The role of technology as a transformative force of business growth cannot be overstated. And cloud telephony has emerged as a key solution that helps businesses stay resilient and competitive, owing to its flexibility, scalability, etc. From small startups to large enterprises, organizations are leveraging cloud telephony to streamline operations, boost efficiency, and maintain continuity.
In this article, we’ll examine cloud telephony and seven ways to save money with it.
What is Cloud Telephony?
Cloud telephony revolutionizes communication by using internet protocols, secure applications, and business integrations to facilitate seamless phone calls from anywhere. Unlike traditional phone systems, which rely on fixed phone lines, cloud telephony operates virtually, with its infrastructure, services, and data hosted in remote or cloud data centers. This means you can make and receive calls from any location with internet access.
How Does Cloud Telephony Work?
It relies on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology to send calls over the Internet. VoIP converts analog voice signals into digital packets, which are then transmitted over an Internet connection. This allows you to make and receive calls cost-effectively across geographic boundaries, letting your business scale effortlessly.
Cloud telephony uses VoIP as an underlying technology, adding value and features to optimize business calling processes. All you need is an IP-enabled phone or softphone that can be used on computers, laptops, and smartphones.
7 Ways to Save Money with Cloud Telephony
By bringing cloud telephony into business communication, you can leverage this technology to upgrade the way your business connects with customers—while keeping costs down. Here are 7 ways in which cloud telephony reduces communication bills:
1. Scale Cost-Effectively
Cloud telephony allows you to scale your business communication solutions according to your needs. By simply using cloud phone solutions with your existing hardware and devices, you can easily avoid hefty upfront investments in hardware.
For instance, a small startup can begin with just a few virtual phone lines and easily add more as the customer base grows. This saves unnecessary expenses on unused capacity.
2. Eliminate Maintenance and Upkeep
And because you use existing equipment like computers and desk phones, there’s no need to worry about purchasing or maintaining expensive on-premises hardware. This means savings on repair, upkeep, and replacement costs. Your telephony provider handles the heavy lifting while you focus on running your business.
Related: Modernizing Legacy Phone Systems: How and Why to Upgrade?
3. Encourage Flexibility and Reduce Overhead Costs
Since cloud telephony doesn’t limit you to specific locations, your staff or agents can work from anywhere with an internet connection, reducing the need for a large physical workspace. By enabling remote work with cloud telephony, you can save on office space and related overheads. This could mean significant savings on rent, utilities, and office supplies. You can also outsource customer-facing positions to other countries and save on staffing costs.
4. Pay Only for What You Use
Most service providers offer monthly pricing models, meaning you only pay for the month. Most providers won’t need long-term contracts or impose cancellation fees, but double-checking is always good.
This makes adjusting for call volume and staff fluctuations (up or down) or season changes easy. For instance, a company conducting a seasonal marketing campaign can temporarily increase its call center software capacity without committing to a long-term contract. This saves money during slower periods.
5. Grow Globally with Local Costs
Establish a global presence without the need for physical offices in every location. Using virtual phone numbers with local area codes allows you to project a local presence to customers while saving on the expenses of maintaining multiple brick-and-mortar locations. Get different local phone numbers for target countries and forward incoming calls to your main office, remote employees, or to your PBX.
6. Improve Call Handling to Reduce Churn
By leveraging features such as call recording and IVR and analyzing call activity and custom reports, etc., you can improve call handling. This way, you can provide better customer service and reduce churn. Satisfied customers are more likely to remain loyal, saving you the costs of acquiring new customers to replace those lost to churn.
7. Maintain Business Continuity
Most VoIP systems have redundancy and disaster recovery capabilities, ensuring business continuity during outages or disasters. This can save your business from the financial losses associated with downtime and lost productivity.
Planning ahead with a disaster recovery plan is more cost-effective than rebuilding your business and its reputation.
Save Communication Costs with Global Call Forwarding
While unlocking the benefits of cloud telephony, you can stay at the forefront of technological innovation. Global Call Forwarding helps global businesses optimize communication processes and reduce costs with our state-of-the-art cloud telephony features.
Let us help you leverage cloud telephony’s capabilities. Call or chat with our experts online to upgrade your business communication system today!