The travelers may become overly dependant on their mobile phones for communication. With mobile phones, calls cannot be transferred to other parties leaving the traveler stuck with follow-up tasks that should be handled by others. In addition, personal mobile phone numbers may be called by customers. Now customers and business associates are calling a phone number that the company has no control over and will leave when the employee leaves.

Hosted PBX services offer several solutions to this problem including hoteling and mobile PBX.

In a Hosted PBX environment, multiple offices are connected seamlessly together as one phone system. Hoteling allows the traveler to walk into any connected office and turn any phone into their extension by simply entering a code. They will receive all calls transferred to their extension, button assignments will be theirs, DID numbers assigned to their extension will ring directly to that phone and voicemail indicators will work as needed.

Mobile PBX integrates a user’s mobile phone with their desk phone. Calls ringing to their desk phone will also ring to their mobile. Once the user answers a call on their mobile, they can process calls as normal including transferring them to other extensions on the system. Mobile PBX keeps an employee in touch with their desk phone calls wherever they can receive mobile calls.

Hoteling and/or Mobile PBX keeps a traveler in touch with his business phone calls. Better contact with customers may improve sales and customer service. These features may prevent travelers from giving out personal mobile numbers for business use. Now the company can retain control of the telephone numbers that customers and business associates call.

As a final note, Hosted PBX services that provide the features above are also based upon VoIP technology. Many services allow their phones to be unplugged and moved to wherever broadband Internet access is available. Simply moving a Hosted PBX telephone to another location may also work as a solution for travelers.

Companies, who sell parts to the general public, may have parts desk employees who have a difficult time checking parts, processing calls and handling walk-in customers. Employees frequently have to leave the desk and place calls on hold checking for part availability. While they are away from their desk and phone, calls are left on hold for extended periods of time and other calls are missed. Potential customers, left on hold, may hang up and call a competitor. Unanswered calls may go to a competitor and waste the marketing money used to get the call.

The work environment creates stress on parts desk employees. As they return from checking on a part, they may be faced with customers at their desk and new calls ringing their phone while they are responding to the original caller. Upset customers may add to their stress and deter future business.

HostMyCalls Solution

HostMyCalls Hosted PBX Service offers several potential solutions for parts desks. Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) can stack waiting calls and distribute them in the order they were received to the next available employee. This process ensures calls are handled efficiently and encourages callers to be patient.

Our Hosted PBX Service also features the widely popular Siemens Gigaset cordless phones. These phones have a usage range of up to 175 feet from their base station indoors and 900 feet outdoors. Their range will allow parts desk employees to continue processing calls while they are away from their desk. Calls managed by the Hosted PBX ACD application can be delivered to the Gigasets.

HostMyCalls Hosted PBX Service also offers its Flexicall feature. Flexicall integrates mobile phones to ring simultaneously with desk phones. Mobile phones can handle calls similar to a desk phone. Flexicall allows employee access to company calls anywhere they can find cell service.

Customers are no longer put on hold while checking parts availability with the use of ACD, Gigaset cordless phones and/or Flexicall. In addition, calls can be answered while the parts staff are away from their desk. As they return, they are ready to answer the next call or walk-in customer. Calls spend less time on hold and are handled more quickly. Each employee can process more calls and generate more business for the company. Fewer callers are turned away to competitors by long hold and ring times. Quicker call processing leads to more satisfied callers and a less stressful work environment.

Hosted PBX services offer the ability to implement advanced solutions such as those mentioned above with little or no capital expenditure. In many cases, companies can save money overall on their telecommunications costs while implementing these solutions.

Here are 8 reasons Hosted PBX services are perfect for a startup business:

1.  Most services only require the purchase of VoIP phones instead of central equipment including cabinets, cards and the labor to install associated with a traditional telephone system.  Without the central equipment, Hosted PBX services significantly lower capital required for a new phone system.

2.  Some Hosted PBX service bundle free outbound long distance making monthly telephone service costs more predictable and steady.

3.  They connect users in diverse locations into a seamless communication system reducing or eliminating the need for office space.  Less or no office space translates to reduced rent, utility bills, furniture and insurance.

4.  If the startup entrepreneur can work out of their home, then they spend less time in the commute and more time on developing their business.

5.  The addition and deletion of phones is effortless.

6.  The startup can test new market areas by simply publishing a local number in that area.  The local number can ring on any of their phones located anywhere.  For example, a company located in Atlanta can publish local telephone numbers in Dallas that ring on their phones in Atlanta.

7.  The Mobile PBX option of premium Hosted PBX services will pass calls on to mobile phones when the called party does not answer their desk phone.  Enabling the Mobile PBX feature will increase the chances of calls being answered by a live person without having to hire someone to be assigned to a desk.

8.  Startup businesses must not appear as a new company with limited resources.  Calls answered by general company voicemail boxes project a small company appearance.  Hosted PBX services increase the chances of calls being answered by a live body.  In addition, they provide auto attendants and individual voicemail boxes which convey a professional image.

Hosted PBX services from VoIP providers are perfect for the startup business.  They provide communication services that are inexpensive, scalable in design and foster the growth of the business.  They are easy to manage, provide seamless communication even when all workers are not in the same office, give outside callers the feel of a company with depth, move easily and enable its users to wear many hats.

Do you run a small business with a few staff members attempting to market nationally or internationally over the web? If you do and are publishing a telephone number, your potential customers can be calling anytime during the day or night. When potential sales leads make the effort to call on the phone, they want to talk to a live person who can give them immediate answers about your product or service.

Most small businesses do not have the staff to answer phones 24 hours a day or even the extended hours required to take calls from both coasts of the United States. Further, sales personnel could be on other calls, conducting sales appointments or traveling in between – making limited sales resources even less available. When potential clients do not get a knowledgeable person on the phone, the lead is lost and the resources expended to get that lead become wasted time, money and effort.

What Not to Do

Do not answer the calls with voicemail boxes. Callers who are seeking immediate information are unlikely to give contact information before they get the information they seek. Callers will hear the voicemail greeting and hang up. The lead is lost.

Automated Attendants will encourage callers to hang up as well. Time and pain navigating automated attendants results in caller impatience. The caller’s goal is to talk to a live person. The more difficult it is to do that, the more leads will be lost.

A better option than a voicemail box or automated attendant is to answer the calls with less knowledgeable staff during work hours. Live people are far more likely to get contact information from the caller. However, lack of knowledge can frustrate the potential client and leave them with a bad image. Further, it is not a solution for after hours.

What to Do

One advanced solution is to answer the call with a recorded message stating that a salesperson is being located. The call will ring the first salesperson’s desk phone and mobile phone simultaneously. If the first salesperson is unable to answer the call in a certain period of time, the call is then sent to a second. Should neither salesperson answer their call on their mobile or desk phone, then the call is sent to a live phone attendant during working hours and a specific salesperson’s voicemail box during off hours.

The solution requires Hosted VoIP or Hosted PBX service, mobile PBX, uniform call distribution (UCD) hunt groups and “guaranteed” recorded messages. The Hosted PBX service can place company phones on a salesperson’s desk no matter where they are located including homes and offices across town, in other cities, states and around the world. Mobile PBX integrates their mobile phone with the desk phone allowing both to ring at the same time enabling the salespeople to answer calls even while they are away from their desk.

UCD will ring a sales person from a list. Should they not answer in 15 – 20 seconds, then it can redirect the call to the next salesperson. Although it can be done, sending the call to a third salesperson is not advisable as callers will only wait so long. With UCD, the phone system remembers who received the last call in the list and will send the next call to the next person on the list. The recorded message explains the call process to the caller and encourages them to leave a message if a salesperson is not reached.

This solution is designed for businesses with limited sales resources to answer call in leads. It greatly increases the chances of a live answer by a knowledgeable person, improves the caller’s experience and captures the sales lead.

Flexible Hosted VoIP providers can solve many communication problems similar to this one. They can tailor solutions to your available resources and specific needs.

The company has mobile personnel that need to maintain telephone contact with customers and other outside callers.  Customers and callers can have difficulty contacting those that are away from their desk.  When someone moves around a lot, it may be some time before they retrieve their messages and return calls.  Frequently, drive and travel time could be used to follow-up or make business calls.  Receptionists and assistants have to handle more calls, take care of callers with problems or issues and locate the mobile employee.

Mobile personnel can be away from their desk but within the office, on appointments around town or traveling.  Examples of mobile personnel include:

* Outside salespeople

* Mobile plant managers

* Doctors

* Realtors

* Business owners/managers

* Warehouse managers

* Customer service personnel who need to leave desk or travel in the field

* Field technicians

* Healthcare workers who visit homes including nurses and physical therapists

* Construction site managers

* Inspectors and estimators

How the Problem Should NOT Be Solved

Giving out personal mobile phone numbers is usually not a good solution.  If personal mobile numbers are given out, they can become the customers’ and callers’ primary means of contacting the company.  The company is now exposed to the employee leaving employment and possibly going to work for a competitor.  Now customers are calling ex-employees and sometimes competitors.  If the employee does not leave employment but continues to receive calls on their mobile phone, the company may not get a good record of service calls.

Employees lose their privacy and can be contacted at any time when customers and callers have employee’s personal mobile numbers.  Employee’s current activity can also be disrupted as they get the calls.  Many times, these calls are best handled by other co-workers.  However, the mobile worker is stuck with the call because they have no means of transferring.

Another poor solution is furnishing employees mobile phones by the company.  Although the company controls the telephone number and the employees retain their privacy, their current activities can still be disrupted by calls best handled by others and they will still be stuck with the call.  Providing mobile phones for employees can also be expensive.

Mobile PBX Delivered by a Hosted VoIP Provider is the Solution

The Mobile PBX feature, delivered by select Hosted VoIP providers, integrates the employee’s mobile phone with their desk phone.  When activated, both phones will ring when the office desk telephone number is called.  The phone that answers the call gets the call.  If the call is received on the mobile phone, the call can be transferred back to the desk phone, another extension on the Hosted VoIP service or any telephone number in the world.  The call can go to either phone’s voicemail depending on the wishes of the user, if neither phone answers the call.

Some Mobile PBX services will allow the mobile phone to place calls through the Hosted VoIP service.  This hides the mobile phone’s caller ID protecting the privacy of the employee and preventing private mobile numbers that the company does not control from becoming known.  Also, the Hosted VoIP service can be used for international calls instead of paying expensive mobile phone international call charges.

Other advantages and features of most Mobile PBX services include:

* All calls including those that end up on mobile phones can go through the switchboard.

* Only company owned and controlled numbers are given out or sent out on Caller ID.

* Calls can be easily transferred to and from mobile phones.  Employees never need to get stuck with calls best handled by others.

* Calls will still process to mobile phones even during power outages and other sources of failure at the main office because Mobile PBX is delivered by a Hosted VoIP service.

* Private or personal mobile numbers remain private and personal.

* Employee can control when they receive calls on their mobile phone.

With Mobile PBX, mobile employees can stay productive and easily process calls when they are away from their desk.  Mobile PBX allows a company to take better care of their customers and callers, reduce most “phone tag” issues, save staff time from covering calls for mobile employees and control the numbers callers use to contact them.

As companies cut back to respond to current economic times, receptionists are burdened with even more responsibility. Managing multiple calls and greeting visitors at the door diminishes the patient attention they are expected to give. Stress from the additional responsibilities may change their tone from kind and motherly to “I need to get you out of my way.”

Here is a list of 7 ways the telephone system improves a caller’s experience and give the receptionist more time for other duties:

1. Calls to departments should be transferred to Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) Groups and distributed to the next available or longest idle representative. Receptionists frequently perform the same functionality as an ACD which can be time consuming and perceived poorly by the caller. An example is the service department at a car dealership. The caller calls and asks for service. The receptionist places the call on hold while she pages and hunts for a service representative. She frequently returns to the caller with words similar to “Let me page for them again.”

ACD automatically stacks callers like a teller line at the bank and efficiently distributes them to the longest idle or first available representative. The receptionist simply transfers the call to the ACD group and is done.

2. Give the most frequently called employees and departments Direct Inward Dialed (DID) numbers. DID numbers are 10 digit telephone numbers that can be published or private. By dialing the “Direct” number, callers skip the receptionist and go straight to the person or department of their choice. DID numbers remove call volume of the company’s most frequent callers from the receptionist and enhances perceived customer service to the caller. DID numbers are affordable to any company of any size. Even small companies can economically benefit from DID numbers with VoIP services such as SIP Trunking, Hosted VoIP, Hosted PBX and Virtual PBX services.

3. Use voicemail system for taking messages. Taking handwritten messages is time consuming and tedious work for the receptionist. Most callers prefer leaving messages in voicemail system as they can give more information, know their message will be accurate and believe it will be promptly delivered. Voicemail systems actually improve a caller’s perception of the company assuming the caller can “zero out” to a live person as needed.

4. Combine multiple office locations into one communications system. Companies with multiple office locations employ primary call handlers at each location. Using Hosted VoIP, Hosted PBX and VoIP telephone systems, all offices can be unified behind one single communications platform. Call handling can be centralized. Individual offices no longer need to employ their own receptionist.

5. Use station status indicators such as Busy Lamp Field (BLF). Station status indicators tell call handlers who is busy on the phone, saving them valuable time in locating personnel.

6. Answer primary or secondary numbers with Automated Attendants. Automated Attendants can answer primary published number or secondary numbers allowing frequent callers to self-direct to the party of their choosing. Automated Attendants can relieve 50-75% of the call traffic from the receptionist.

7. Use Mobile PBX to complete calls to mobile employees. Mobile PBX links desk phones and mobile phones together through Hosted PBX and Hosted VoIP services as well as some VoIP telephone systems. By seamlessly completing calls to employees on their desk phone or cell phone, the receptionist will take fewer messages and callbacks. More importantly, customer service will improve dramatically.

As companies trim staff and reduce expenses, receptionists must juggle more calls, visitors and duties. Implementing one or more of these communications services can reduce the burden on the primary call handler, improve customer service and frequently reduce telecommunications or other expenses.

Following is a partial list of issues from having a work force under more than one roof:

1.  Calls can not be transferred between locations.  Asking an outside caller to hang up and dial another number within an organization includes the risk that they will not call.

2.  Many companies have redundant positions at each of their locations because they cannot easily transfer calls.  Redundant positions may include call answering points, sales, customer service and accounting.

3.  Communication among employees is strenuous as it is harder to get someone on the phone than it is to see them in the hallway or catch them at their desk.

4.  Departments that are geographically spread apart cannot be grouped together for answering calls and incoming calls cannot be fairly distributed between locations.

5.  Call answering positions do not know whether or not someone is already on the phone.

6.  Key personnel who travel between offices frequently miss their important phone calls when they are away from their main desk.

7.  Employees cannot page people in other locations.

Hosted PBX or Hosted VoIP services are the solution to all of these issues and more.  Here are the ways they can help:

1.  Calls can be transferred between locations as easily as they are transferred within the same building.  Now callers can always get to the right person by calling the company only once.

2.  Some premium Hosted VoIP providers offer Busy Lamp Field (BLF) which show who is busy on other phone calls.

3.  Call answering points can be centralized into one location since calls can be transferred anywhere and BLF features show who is on the phone.  Other redundant positions such as sales or customer service can be centralized, eliminated or reduced.

4.  Mobile PBX option integrates the desk phone with the mobile phone.  Employees can receive and process calls whether they are sitting at their desk or away from the office.

5.  Camp On feature provides an alert when an extension becomes idle or is used again.  Hosted PBX users do not need to hunt for each other as the phones will do it for them with Mobile PBX or Camp On.

6.  Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) is furnished by some Hosted VoIP providers.  ACD evenly distributes calls among several people within a department.  It also stacks calls that are waiting to be answered similar to the teller line at a bank.  People in comparable departments such as customer service that are spread apart in multiple locations can be included in the same ACD group and answer any of the department’s calls.

7.  Hoteling allows a user to go to any desk phone, enter a code and that desk phone is now their main extension.  Hoteling is beneficial for employees that travel between office locations and need to receive their calls no matter where they are.  Since their extension is the same, call receptionists never need to hunt for them.

8.  Overhead paging systems can be accessed in other locations.  In some instances, multiple paging systems in multiple buildings can be used simultaneously.

Whether a business has single user multiple locations or stand alone satellite offices, Hosted VoIP services and Virtual PBXs solve many communication challenges.  Separate phone systems will cause disjointed communication and the sales and customer service experience of the outside caller will suffer.  Hosted VoIP providers deliver one cohesive telephone system for all locations.  Businesses can save money by centralizing, streamlining or eliminating redundant positions while simultaneously improving the caller’s experience.  In addition, advanced features such as ACD, Mobile PBX, Hoteling and Camp On will significantly improve the service a company delivers to its callers.