What to Consider When Upgrading Your Cloud-Based Communication System
Have you considered replacing your communication system with a state-of-the-art cloud-based communication solution? Communication is an integral part of your company. It enables all interactions, from welcoming clients and resolving problems to facilitating efficient internal communication and collaboration.
As Stewart Brand said, "Once a new technology rolls over you, if you're not part of the steamroller, you're part of the road."
Unfortunately, many organizations are reluctant to advance their communication systems or don't know when to upgrade. If you experience issues like poor transmission, spotty connectivity, outages, high costs, or unreliable collaboration, it's time to upgrade.
Here are the considerations to make when upgrading your cloud-based communication system.
What Communication Problems Are We Solving?
If you are already using cloud-based solutions in your organization, upgrading your communication system with a hosted solution is the next step. The problems you want to solve should guide your choices. For example, are you looking to improve customer experience or improve internal collaboration?
Organizations have multiple options when it comes to cloud-based communication solutions, but three technologies remain predominant:
- Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS)
- Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS)
- Cloud Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)
Differentiating between these technologies can help you choose the best one for your business.
Use UCaaS to Enhance Collaboration
UCaaS is a cloud-based technology that delivers different business tools as a service hosted by a unified communication tools vendor. Ideally, it enables you to consolidate your communication tools and source them from a single company.
As a result, you can streamline all your business functions and provide a consistent user experience across all devices. Users can communicate via different channels, including voice, email, text, and instant messaging on a single platform.
UCaaS and Collaboration
UCaaS integrates with various business tools and allows you to switch between different communication channels quickly.
The technology enables team members to reach out to one another in real-time, enhancing collaboration. This allows your company to employ remote workers and distributed teams and manage them from one point. Further, you can forward calls to different lines to enable call continuity around the clock.
Employ CCaaS for Better Customer Service
CCaaS is also a cloud subscription solution that enables organizations to provide hosted customer service. The technology offers more functions and more outstanding capabilities than on-premise hardware, giving customers more connectivity to your business. Its features include voice calls, conferencing, interactive voice response (IVR), call routing, and analytics to monitor productivity and KPIs.
CCaaS and Customer Experience
If your pain point is improving your customer experience, CCaaS is the best platform to deploy. Call routing and IVR functions direct calls to the intended recipients faster than traditional telephony. Managers can listen in on calls and issue instructions to call agents in real-time without customers hearing them.
CCaaS is a must-have if you have a busy call center where the staffs spend most of their time on the phone. Like UCaaS, CCaaS apps are highly responsive, allowing users to access services from virtually all devices.
Cloud VoIP Solutions
Hosted VoIP is a corporate phone service that utilizes the internet to route calls. It picks audio from phone calls, converts it into data packets, and sends it over the internet.
By using your existing internet connection, cloud VoIP can reduce call outages and cut costs significantly. The system may provide advanced communication features, including auto attendant, video conferencing, call recording, and inexpensive long-distance calls.
Cloud VoIP and UCaaS
UCaaS and cloud technologies VoIP seem to have some overlapping features. So when should you use which technology? Your decision should depend on your needs.
If your business requires a robust set of multiple communication channels, UCaaS could be a cost-efficient and time-saving solution. Similarly, cloud VoIP can cut your telephone bills considerably. It's a simple and effective solution for organizations that conduct business mostly over the phone.
Combining UCaaS and cloud VoIP can enhance internal communication and collaboration and improve customer service in your company.
Why Choose Cloud-Based Communication?
Embracing new technology is a great idea, but it's much better when you can justify the move. Here are some reasons why corporations are migrating to cloud-based communication solutions.
Virtualization of Systems
Unified communications users don't need to understand how the solution works. Therefore, the organization can access the services they need without training workers or hiring full-time employees to maintain the system.
Moreover, you don't have to invest in a data center when you have a cloud-based communication solution. This reduces capital and operating costs considerably.
Data Security
Sourcing your UCaaS, CCaaS, and cloud VoIP solutions from one vendor can improve cybersecurity in your organization. You get almost all applications from a specialized managed IT services company. Consequently, your business enjoys top-notch services without jeopardizing network security and performance.
Scalability
Cloud solutions grow with your business. You can regulate your subscription by adjusting the number of users in your organization accordingly. This model allows you to cap expenses and prevent your costs from proliferating uncontrollably.
What Do Different Carriers Offer?
A cloud communication platform might lack some functions essential to your business or have unnecessary features. So it's important to know what each provider offers and how it benefits your organization, something our team at Adler Advisors does best.
Consider these examples:
- Ring Central offers message alerts and interactive voice response, while Vonage supports call queuing and caller ID.
- Twilio focuses on text, voice, and instant messaging, while Voximplant gives you much control over voice and video.
- Whispir manages your contacts and lets you gather insights from your data, while Kandy supports voice, messaging, chat, video, and collaboration.
The truth is that most carriers put their interests first when developing and selling their technologies. We can help study various communication platforms and choose the one that best satisfies your business needs.
Consult Before Upgrading
Many things can necessitate an upgrade of your cloud-based communication system. You could be looking to cut costs, heighten customer service, foster collaboration, improve employee productivity, or adopt a more secure platform.
However, not every new system will have all the features pertinent to your business. Adler Advisors is an experienced team of experts in corporate technology and communication solutions. We offer specialized consultation on ways to accelerate business growth.
Contact us for unbiased advice on the best cloud-based communication platform based for your needs.