Phone systems and services were once large capital expenses married to expensive monthly service. The system dealer would take their pound of flesh in the beginning, and the phone company took theirs every month following.
Such isn’t the case nowadays. With advancements in voice technology, specifically Voice over IP, businesses are being afforded greater options with more competitive prices than ever before. Once the company’s phone system was a financial burden, now businesses are economizing and leveraging voice, in some cases, creating a profit center.
Reducing Cost with Hosted PBX
Hosted PBX is a cloud-based business phone system. One of the primary advantages of deploying an HPBX solution is cost savings.
Old Cost Structure:
- The System – Company purchased an expensive digital business phone system. This system offered features like IVR/auto attendant, extensions, conferencing, and voicemail. System costs varied depending on number of employees, lines, and upgraded feature requests. A basic phone system for a small office might cost $5,000 at the low end. The average system for 10-20 employees cost between $15,000 – $25,000.
- Moves, Adds, and Changes (MACs) – Companies would pay system dealers to perform updates to their system. Additionally, each time an employee would move an office, or there was change with the staff, the company would pay the dealer to reprogram the system for the new or departing employee.
- Carrier Costs – Once the system was in place, calls needed to be made and taken. The phone company typically supplied the physical lines (to which phone numbers were attached) which connected to the system. The phone company charged line costs, local calling cost, long distance cost, and assessed numerous taxes and fees.
The typical small/medium business could easily be looking at a phone bill of $500-$1000/mo or more.
The system and carrier costs combined made the total cost of ownership on a digital system extremely high. It wouldn’t be uncommon to calculate a $500 or more per year per employee cost. In today’s vernacular, we would call this a “seat.”
New HPBX Cost Structure:
- The System – Because HPBX is cloud-based, there is no expensive system which needs to be purchased up-front. Cost structures vary from provider to provider, but typically companies pay per seat. If the company has 10 employees who need an extension, they would purchase ten seats. The features a hosted phone system (HPBX) offers typically exceeds those of the older, legacy traditional systems. Common features include:
- IVR/Auto Attendant
- Groups
- Voicemail (and include special handling like delivery to email, or transcription)
- Presence Management
- Call Flow Control
- Web Interface
- Custom Music on Hold
- Moves, Adds, and Changes (MACs) – Macs are simple and inexpensive. HPBX administrators can control users and extensions from a web interface. IP phones are portable and don’t require system reprogramming.
- Carrier Costs – VoIP seats often include unlimited local and long distance service as part of the monthly price.
Consolidating Voice and Data with DIA
Savvy businesses are not only economizing with the hosted system, but are also consolidating and economizing carrier services as well.
The old system saw businesses paying for internet connections and telephone lines. Because VoIP calls traverse the data lines, many business owners are opting to replace unreliable broadband connections with direct internet connections like T1 and Metro Ethernet.
By moving to a dedicated internet access (DIA) connection, they’re adding value to the internet connection and ensuring they’ll have enough bandwidth to both support and guarantee their calls and the quality of service.
Partner with Voice and Data Experts
If your business is looking at options for voice or voice and data, contact a voice and internet expert at N2Net today. They’ll be able to craft a solution which economizes and leverages current voice and internet technology so you can expend the best bang for your buck.
