The key to success for any new business lies mainly in their ability keep overheads to a minimum, whilst remaining flexible and projecting as professional an image as possible. A new business owner will wear many hats and will often need to travel around frequently promoting their business and generating sales.
First impressions go a long way when it comes to business relationships, therefore many entrepreneurs will strive to adopt the image of a much more established business from day one. Possibly one of the most important things for any start-up to get right is how they handle their calls.
The ideal phone service for start-ups is one which is inexpensive, instantly scalable, allows them to create the impression of depth, and offers seamless communication between workers even when they are not in the same office. Most importantly, they should not be tied down for a specific time period or to one location so as to allow for growth and portability.
A virtual phone system allows even the smallest of start-ups to instantly sound more professional, without breaking the bank. By starting small and adding features on demand, a virtual phone system will grow easily and seamlessly with the business. What’s more, with the capability of receiving calls anywhere, either over the internet using a VoIP softphone or physical handset, or by call forwarding to a mobile phone or landline it’s business as usual, whatever may be occurring in the entrepreneur’s daily life.
Here is a summary of what I believe to be the main benefits of a virtual phone system for start-ups:
- No equipment required, therefore no capital cost and no maintenance or finance charges.
- Add or remove extensions as needed.
- Publish a local number for each area in which you wish to have a presence and receive those calls anywhere you like, or choose a non-geographic ‘03’ or ‘08’ number.
- Route calls to the most appropriate place depending on the time of day or week.
- Connect users in different locations seamlessly while making/receiving calls from a central number, eliminating the need for physical office space.
- Don’t let callers go straight to voicemail (unless you want them to) – ensure calls are answered by the relevant person every time.
- Give callers the option of reaching different departments or extensions on the same number.
Furthermore, Sipcentric offers:
- Instant activation.
- No setup or cancellation charges.
- Absolutely no commitment – cancel some or all of your services at any time.
- The most user-friendly management portal around (we believe).
In conclusion, a virtual telephone system enables a new business owner to keep initial costs low and remain flexible, allowing them to sound professional and stay connected wherever they are. As the business grows, they can easily add phone numbers, extensions and features to accommodate that growth, without fear of geographic restrictions or onerous contracts.
