Voice-over Internet Protocols are used to make calls over the Internet. Hosted PBX is a cloud-based system that uses VoIP technology to make business calls possible without using physical hardware and equipment.
What Is a Hosted Phone System?
A hosted phone system is a cloud-based system offering seamless business phone setup. This setup depends upon a stable internet connection, which transmits data from sender to receiver. The data is stored on the hosted phone system cloud servers, which are off-site. Hosted phone service lets the business save enormous amounts regarding servers, essential equipment, and frequent maintenance.
The main difference between the hosted and traditional phone systems is the infrastructure and equipment required to connect your business with the world.
Simple Steps to Set Up Your Hosted Phone System Like a Pro
Hosted PBX phone system offers businesses a seamless solution to maintain the connections with their customers and clients necessary to grow in their business community. With the traditional phone system, it is impossible without the associated additional cost. However, VoIP phone systems evolve with the business. Let us share the simple process of connecting the phone system with your organization.
· Find a hosted phone provider offering cloud-based PBX.
· Connects to the desired hosted PBX company
· Connect to their off-site data centers.
· In the next step, you will receive a call from the hosted PBX system.
· Make sure your internet connection remains active at all times
· Make a call from your VoIP device
· Your hosted PBX system converts calls into data, which is in digital packets.
· Then, these digital packets are transmitted to their destination number over the internet.
· The VoIP system converts your analog voice into digital packets
· At this point, the VoIP phone system becomes part of your hosted phone system.
· Then, the PBX system routes all your incoming calls to your phone.
· The digital packets are converted to match your destination format.
· Your phone starts to ring.
· You need to pick up the call.
· The digital packets convert your voice messages, and you receive the message in the voice form.
· Your connection with the receiver is established.
· The hosted PBX acts as your middleman.
· You can now contact your prospects via phone, laptop, smartphone, and desktop.
· The cloud phone system now backs your communication
· Make sure you upgrade your internet connection to match the requirements of the hosted phone system.
· Enjoy calling your prospects and loved ones from the same device.
25 Essential Features Of Hosted Phone System Everyone Must Know
Everyone must know the 25 essential features of a hosted phone system.
1. Voicemail To Email
2. Video Conferencing
3. Security
4. Reliability
5. Call Recording
6. Desktop App
7. Mobile Apps
8. Chat: SMS/MMS
9. Uptime
10. Analytics
11. Auto Attendants
12. Call Quality
13. IVR
14. Call Recording
15. Flexibility
16. Managing Remote Teams
17. Better scalability
18. Future-proof
19. Installation & Maintenance
20. Automatic Call Distribution
21. Integrations
22. Call Routing
23. User-Friendly Interface
24. Low Maintenance
25. Remote working
Voicemail To Email
The risks of losing a prospect with the traditional phone system are huge. However, when you compare this feature with the modern phone system, you can call or even email the potential lead who has already landed in your voicemail.
Another associated feature is that you must listen to the voicemail transcription message sent directly to your inbox. In this way, the chance of losing a prospect is nearly zero.
Video Conferencing
With modern telecommunications, having a video conference with your teams and potential customers is normal. But when you look into the past, it was impossible to conduct business like that. That said, hosted phone system providers have enlisted this feature as their main feature. This video-calling feature is included in every package offered by service providers.
In addition, hosted phone system providers offer this feature in the free version. But in the free version, the video calling feature has ads that disturb and hinder overall communication.
Security
The most anticipated feature of these phone systems is that they offer a secure and safe environment for business. Nowadays, cyberattacks on VoIP phone systems are common, making them prone to these types of attacks. Furthermore, these phone providers offer state-of-the-art certifications to make their phone service safe for businesses.
Reliability
The reliability aspect of a hosted phone system has raised some concerns for many businesses in the past. However, advancements in cloud technology have made these concerns vanish. These phone systems operate on a stable and reliable internet connection, which is a far more reliable source of communication than the traditional phone system. Most of the networks offer 99.999% uptime for business and personal use.
Desktop App
These phone systems offer their applications in the desktop version that allows business personnel to address matters during office time. These applications come with the service as a built-in feature on which the application runs and accumulates the data for the business to enjoy smooth and seamless operations.
Mobile Apps
Best hosted phone services provide businesses with a mobile app. This app can easily be downloaded onto their smartphones. Further, these apps can be operated on laptops and tablets to offer more flexibility during operations. Due to these mobile apps, employees feel free and relaxed to perform their daily tasks even when they are not physically present in their seats. They can address the matters even when they are on the move. Additionally, these phone service apps are available on iOS and Android devices.
Chat: SMS/MMS
Traditional phone systems offer limited chatting options for businesses. However, these hosted phone service providers offer seamless options when it comes to chatting. Now, you can enjoy sending SMS and MMS to your teammates and create chat groups to discuss matters. You can even chat with your clients via SMS to promptly address their issues and concerns.
When operating on the traditional phone system, businesses cannot imagine having a single application that can be used to chat with their internal teams and external customers. Like other features, these modern phone service providers have added this chat feature to their basic package.
Now, in the modern world, no one can imagine living in a world without chatting. For this reason, chatting with your clients immediately connects the business with their clients to address the issues and queries and offer solutions.
Uptime
The most cherished feature of modern phone systems is that they offer 99.99% uptime for their clients. This was not the case with the traditional phone systems. They were prone to weather conditions, electricity issues, and technical issues that plagued the traditional phone system.
However, things have changed drastically after the VoIP system as they always offer complete uptime for operations. In addition to the uptime, these phone systems offer 24/7 technical support to their clients, making them accessible all the time. They offer customer service portals to resolve issues in real-time. Thus making their relationship with potential clients stronger.
Analytics
The key aspect of the phone system is the availability of a dashboard that reflects minute details regarding communication. This dashboard shows proper reporting for the management and effective teams working towards achieving the organization’s goals.
When you compare the output provided by the modern phone system to that of the traditional phone system, all you get is a simple call in a traditional phone system. Here are the complete details of the calls being made to the organization.
· Total Calls
· Toll-Free Calls
· Inbound Calls
· Answered Calls
· Voicemail Calls
· Missed Calls
· Outbound Calls
· No. of Internal Calls
· No. of External Calls
· Average Call Volumes
· Calls In Queue
· International Calls
· Domestic Calls
· Talk Time
· Agent Talk Times
· Employee Talk Times
· Customer Wait Times
· Average Call Duration
· Average Speed To Answer
· Call Abandonment Rates
· First-Call Resolutions
· Customer Satisfaction
We have mentioned almost all the data sets shown to the business managers and owners. With this data, you can better analyze the organization’s overall operations and control the workforce.
Auto Attendants
Here is another feature that allows businesses to boost their operational capabilities to the next level. This auto attendant feature reduces the need for a receptionist who was assigned to divert incoming calls.
The auto attendant’s role is to receive calls from the prospects and ask what their issues require assistance. Then, the call is transferred to the concerned department personnel to address their issues. Implementing this system saves time for both the business and prospects.
Call Quality
The call quality of the VoIP phone system or the hosted system is crystal clear. The calls are clearer than those made with the traditional phone system due to the stable and reliable internet connection.
IVR
An IVR is an acronym for an Interactive Voice Response system. This IVR system is designed to reduce the wait time of callers. The working of the IVR system is the same as that of the virtual assistant, which offers pre-recorded menus for inbound callers so that they can get the right department personnel within less time.
This whole exercise or feature is designed to address the client’s matters on a priority basis and improve first-call resolutions. This whole process increases the confidence and satisfaction level of clients towards business.
Call Recording
Call recording is a feature that every business requires to analyze the quality of the services provided to the customer. The phone system providers have integreated this feature in every package offered to the clients. This call-recording feature aids in one-on-one reviews for the employees and for training purposes.
This feature further helps businesses to evaluate their products and services for fact-checking. Moreover, the hosted system offers additional features to transcribe calls and voicemails. Then, these transcriptions are shifted to the inbox for future reference.
Flexibility
Hosted phone providers offer flexibility in operations thanks to their services that allow business and personal users to address business queries promptly. The business owners don’t have to be present physically at all the time. They have access to the system all the time, allowing them to operate and address matters in the office or on a vacation outside the country. The flexibility of your hosted phone comes with installing the software application to your smartphones and laptops.
Managing Remote Teams
Managing remote teams to perform the tasks assigned to the business personnel is quite easy. Contacting them and diverting them to an important task has never been easy. The business owners have access to the chatting feature, calling feature, and specialized groups for employees that allow them to have complete knowledge of the status of operations even in their absence.
Better scalability
One of the biggest advantages of enjoying the features of a hosted phone system comes with the option of scalability of operations. Unlike the traditional phone system, it offers expensive alternatives for scaling your business operations.
With your phone system, all you have to do is opt for the package, and that’s it. Your options for scaling in the system are open. The system providers have designed their systems so that scaling upward and downward is not an issue at any step.
Future-Proof
Hosted phone systems are the thing of the future. They allow the business to have a compatible environment for both hardware and software. These UCaaS are evolving their services and operations at a steady pace to bring extra benefits for business to scale their operations. Now, businesses can easily and freely rely on these systems as they offer future-proof business features. In addition, these systems are now moving towards integrating APIs into the system for smooth operations.
Easy Installation & Maintenance
Installation and maintaining the traditional phone system was complex, costly, and time-consuming. Further, it requires additional resources both in terms of human resources and financially. In the past, all organizations have to maintain and run an IT department to ensure smooth communication inside and outside the organization.
But things have changed since the evolution of Hosted phones, which combine their powers with VoIP phone systems to create a revolutionary communication mode for corporate and personal communications.
Now, businesses are introduced to the cloud-based phone system, which comes with zero investment in the hardware and software of the business. No more hiring specialized personnel, regular updates for the software, 24/7 assistance for issues and maintenance, and 99.99% uptime. These are some of the aspects that have changed the telecommunication scenario of the business forever.
Automatic Call Distribution
These phone systems’ ACD or Automatic Call Distribution feature is designed to route calls to the relevant departments. It acts as a virtual assistant that assigns business queries to the right and concerned department.
Integrations
These modern phone systems offer seamless integration with software and CRMs. This integration increases the productivity, efficiency, and flexibility of the organization to address more complex issues in real-time. Generally, we are going to address four more common types of integrations.
· Third-Party Integrations
· CRM Integrations
· Tools Integrations
· Contact Center Integrations
Third-Party Integrations
These phone systems allow businesses to integrate seamlessly with almost every third-party communication software.
CRM Integrations
These phone systems can integrate your current UCaaS platforms into your business CRM software. The integrations are made with so much perfection that businesses can unlock optimization to their workflows. Additionally, this integration enhances the overall collaboration and productivity of the business.
Tools Integrations
In tools integration, your phone system integrates with the business tools your organization is using on a daily basis. This type of integration combines the overall functionality of the phone system with the app to boost operational capabilities, productivity, and employee satisfaction. This is because the workload for performing the same tasks repeatedly is reduced. Here is an example of the tools that are being used by almost every business enterprise on a daily basis.
· Microsoft 365
· Google Workspace
· Zoom
· Salesforce
· Zoho CRM
· Zendesk
Contact Center Integrations
Every business has a customer support department, whether they operate on a limited scale or they are a huge enterprise. These contact centers offer dedicated staff to help connecting customers with queries and issues. Your modern phone system will integrate with your customer support department to enhance productivity.
Call Routing
Call routing is the basic feature of almost every VoIP phone system. This feature allows businesses to maximize their operational efficiency and the positive customer experience. There are some rules that are being followed by VoIP phones, and the hosted phones offer strict rules.
Furthermore, the users can modify those rules according to their business specifications. Adapting these rules depends on the current staff level and demand for customer support. There are four types of call routings:
· Rotary Routing
· Idle Agent Routing
· Time-Based Routing
· Skills-Based Routing
Rotary Routing
In this type of call routing, the incoming calls are routed according to the normal or predetermined rotating order.
Idle Agent Routing
In the second type of routing, calls are routed to the concerned team members with the least amount of work. Or the employee workflow dashboard is showing less talk time.
Time-Based Routing
Here is another type of call routing based on business hours, which can be divided into time zones.
Skills-Based Routing
In the last, we have a skilled-based call routing service. This type of routing depends upon the nature of the personnel’s skills so that they can address the customers concerned promptly.
User-Friendly Interface
Traditional phone systems offer difficult and tricky setups that require additional resources to manage them. Hosted phones offer a user-friendly interface that is easy and convenient to operate. Moreover, these phone systems do not offer virtual phones that allow accessing the system from anywhere.
Low Maintenance
With traditional phone systems, businesses must hire a professional to regularly update and maintain the system. The system is complicated and requires additional costs to maintain. Conversely, all the hardware and infrastructure are hosted over the cloud regarding the Hosted system.
This means the business doesn’t have to hire professionals or allocate additional costs to maintain and run the system smoothly. The service providers do all these tasks and offer state-of-the-art updates for frequent system upgrades for smooth daily business transactions.
Remote Working
With the help of virtual phone systems, remote work is possible. According to the latest research, more than 15 million people are working remotely, and this number increases day by day. Remote working environments allow workers to work from home or anywhere they find feasible.
This working environment not only increases productivity but also helps reduce business overheads. This is only possible if your workforce is connected to a VoIP phone system. This phone system lets business track their employees and their performance in real-time.
Breaking Down the Pros and Cons of Hosted Phone Systems for Modern Businesses
Pros
· Easy Installation
· Cost Savings
· Equipment
· Balanced Work
· Identity
· Management
· Unified Platform
· Flexibility
· Remote Teams
· Scalability
· Growth
· Secure
· Sharing
· Versatility
· User Interface
· Future-Proof
· Privacy
· Maintenance
· Customer Support
· Encryption
Easy Installation
The complete process for installing a VoIP phone system is simple, easy, and cost-effective. Unlike the traditional phone system, the installation process is complex and expensive. Setting up a cloud-based phone system is quite easy as the complete process is done on the cloud-based system.
Cost Savings
In the second spot, we have the saving attribute of the modern phone system. These phone systems offer packages for business and personal use. Everyone has the option of selecting the best option according to their requirements. In addition to the initial cost, the maintenance of these phone systems requires minimal charges compared to the traditional phone system.
Equipment
A small amount of equipment is used to operate a modern phone system for every organization. Here is a list of equipment that comes in handy when communicating with the outside world.
· Soft Phones
· VoIP Handsets
· Desk Phones
· Smart Phones
Balanced Work
For a perfect work balance, VoIP phone solutions provide smooth operations. The employees don’t have to stick to their seats, and they can be on the move, but at the same time, they can answer their business queries.
Identity
A VoIP phone system provides a solid identity for the business. Virtual phone numbers from the modern phone system allow businesses to leave a mark on their clients, which builds trust and confidence. In addition, once a business starts responding to its prospects and clients based on their business numbers, it takes the confidence to the next level.
Management
With hosted phones aiding in the operations of the business, the management of the business becomes effortless. These phone systems bring in features like call handling, call routing, call monitoring, analytics, and auto respondent that satisfy customers and reduce the overall call duration from prospects and customers.
Unified Platform
A unified platform is a great feature of the modern phone system. It allows the user to communicate internally and externally. Now, the business has the option to contact the team and the prospect at the same time.
Flexibility
Most hosted phone system providers offer business and personal solutions via their software. The provider will direct your personal and business calls to your smartphone. Letting the users answer both at the same time. This way, the users don’t have to have separate phones for business and personal needs without worrying about missing any potential calls.
Remote Teams
Modern phone system offers remote team management features. It allows the users to monitor the productivity of the employees in terms of answering and resolution of queries promptly. In addition, the phone system dashboard offers real-time reporting relating to employees and calls.
Scalability
Modern phone systems allow the business to scale. Now, businesses can scale upward and downward without any issues. When scaling up, there are no requirements for upgrading the system or adding additional infrastructure. All you have to do is add more lines to your business so that you can scale upward according to the needs and wants of your business. There are no hidden costs associated with upscaling the business.
Growth
Growing the business is a dream for everyone. Small business plans for growth. However, with the traditional phone system, the cost associated with upgrading the system puts much pressure on budgets. But this is not the case with the modern phone system. These systems are ready for upgrades and offer solutions to businesses to scale their operations and upgrade their communication system with just a single notice.
Secure
Modern phone system providers offer seamless security against cyberattacks.
Sharing
Using a traditional phone system, the sharing of information with clients and prospects has never been easy. However, when a business transfers its operations to the modern phone system, the features of this phone system allow the sharing of audio, video, documents, images, and chatting to be more convenient.
Versatility
The modern phone system boosts a versatile communication solution for business and personal use. The workflow on these phone systems offers productivity, flexibility, and smooth operational ability.
User Interface
All modern phone systems dashboards are easy to navigate and offer easy operating features. This feature allows new users to easily understand the system and operate the system within less time to understand the complete dashboard system.
Future-Proof
Hosted phone systems ensure the company’s telephone requirements are future-proof. This is because UCaaS constantly evolves and updates the system in real-time. Unlike traditional phone systems, all the benefits are transferred to businesses, including new features, safety patches, and upgrades with new updates.
Privacy
The privacy issues of the traditional phone system are irrelevant in modern phone systems. The privacy of the business and its secrets remains intact due to the enterprise-level end-to-end encryption offered by the modern phone system.
Maintenance
When it comes to maintaining the overall communication system, was a hectic and time-consuming matter in the past. But not anymore, thanks to the evolution of the telephony system. You don’t have to take extra measures to maintain and update your current hosted phone system to the latest requirements.
These cloud-based systems frequently send updates and patches for business to update their systems with the latest safety and smooth operations. Further, businesses don’t have to hire a specialist to maintain their system. All these issues are resolved from the service provider’s end.
In case any issue arises, most providers offer 99.99% uptime, and they are responsible for continuous maintenance on a 24/7 basis.
Customer Support
Customer support plays a vital role in determining the growth of the company. Thanks to these VoIP systems, businesses have more focused customer support teams that can easily track the issues and contact the prospect within no time. Thus letting the customer solve their queries in less time.
Encryption
All these VoIP phone services are end-to-end encrypted with enterprise-level encryption. This is due to the fact that social engineering for data breaches has increased. Thus preventing the business from becoming an easy target of cyberattacks. Moreover, these phone systems are well-equipped with strong identity management tools that allow the system to track the number of calls made to every number.
Cons
· Internet Connection
· Jitter
· Speed
· Latency
· External Power
· Advertisement
· Security
· Encryption
Internet Connection
Business VoIP calls require 100 kbps bandwidth per line for uploading and downloading. This type of internet requirement is perfectly sufficient for personal usage. But you need more internet to continue your business operations when you have a business. Additionally, most service providers offer 1000mbps to businesses at an additional cost. On the other hand, Cloud-Hosted Phone Systems require power to phones and internet access to the network.
Jitter
Jitter is referred to as the fluctuations in the voice during a call over a VoIP phone system. The users will experience jumbled voices, and sometimes words are dropped off the call. Or there are times when you hear the voice of the receiver over and over.
Speed
There are times when you have issues with the internet speed, and the quality of calls and video calls are affected drastically. This is the main issue with the hosted phone systems that require a reliable and stable internet connection in order to enjoy the best audio and video quality of your calls.
Latency
The latency issue is another major issue that hinders the overall quality of the call over the VoIP phone. It can be narrated as the delay or lag between the data packets. This issue arises if you have an overcrowded internet connection, which makes it impossible to handle the load of calls.
External Power
Here is another issue we frequently face while operating a VoIP phone system. During a power outage, you cannot connect, make, or receive calls over your phone system. Furthermore, the same is true if your internet connection is unstable.
Advertisement
Advertisement is another issue that users have to bear when they use a free service package from the service providers. Users who opt for a free service package from any VoIP phone provider run ads during the calls to cover operating costs.
Security
With the passage of time, security concerns for hosted VoIP phone systems have increased tremendously. Hosted business phone systems are more prone to cyberattacks than traditional ones. Once you are out in the market to purchase the best phone service, The first thing you need to consider is to check the security protocols of the service provider along with the necessary measures your service provider has taken to safeguard your business against cyberattacks.
Encryption
Every VoIP phone system comes with enterprise-grade security encryption. Before finalizing the deal with your VoIP phone service provider, here are some security certificates you need to consider.
· ISO 27001
· PCI-DSS
· SOC
· GDPR
· HIPAA
29 Best Hosted Phone Systems
We bring you a comprehensive list of 29 Best Hosted Phone Systems. These phone systems are readily available in the market and offer services for business and personal usage.
1. Zoom Phone
2. RingCentral Hosted Phone System
3. magicJack Hosted Phone System
4. CallHippo Hosted Phone System
5. Nextiva Hosted Phone System
6. Grasshopper Hosted Phone System
7. 8×8 Hosted Phone System
8. Vonage Hosted Phone System
9. Dialpad Hosted Phone System
10. Google Voice Hosted Phone System
11. Intermedia Unite Hosted Phone System
12. 3cx Hosted Phone System
13. Aircall Hosted Phone System
14. Horizon Hosted Phone System
15. 2600Hz Hosted Phone System
16. Dialpad Hosted Phone System
17. Microsoft Teams Phone
18. Nextiva Hosted Phone System
19. UniVoIP Hosted Phone System
20. 800.com Hosted Phone System
21. GoTo Connect Hosted Phone System
22. Verizon Hosted Phone System
23. Cisco Hosted Phone System
24. Five9 Hosted Phone System
25. Springcom Hosted Phone System
26. Ooma Hosted Phone System
27. Avaya Hosted Phone System
28. Mitel Hosted Phone System
29. Freshdesk Contact Center
FAQs
1. What are hosted phone systems?
A hosted phone system is a system that is hosted in an off-site location such as a data centre. This is why it is called a hosted phone system. It consists of a Private Branch Exchange that relies on Voice Over Internet Protocols. This phone system allows users to make and receive calls even outside the office.
2. What is the difference between VoIP and hosted?
The main difference between a VoIP phone system and a hosted phone system is simple. VoIP phone system enables the users to make and receive calls. On the other hand, a hosted phone system is a cloud-based system that connects with the VoIP phone system.
3. What is hosted IP telephony?
The hosted telephony system is a cloud-based system that does not require any infrastructure to make calls. It uses a VoIP phone system to stay connected with the help of a stable, reliable internet connection.
4. What is hosted PBX vs PBX?
The main difference between a Hosted PBX and a PBX is on-site and off-site infrastructure. In PBX, all the infrastructure and maintenance is done on-site. On the other hand, hosted PBX is cloud-based and does not require on-site infrastructure and maintenance.
5. What are the main differences between landlines and hosted phone systems?
The traditional phone system comprises a landline phone system requiring infrastructure and copper wire connectivity. On the contrary, a hosted phone system is comprised of a cloud-based system that requires a stable internet connection to communicate.
6. What are the 2 types of VoIP?
The two types of VoIP phone systems are hardware-based and software-based phone systems. The hardware-based VoIP phone system operates like a traditional phone system. Furthermore, a software-based phone system is based on software such as cloud-based systems to operate.
7. Should one choose Traditional Phone Systems or Cloud PBX?
Choosing a cloud-based PBX phone system offers flexibility and cost-efficiency compared to the traditional phone system. Moreover, cloud-based phone solutions are perfect for businesses as they offer many features that meet daily business communication needs.
8. How much do hosted phone systems typically cost?
Hosted phone systems offer packages. There are two packages, standard and tailor-made. These packages offer businesses the choice to choose among the best offers for their business requirements. Normally, every hosted phone service provider offers a service from $15 to $40. Now, it all depends on the business to choose the best option.
9. Are hosted phone systems more cost-effective than legacy setups?
Yes, hosted phone systems are more reliable, safe, secure, and cost-effective than traditional phone systems. Additionally, unlike traditional phone systems, hosted phone systems offer additional features and benefits at minimal cost associated with them.
10. What hardware do you need to use a hosted phone system?
Nothing is required, and users do not require hardware to operate it. It is because hosted phone systems are cloud-based technology that only requires a reliable and safe internet connection to offer seamless communications.
Final Verdict
In the modern world, technology has progressed by leaps and bounds. Business requirements for modern communication solutions have increased tremendously. For this reason, new and new technologies are being offered to businesses to shift from traditional to hosted phone systems.
According to businesses, speedy responses and solutions positively impact their customers. This results in a fruitful experience. Thanks to the features that allow businesses to automate their workflows, seamless integrations with different applications, and customized analytics for business reporting. In the end, I manage teams and work from the seat of the office or even on the move. </
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