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Is Your Office Phone System Costing You More Than It’s Worth?

Is Your Office Phone System Costing You More Than It’s Worth?

An office phone system is often looked at as a cost center, but this can conceal its true value.

The ultimate purpose of any business investment is to save money or make money. While you might not make money directly from your office phone system, it facilitates money-making activities across the enterprise.

And if it’s not delivering the quality you want, it can be costing you in unexpected ways.

If you haven’t given your phone system much thought lately, it’s time to take a closer look.

Your Office Phone System Is Crucial To Retaining “Endangered” Customers

According to recent research, many Millennial customers avoid calling businesses on the phone as much as possible. They find conventional calls boring, repetitive, and a waste of time. This is no small matter, as the oldest Millennials are nearing 40. Their preferences affect your business and continue to do so.

But that doesn’t mean the era of the office phone system is over. Not by a long shot!

The great majority of your customers still want to call in. That includes:

1. Elders Aged 55 And Older

Surveys on the preferences of Baby Boomers show that they overwhelmingly prefer calling on the phone. In some cases, this may be because of a lack of interest in options like social media or online chat. In others, it’s because of a deeply held belief that talking on the phone is the best way to get things done.

2. Young People Now In Their Mid-20s

The younger cohort coming up behind the Millennial generation stands to reverse many of their preferences. The oldest of Gen Z was born in 1997. Many are finishing college and launching their careers or already have. While they do love to text, they also show a higher propensity to dial in for a regular old voice call.

Even your Millennial customers will call in if they believe it’s the fastest, most effective way to solve a problem. If you aren’t maintaining an office phone system that exudes quality, customers may lose interest in calling you. Usually, that leaves them drifting away from your brand with few chances for you to reverse course.

So, the first cost that can accrue to your office phone system is lost business. People often call you as a last-ditch effort to solve a problem they’re having, so a phone system failure cuts a valuable customer lifeline short.

Depending on the nature of your services, that can amount to thousands of dollars in lost opportunities.

Of course, it can be tricky to measure the effects of your phone system on your customer service. People who left your brand behind are unlikely to fill out Net Promoter Score surveys, after all. Luckily, it’s easier than you might think to figure out whether your phone system is having a money-draining impact.

5 Sure Signs Your Office Phone System Is Costing You More Than It Should

Your technology should grow and change with the rest of your enterprise.

That’s easier said than done when it comes to some critical systems. Business leaders often suspect that their office phone system needs an overhaul, but they worry about whether there will be disruption as a result.

Since there’s never a “perfect” time to have your phone system offline, upgrading often becomes a secondary priority. That puts the project in a holding pattern for weeks … months … and finally, quarters and years.

If you’re getting frequent complaints about your phone system, it’s a good idea to listen. And if you see any of those complaints below, odds are good that your current phone system is sweeping money out the door.

1. Calls Are Distorted Or Difficult To Hear

It’s not unusual for older office phone systems to have reduced call quality when bad weather strikes in Florida. Today’s modern Voice Over IP (VoIP) office phone systems virtually eliminate this problem. You can get crisp, clear audio under all conditions, since VoIP carries voice over your data lines rather than copper wiring.

2. Calls Get Dropped, Especially During Peak Usage

Dropped calls are often the first sign that a system is aging beyond its ideal service life. If you have not had the chance to update your office phone system in five years or more, it’s time to assess whether it still meets your needs. If it has been ten years or more, that assessment should start by contacting business phone experts.

3. Your Phone System Collects Limited Or No Operational Data

Business phones are no longer just communication tools. They are now essential to the training process. The first two issues above may lose you customers, but not collecting call data you can use for training purposes may mean your personnel won’t be able to serve your customers well. Either problem truly spells disaster.

4. Your Phone System Can’t Handle Necessary Productivity Functions

Customer service and sales teams alike rely on a nimble office phone system to equip them with important insights about their customers. The best phone systems now incorporate Customer Relationship Management and other software. This not only makes them efficient but saves you money on third-party software licensing.

5. Your Phone System Isn’t As Secure As It Should Be

A security breach can cost you millions of dollars and lead to a heavier regulatory burden to carry in the future. Mobile device security should be built directly into your phone system, allowing you to provision and lock your phones from a central interface. This prevents a worst-case scenario if a phone is lost.

The NEC SV9100 PBX Is The Business Telephone System You Can Trust

Atlantic Communications Team is the leading telecommunications provider in Central Florida.

From our local headquarters, we help businesses like yours harness the power of today’s leading network and telephone technology. We are proud to be an NEC Triple Diamond Dealer as well as the largest NEC dealer in Florida.

The NEC SV9100 PBX is what you need if you want to:

1. Simplify And Streamline Your Telephone System

The older your phone system, the more temperamental it can be and the more obscure the solutions become. Save yourself time and frustration by adopting all the latest state-of-the-art business phone technology in one leap. The NEC SV9100 PBX is scalable, reliable, and comes with all the best software built right in.

2. Make Your Workplace Modular And Smart

Who knew telephone administration could be exciting? With complete visibility into calls, connectivity, and security all in one place, your phone system’s operations are completely transparent. 75 million global users have chosen NEC solutions to improve their efficiency and collaboration.

3. Get Complete ROI from Your Office Phone System

It’s obvious by now: An outdated phone system can cost you. Instead of sticking with it and hoping for the best, get ahead of the curve and reap the benefits of the latest office phone system trends.

To find out more or get started, contact us today.