In this blog we’ll answer questions posed by many customers about Hosted PBX telephone systems.
What is PBX?
At Time Communications we believe in keeping things simple, so let’s start with an explanation of a PBX system.
PBX stands for Private Branch Exchange, and describes a business-grade phone system, with the technical features needed to help businesses operate more effectively, such as extension lines, customer waiting queues and re-routing of calls to an out-of-hours destination.
Traditional PBX equipment was physically bulky and based on a firm’s premises. Technological progress means that a hosted PBX can now be delivered over the internet by your telecoms service provider.
What is ISDN?
By comparison, ISDN (standing for Integrated Services Digital Network) is a telephone network system which is capable of transmitting voice and data over a single digital line. It became well established within the telecoms market over recent decades, because it provided customers with better prices and high bandwidth internet access.
However, in recent years, ISDN has been competing with – and succeeded by – broadband internet access, to the point where, in 2015, BT announced their plans to stop the sale of ISDN lines in 2020, and to switch off ISDN in the UK in 2025.
Why Hosted PBX is preferable to ISDN
So, despite some continuing technical merits of ISDN, by comparison broadband-based hosted PBX services are now the primary and most economic choice for customers choosing a new or upgraded telecoms system.
A hosted PBX service moves your business telephony and communications to an established, trusted VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) provider. Extension phone handsets are replaced with a VoIP phone and you use your data network for your business voice calls.
Key benefits of a Hosted PBX solution
The key benefits of a hosted PBX solution are mobility, cost savings, scalability, ease of use and professionalism.
- Cost savings: hosted PBX solutions do not require a heavy up-front investment in your company telephone system. And because the system is hosted virtually, you do not have the cost of an in-house telephony expert to manage an on-site telephone system.
- Mobility: a hosted PBX system provides you with a virtual office phone system. This makes the transition between home working and office working seamless and is invaluable for sales and field-based colleagues who are mostly on the road.
- Scalability: a virtual phone system means that you can add extensions quickly and effortlessly as you grow. And if for any reason you need to remove phone lines, you can do this just as simply.
- Ease of use: a hosted PBX system means that you do not have to worry about on-site phone technology, leaving you free to focus on growing your business.
- Professionalism: the wide range of technical features available on a virtual phone system mean that small businesses can appear larger, and established business can demonstrate their operational effectiveness with a client-focused telephone system.
More businesses are moving to IP telephony
IP technology is a more attractive choice to meet these business needs and around 40% of businesses have now transitioned to VoIP systems.
The dominant benefit of a cloud-based PBX is that business can stay up to date with the latest telephony features and innovations without having to revise or replace their infrastructure.
With a hosted PBX, there’s no need to worry about the latest technical updates or software releases as they are applied automatically and virtually – reducing interruption time in your business operations.
If you would like to learn more about how a PBX phone system could save your organisation money, Time Communications would be happy to talk you through the options available to you. Contact Time Communications’ expert team on 0113 2059640, you can request a callback on our home page, email at [email protected] or message us here.