Is a VoIP Phone System Suitable for Large Businesses

As a large business owner, you may be concerned about how suitable a VoIP system will be for you, particularly in light of the impending PSTN switch-off. As with any business structure, large businesses need solutions that are reliable, scalable, and cost-effective. VoIP solutions are Cloud-based, rather than relying on on-site hardware, which means you can easily scale depending on your business’ needs. Let’s take a look at why VoIP would suit your large business:

How VoIP can address your business’ challenges

Pricing - With traditional telephony solutions, phone bills can be hefty, especially for large businesses that make international calls, whereas VoIP is often deployed on a subscription basis, which minimises surprise fees and additional costs.In fact, businesses can save between 50-75% when switching to a hosted VoIP phone system.

Savings are also made in terms of hardware - desk phones are not cheap. If you choose to use VoIP apps, though, you save 100% of the cost of a desk phone for every employee in the business. When you factor in that a BYOD (bring your own device) model of working also seems to improve job satisfaction and productivity, you have a decision that benefits the business on multiple fronts.

Scalability - While traditional phone lines are inflexible, and adding or removing an extension means bringing in a technician to install a physical phone line, hosted VoIP phone systems are easily scalable, and you can add or remove users whenever you need. As calls are deployed over the internet, no copper wires are needed!

Flexibility - PSTN restricts you to physical desks. VoIP for business empowers your workforce to work remotely from practically anywhere with an internet connection, using their preferred devices (laptops, smartphones) – a huge advantage in today's hybrid work environment.
Features - Traditional telephony will offer you basic call routing and voicemail, whereas a VoIP for business solution boasts a plethora of advanced features, such as call recording, video conferencing, and instant messaging - all helping to improve your customer’s experience and employee’s productivity.

The advantages of hosted VoIP for large business

Simple migration - Any good VoIP provider should make it easy for you or your IT manager to transition to their platform with minimal downtime. This means less work for a likely already busy system administrator.

Bulk deployment options - At Yay.com, our bulk deployment methods make it effortless to roll out our VoIP apps to every member of staff, no matter whether you’re a business of three or three thousand. Principally, these work by passing on the simple, easy task of installing to each member of staff individually. Two minutes of work for a hundred employees beats two hundred minutes of work for one IT manager.

No matter which VoIP provider you’re considering, it’s worth looking for tools like this to ensure that migrating to VoIP is seamless and efficient. For large businesses in particular, you may have concerns about administrative hassles, so you will want a provider that can make this process as straight-forward as possible.

Unified communications -The best VoIP providers are forward-thinking, ambitious companies and their programmatic-base makes it comparatively easy for them to add new features and capabilities to their service.
Monetary savings - VoIP subscription models can offer reduced call costs, elimination of hardware and maintenance fees, and the flexibility of a BYOD (bring your own device) mobile application.

Advanced features and increased efficiency offered by VoIP

With a traditional phone system, you can expect basic features, but with VoIP for business, these basic features are simply the start. When combined with meta-features for your communications like video conferencing and secure business chat services, it becomes clear that VoIP phone systems and Unified Communications services are light years ahead of your old phone system.

Autogenerated reports - You are able to gain valuable insights into call activity as well as outbound call statistics, and identify areas for improvement and training.
Cloud-based call recording - Calls can be recorded for training, quality assurance, or conflict resolution, with storage in the cloud via your VoIP provider. Techopedia reports that businesses save an average of 32 call minutes daily with VoIP features.
Customisable call queues - These can be configured with custom-recorded audio that can be altered or updated in just a few clicks.

Backwards compatibility and integrations

VoIp phone systems are backwards-compatible with your old hardware. This can be achieved in a variety of areas, such as:

SIP trunking - If you have an on-site PBX, you can use your VoIP provider’s SIP trunking service to route calls to your PBX via the internet.

SIP trunking diagram

VoIP adapters - You can use VoIP ATAs (Analogue Telephone Adaptors) to continue to utilise any analogue desk phones. These are devices like the microfilter that sits between the router and the telephone line in your home’s VDSL network setup.

VoIP telephone adaptor diagram

BYOD mobile apps - VOIP apps are always an option for any business, making setup of your new business phone system effortless and cost-free, as they can be downloaded onto a plethora of smart devices.

Landline PSTN vs a VoIP Phone System for Large Business

Features	PSTN Phone Systems	VoIP Phone Systems
Deployment	Requires on-site hardware installation and configuration	Cloud-based, typically involves software installation on devices
Maintenance	Ongoing maintenance of physical equipment	Minimal maintenance, updates handled by VoIP provider
Security	Vulnerable to physical tampering and hacking	Strong security measures, often includes encryption
Disaster recovery	Requires backup systems and off-site data storage	Built-in redundancy, data backup and recovery included
Integrations	These have very limited integration capabilities, for example PBX systems	Easily integrates with CRM, email, and other software that may be used by your business day-to-day
Environmental impact	Higher energy consumption due to physical hardware	Lower carbon footprint due to reduced hardware
User experience	Often complex to manage and use	User-friendly interface, typically easier to manage

Porting your existing numbers

Moving to a VoIP solution does not mean you have to sacrifice your existing phone numbers. While you can choose to buy phone numbers if this works best for your business, number porting services allow you to seamlessly transfer current business phone numbers to your new voIP system. This ensures continuity for your customers. Let’s break down the process:

Choose your VoIP provider - Ensure that you choose a reputable provider that can offer great customer support all the way through your number porting process.

Initiate the porting request - This can be initiated online with the gaining provider. At the beginning of the number transfer process you will be required to submit documentation to verify phone number ownership, for example a recent phone bill.

Approval and verification - Both providers will verify your information and finalise this porting request. Your provider should provide you with notifications at each stage of the number porting process.
Making the switch - The number porting process can take between 8-20 days and leading providers will ensure a seamless switch, which means your business endeavours will be interrupted as little as possible.

VoIP is the future for large businesses

As telephony moves closer to the inevitable PSTN switch off, by adopting a hosted VoIP solution early, you can unlock multiple benefits for your company, including cost savings, scalability, enhanced call features, and a more mobile and collaborative working environment, It doesn’t have to be a complex process with the right VoIP provider, who will ensure you get all the support you need during the adoption process and beyond.