Every business is different, so therefore, so is every business telephone system. But, even though we combine them differently, there are some general phone system features that are either/or. In almost 50 years of business, RCI has identified some common business telephone questions that we are asked on a fairly regular basis. Here are a few!
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Will I Lose My Number?
Even in the earliest days of selling telephone systems, one of the most common concerns people had was whether they could keep their number. Company founder John Whitcomb remembers sitting with a customer and showing him all that he could do for his company.
He could tell he could improve the man’s experience and save him money, and could even see the man knew it. But he could also tell something was wrong, so he just asked. “I can tell something is bugging you. What’s holding you back?”
The owner responded, “We’ve just had this number for so long…I don’t want to lose it.”
“Well,” John said, “I’ve got good news for you….”
Luckily, when Ma Bell was broken up in the 80s, Congress also passed a bill that required telephone companies( in most circumstances) to port telephone numbers to new providers. And if you’re working with RCI, we’ll do most of the work for you.
That’s why you can keep your cell phone when you switch carriers!
While there are a few exceptions in rural areas, most of the time, you can keep your number!
Isn’t Local Cloud Service Provider an Oxymoron?
RCI is a local company that provides (among other things) cloud telephone service. So, how can you have a local cloud?
“Local cloud” is indeed an oxymoron. The cloud, by its nature, is decentralized. For some, that’s the appeal. Without the equipment on site, you have no requirement to maintain it!
What is local is your service.
Having a local company on your side, even for something as ephemeral as the cloud, is a benefit to many business owners. Even if your system isn’t local, some of your equipment ( not to mention your company and maybe your issue) is. Therefore, having some boots on the ground to answer your business telephone systems questions and problems can be the difference between solving your problem and being forced to live with it!
Do Business Telephone Systems Matter Anymore?
We don’t get this often from people who’ve been in business longer than a few months, but occasionally, people who don’t own a business or who only do contract work ask this.
While it’s true that physical phones aren’t as popular as they once were, for most companies with more than one employee, it’s difficult to impossible to get by without a business telephone system.
I’ve written about this more extensively before, but for those just now asking business telephone questions about the necessity of a system, here’s the rub.
- There are many reasons why having a business telephone system is essential beyond the obvious one of professionalism.
- People can call one number to reach the company instead of dialing individual employees.
- This keeps employees from giving out their personal numbers, which can cause a loss of billing hours and protects privacy.
- Transferring calls is easier.
- Messaging is centralized.
- You get access to additional features you can’t get with a cell phone.
Isn’t It Cheaper to Just Use Cell Phones?
Here’s the subquestion often lurking beneath the previous one: isn’t using cell phones cheaper? While having employees use their own equipment might be less expensive than paying for telephone service and some centralized business telephone system, be that digital, VOIP, or cloud, that doesn’t mean it’s a better idea.
Walking down the interstate will cost you less in gas money than driving, but that’s not the only factor at play, is it?
Functionality matters. And not having a line exclusive to your business that multiple employees can answer is dysfunctional.
What Is the BreakPoint Between Cell Phones and a Business Telephone System
If you have a growing business, you may know that you will eventually need to upgrade from a personal phone to a business telephone system. But you may have business telephone questions about when that point should be.
Like so many things, the answer is it depends. But there is a general rule of thumb.
You can probably get by with a cell phone if you are a solopreneur or individual contractor, though you may still want to get a separate number for your business.
Once you have other people working for you who also need to share phone resources (answering calls, transferring, access to voicemail), you need a business telephone system.
What Business Telephone Questions Do You Have?
One of the nice things about blogs is that they can be collaborative. We try to write about things that we think people will want to hear about or share info in places where we’ve seen people have questions.
But you can also tell us directly!
Reach out to us on Facebook or LinkedIn or comment below about your business telephone questions!
