form or call us at 317-308-7983 to start a conversation on whether or not this type of solution would be appropriate for your business.
(note: this particular example took place in the central Indiana [Indianapolis, Carmel, Fishers, Greenwood, Brownsburg, Danville] area)
Sean Shepard has information technology and telecommunications experience spanning three decades. He has worked on both the client and the provider sides of the telecommunications industry in both technical and account management roles at companies such as MCI Communications (now Verizon), Sprint, TW Telecom and others.
... Mr. Shepard has a strong reputation in the marketplace for providing excellent customer support and communication, being a problem solver and a strong customer advocate. 
