Is it Time For a New Telephone System ?

 

Eventually, almost everything wears out: motors, elastic waist bands, couches and even phone systems. Take good care of everything and will take good care of you for as long as possible but like a car without the same pickup it used to have or that pair of socks whose toe hole you wish you could keep ignoring, eventually, your telephone system will need to be replaced. 

But how do you know when you’ve gotten to that moment? Obviously, your best tool is a business technology company you can trust. But barring that there are a few things to look out for if you are looking for a diagnostic check on your telephone system. Is it time for a new telephone system? Ready to do some triage? Let’s talk about the top signs that you need to think about in regard to replacing your old phone system.

Random Disconnections

Do your calls randomly end while speaking to someone? This used to happen all the time with cell phones. These days cell signals tend to be a lot more solid. But it shouldn’t happen at all with office telephones. In fact there was a time when a disconnected call would companies like RCI (or AT&T) an angry demand from a CEO to get out in person to see what was wrong!

These days people tend to be a lot more understanding about call loss (largely due to our desensitization from it due to the ubiquity of cell phones) but if your phone calls disconnect while you’re speaking to a client it still can cause a headache or even loss of revenue.

When your calls are disconnecting, it’s not always the telephone system. In fact, more often than not, especially if you use internet telephone service it’s the carrier. But if the carrier has been ruled out, this is a repair to your business telephone system that you want to get fixed immediately! If you can’t get the repair, its time to think about a new telephone system. 

Telephone Audio Problems

Another common issue with a failing telephone system is audio issues. This can manifest in a number of ways. You may experience random clicks or cut outs. Another audio issue is one-way audio meaning only one party to the conversation can hear the other. Regardless of the specific audio issue being experienced, similar steps should be taken as previously laid out for random disconnections.

The first step here is to determine where it’s coming from. Does it happen on a particular phone or on several? If it’s a particular phone, with older systems, you can switch out phones to see if that resolves the problem. If it does, you know it’s an equipment issue limited to that particular endpoint. If it does not resolve, you know it’s an issue with that particular extension. Either way your friendly technology provider should be able to provide you with a fix.

If it is not a particular extension you should rule out the telephone service provider as the problem as it can very likely be your phone lines. If you’ve ruled out all of the above, it may be time for a new telephone system or at least an important repair. The age of your system, available features and whether or not you have a maintenance contract can be major factors in which you choose. 

And speaking of telephone features…

Lack of Relevant Telephone Features

Does your business phone system do what you want it to do? The absolute base is to be able to make and receive calls, transfer calls, and leave voicemails for multiple users. If your telephone system can’t do that, you probably already know it needs to be replaced. 

But are you aware of the many features that are currently available in modern business telephone systems? I’ve written more extensively on it elsewhere so I’ll be brief, but modern business phones can do a lot for a little: Cell phone integration, email integration, call routing, call recording and storage, measurement tools and more.

Maybe you don’t need all of that but they can certainly be helpful. More importantly do you know how to use your phone system the way it’s supposed to be used? Are there feature you know it has but you just don’t know how to work? If so, speak to the phone system provider. Which brings us to the number 1 sign it’s time to get a new telephone system. 

Local Telephone System Technicians and Service

And the number 1 sign its time to get a new phone system?

 You don’t have a company to service your current system.

Whether the company that put in your system is from out of town, went out of business or just disappeared, you need a dependable company to take care of your phones! Likewise, if you’ve forgotten who put your system in, it’s important to replace it or find someone who can service it. 

There are a few resources for finding the right company to service your system. The first is the most obvious – Google! Often by simply googling your phone system brand along with your location (i.e. Roanoke Toshiba Telephone systems) you will be able to find a company who will take care of you. 

If that doesn’t work, the next step is to go to the website of the company of your system. This wouldn’t work for Toshiba since it closed it’s telecom division a few years ago out of business but you could do it with ESI for example. Most of those websites will have a listing of authorized dealers for their products. It’s important to work with an authorized dealer because they will be able to fully understand your system and have access to support from the manufacturer.

Finally, if you can’t find a company who will service your system who you would like to work with, its time to think strongly about replacing it with a new telephone system. 

There are always a lot of factors to consider when making a new purchase for your business. It’s always best to discuss it with a professional IT company (or two). I hope I’ve helped you if you’re currently trying to think it through.