Cost Effective Office Phone Options for SMBs

01 Jan 2019 | SMB, Voice and Collaboration, Digitalisation | 5-min read

Amid rapid advances in communication technology, many have predicted the business desk phone's demise. However, the office phone - from basic landlines to Private Branch Exchange (PBX) systems to cloud-based telephony solutions - remains useful for small businesses for several reasons:

• A dedicated office phone gives your business credibility, the same way a professional website does. Many customers still prefer to ask questions or discuss business transactions directly over the phone, just as many still prefer to make purchases in a physical store.
• Small businesses are better positioned to engage more intimately with customers and having a business phone line is the ideal outlet for providing personalised customer service.
• Small and medium enterprises, including start-ups, that have a mobile workforce or are housed in a co-working space are contactable through a business number even if they don't have a permanent office.

A traditional on-premise PBX system offers:

• call forwarding
• call extension dialling
• call waiting
• call routing

New cloud-based solutions are bringing telephony into the digital age. A cloud-based service such as Singtel BizVoice gives small businesses the functionality of a traditional office-based set-up, without the steep cost of owning or maintaining a physical PBX system. It replaces the physical PBX system with a more reliable cloud-based system, while still retaining your office phones.

As intelligence firm Transparency Market Research explains, a hosted PBX system greatly reduces capital expenditure – eliminating the expense of PBX servers, annual maintenance costs, and hiring of in-house staff and technical support. The system is more reliable for small business owners.

Singtel BizVoice also offers unlimited free calls to any local Singapore number, so you’re able to better manage your office phones expenses with a predictable monthly fee. 

Singtel BizVoice Unified Communications (UC) is another solution that can work independently or can be added to your Singtel BizVoice network. It offers specific benefits for start-ups, businesses operating in a co-working space set-up, or SMBs with a highly mobile workforce. All the traditional phone functionalities are available, but they can be accessed digitally on any desktop computer or smart device. All you need to do to access is install the app on your smartphone and connect to Wi-Fi.

Any employee working outside the office – even if you’re overseas – is contactable on a local fixed line number. Being an app-based service, they just need an internet connection for their computer or mobile device to access the office phone network. 

Customer queries and sales can easily handle no matter where staff are located. Local calls made through the Singtel BizVoice solution can also enjoy free unlimited calls. On top of the PBX benefits, UC offers others such as 

• conferencing,
• instant messaging,
• file sharing, 
• cost-effective roaming, and more.

Speaking to customers is still important for businesses. It’s an effective way to build the relationships that drive growth. Cloud-based phone systems are a way to lower costs and maintain a mobile workforce without the need to sacrifice connectivity.