The Benefits of Adopting Cloud Telephony for Small Businesses

The 2020 global pandemic transformed the way we live and conduct business. Small businesses were the most impacted. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 20% of small businesses fail in their first year. Another 30% fail in their second year, while 50% fail by the 5^th year. The stats for India would not be very different, especially in the wake of technological and other disruptions.

Some of the common reasons for high failure rates are insufficient capital and cash flow. What small businesses don’t realise is that in the context of controlling communication costs, Cloud telephony is a cost-effective solution for small businesses. With cloud telephony, they don't need to invest in expensive hardware systems like VoIP and PBX.

Also referred to as cloud calling, here’s a look at the benefits of cloud telephony for small businesses:

1. Cost-Efficiency and Affordability

As compared to traditional in-office PBX systems, cloud telephony systems are cost-efficient, thus making them ideal for small and growing businesses. Traditional communication systems require installing expensive hardware across office premises.

Comparatively, cloud calling systems are installed and maintained by cloud telephony providers. Besides that, small businesses do not have to hire a maintenance team to keep the devices operational, thus saving the company from the expenses of high salaries or repairs.

2. Enhanced Flexibility and Scalability

Cloud telephony solutions are also more flexible and scalable than traditional communication systems. In today’s age of remote working, employees can manage calls, emails, and other functionalities from any device and any location. With cloud telephony, small businesses can enable and empower a network of remote workers, thus saving the costs of physical office space.

Additionally, cloud telephony offers easy scalability for small businesses. Thus, small companies can add more users to their communication network – without any system downtime or additional hardware resources.

3. Accessibility and Mobility Benefits

Cloud telephony eliminates most of the constraints of a traditional phone system, located within office premises. With an internet connection, business executives can now access their communication systems from any location. For instance, they can respond to customer emails and calls, and join virtual meetings – without being physically present in the office.

With cloud telephony services, small businesses can also promote a healthy work-life balance for their employees. It allows remote employees to attend calls from their home environment.

4. Improved Communication and Collaboration

Cloud telephony also improves communication, thus ensuring that even when busy, small businesses do not miss any customer calls. Through call routing, every call is now automatically directed and promptly attended by the right team or department. Most cloud telephony systems have integrated Interactive Voice Response or IVR solutions, that can automatically attend to incoming calls.

Further, cloud calling promotes collaboration among distributed teams with features like video conferencing and conference calling. This enables distributed teams to work collaboratively on a project, thus boosting productivity and team bonding.

5. Customer Service and Experience

For efficient business growth, every small business needs to focus on delivering exceptional customer service and experience. This means customers must have a positive brand experience each time they interact with the small business.

In this regard, cloud telephony services provide a range of functionalities that can improve customer service and brand experience. Some functionalities include efficient call routing, lead management solutions, call recording, call analytics, and IVR solutions for small business enterprises. Another innovative functionality is the auto-receptionist feature that automatically welcomes every calling customer with a pre-recorded “friendly” message.

6. Efficient Call Routing and Management

In a competitive business environment, small businesses in any domain cannot afford to miss customer calls or respond to their queries. With automatic call routing, cloud telephony tools can direct every incoming call quickly to the right business executive.

Customers can also get their problems or queries resolved without being transferred between departments. Overall, call routing reduces the business costs and improves the call efficiency.

7. Integration with Business Applications

Small businesses often work with multiple applications including CRM and email marketing tools. Using effective APIs, cloud telephony services and applications are easy to integrate with third-party applications, thus enhancing productivity and saving valuable time. For instance, a call centre agent using cloud calling can easily retrieve customer information from an integrated CRM tool.

Integration enables business teams to work from a single unified platform without switching to another business application.

8. Security Measures in Cloud Telephony

Last but not least, cloud telephony provides ample security measures and is designed to comply with security-related regulations like PCI DSS, Safe Harbor, and FCA. Cloud telephony features like cloud masking ensure data privacy, such that customers can freely share their personal information.

Additionally, cloud telephony providers try to minimise system downtime and any loss of confidential data in the event of an unlikely data breach.

Realising Business Growth with Cloud Telephony

With functionalities like in-built voicemail, IVR, and call forwarding, cloud telephony services can save business costs and ensure business growth for small companies. What’s equally important is for small businesses to choose the right cloud telephony company in India to implement this system across their enterprise.

Among the necessities, a cloud service provider must have an excellent track record, and industry experience, along with exceptional customer service and support.

At Vi Business, we offer a host of customised cloud telephony solutions for your small business. Here are some of our features:

• · Flexible pricing model
•   Customisable for 10-digit numbers or the 1800 series
•   Omnichannel presence through Voice, SMS, and WhatsApp

We can help design the right cloud telephony solution that fits your business needs.

Contact us today.

MSMEs are the driving force of the Indian economy. At Vi Business, we believe in equipping them with the right digital tools and technology to thrive in today’s business world.

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