Tag Archives for " phone "
Best Business Phone Systems
Businesses don’t want to think about their phone system. They just want it to work. Dealing with dropped calls, hitting usage limits, paying hidden fees — avoid all that with the right business phone system.
Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.
I’ve put together a list of the seven top business phone systems available today. These are all great systems from dependable vendors, but they have their differences.
Let’s walk through how to figure out which one is going to work best for your particular situation
The Top 7 Options For Business Phone Systems
- Nextiva — The Best Cloud-Based VoIP Business Phone System
- RingCentral — The Best Business Phone System For Larger Organizations
- Ooma — Best Phone Systems For Small Businesses
- Freshcaller — The Best Business Phone System For Contact Centers
- Dialpad — Best Business Phone System For Remote Teams
- Line2 — Best For Individuals and Small Teams
- Intermedia Unite — The Best All-in-One Business Communication Platform
How to Choose the Best Business Phone System For You
There is a ton to consider in terms of the exact capabilities and feature sets of business phone systems. Early in the search, it’s easy to get lost in the variety.
Start by considering these six core criteria. How does each system measure up to your specific needs?
Using these criteria as a guide, you’ll be able to eliminate plans that aren’t going to be a good fit fairly quickly.
Deployment Method
Generally speaking, there are two main ways to deploy a phone system for your business—cloud or on-premises. Historically speaking, most business phone systems have been on-site. However, cloud systems and VoIP technology have been growing in popularity.
If you don’t want your phone system tied to physical landlines, offices, and specific devices, then cloud deployment is definitely your best option. But if you prefer a more traditional phone line, then on-premises will work just fine for your situation.
Physical Phone Systems
Do you need to purchase physical hardware for your phone system?
Again, if you’re looking for a traditional office phone that’s sitting on a specific desk with a hardwire connection, then you’ll need to buy those phones. In this scenario, it’s usually in your best interest to buy hardware directly from the phone system provider. Hardware is rarely packaged into your plan, so keep that in mind as you’re shopping around. Actual phones, headsets, etc. will cost extra.
The beauty of cloud phone systems is that you can make and receive calls from anywhere. You and your staff can leverage your existing devices for this (laptops, desktops, smartphones, etc.).
Not only will this make your business phone system easily accessible, but it’s also more cost-effective.
User Size and Scalability
How many people will be using your business phone system?
Is it just you? Is it 5-10 people? 500? 5,000? The answer to this question will definitely have an impact on your decision. Certain systems are designed for individuals, while others are made for small teams and small businesses. Alternatively, there are business phone systems designed for huge organizations with thousands of users across multiple locations.
Primary Communication Needs
There are plenty of general-purpose business phone systems. But some are designed with specific use cases in mind.
For example, there are business phone systems for customer support centers, outbound sales, and inbound phone orders. There are even solutions built for internal communication, such as conference calling and video chat.
So, determine your primary communication need, then start your search from there.
Plan Features
Lots of business phone systems try to improve their market position by giving you lots of “extras” and features included free in your plan. But these are kind of useless if you’re never actually going to use them.
I’m referring to things like visual voicemail, hold music, automated answering, call forwarding, call attendants, texting, etc. The list goes on and on. These features are either provided all-inclusive with your plan or get offered at tiered pricing levels.
My recommendation is this—don’t pay extra for features you didn’t know existed five minutes ago. Stick to the features you know you’ll use. If you get a few bonus ones, that’s great. But don’t fall victim to great marketing by these providers.
Phone Numbers
Do you want to keep your existing phone number? Are you looking for an 800 number? Vanity number? Toll-free numbers?
Some of you will be looking for all of these; others just want a single line for basic use. Most business phone systems will offer a wide range of different phone number options. But the pricing and offerings vary from provider to provider.
Just know that you might have to pay extra for things like toll-free calling and international phone numbers.
The Different Types of Business Phone Systems
Business phone systems aren’t really a one-size-fits-all product. Most people don’t realize it, but there are actually several different types of phone systems out there. I’ll explain each one in greater detail below to give you a better understanding as you’re shopping around and evaluating plans.
VoIP Phone Systems
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP for short) has quickly become one of the most popular types of phone systems for business users. As the name implies, the system is based on an IP connection. Rather than setting up complicated wires and landlines, a VoIP system just uses the same Internet connection that your organization already has.
VoIP systems are generally cost-effective and easy to set up. However, they rely on a strong Internet connection. So if you have spotty service, this won’t really work for your business.
Analog Phone Systems
Analog systems use POTS—plain old telephone service.
Think of a traditional landline phone system. That’s an analog service. It uses copper lines and connections between your system and carrier. As a result, analog phones have exceptional call quality and reliability.
However, analog phones lack the features associated with newer types of phone systems. They’ll still offer basic phone features (hold, mute, call waiting, speaker, speed dial, redial, etc.), but you won’t get too much more. Overall, analog technology is pretty dated.
PBX Phone Systems
PBX stands for “private branch exchange.” This is also referred to as a digital phone system.
It’s common for PBX systems to have an extensive feature list with lots of applications. These solutions are great for businesses that want to customize their phone system with various add-ons and upgrades.
Hybrid Phone Systems
Hybrid phones offer digital and IP functionality. These solutions have been growing in popularity because of their versatility.
Most business owners that purchase a digital phone system lean towards hybrid options. This will give them the opportunity to expand and scale in the future using IP protocols. It’s also common for hybrid systems to include features like fax and email integrations.
To ensure high-quality voice, the hybrid phone system must have a strong network connection. The quality is limited to the type of phone service that’s delivering it. A robust Internet connection is the best way to ensure call quality.
Cloud Phone Systems
The terms “cloud” and “hosted” are often used interchangeably in the world of business phone services. With a cloud system, you likely won’t need any on-site hardware (aside from your existing routers and data switches).
It’s easy for anyone to manage a cloud phone system, including your staff. All of the customization and management can be handled directly from a simple interface offered by your system provider.
The communication on a cloud phone system relies on a third-party data center (from the company you purchased from) and a stable Internet connection.
Examples of Business Phone System
#1 – Nextiva Review — The Best Cloud-Based VoIP Business Phone System
Nextiva offers a wide variety of VoIP phone services to businesses of all shapes and sizes including small businesses and enterprise-grade solutions. So, it’s an excellent choice if you’re interested in the flexibility of an online phone system.
On top of that, Nextiva also offers various communication tools like live chat, SMS, email, CRM, and more.
With Nextiva’s VoIP phone services, you get access to a ton of powerful features, including free local and toll-free numbers, unlimited calling within the US and Canada, HD video conferencing, an auto attendant, call controls, and unlimited internet faxing.
While these are standard for most business phone systems, Nextiva’s reliability, security, and customer service are second to none. When you sign up, you get access to:
- Eight U.S.-based locations
- Carrier-grade data centers
- SSAE 18 and ISO 27001 audited data centers
- Real-time disaster recovery
- Multi-layer security with 24/7 monitoring
- TLS and SRTP data encryptionBest-in-class session border controllersInnovative fraud detection and mitigation
So, whether you’re a small team or a small to medium enterprise, Nextiva’s VoIP phone systems are one of the best options available on the market.
The cheapest plan starts at $19.95 per user per month, but the mid-grade plan is only a dollar more. The mid-grade plan comes with a free trial, internal collaboration tools, unlimited SMS, and more advanced features.
So, it’s well worth that extra dollar a month. Sign up for a free trial to take their Professional VoIP phone plan for a test drive today!
#2 – RingCentral Review — The Best Business Phone System For Larger Organizations
RingCentral has quickly become one of the most popular service providers in the business communications space. They have a wide range of solutions based on company size, industry, and business needs.
You can use RingCentral for cloud phone systems, video conferencing, remote customer service, contact centers, global expansion, and more.
Used by 400,000+ businesses in nearly every category you can imagine, RingCentral is an industry leader in this space.
Popularity aside, these are some of the other reasons why I like RingCentral so much:
- Deploy new users and start scaling in minutes
- Auto-receptionist shared lines, and extensions to ensure you never miss a callHigh-quality audio
- Ability to switch live calls between mobile and desktop with just one click
- Automated visual voicemails
- Set up local phone numbers from 200+ area codes
- Robust admin portal for dynamic call routing, usage monitoring, and quality control
- 24/7 customer service from RingCentral’s friendly team of experts
Overall, RingCentral’s extensive feature set is definitely designed for larger teams. They do have plans for small businesses, but most smaller teams don’t need these extra features.
RingCentral starts at $19.99 per user per month. Try before you buy with a 15-day free trial.
#3 – Ooma Review — Best Phone Systems For Small Businesses
Ooma offers VoIP phone systems specifically designed for small businesses. The system is easy to set up, and you can make calls from anywhere using the Ooma mobile app or desktop computer app.
You can completely customize your Ooma phone system based on factors like how many employees need a phone, fax connection, conference calling, physical hardware, and more.
Here’s what I like the most about Ooma’s business phone system:
- Get the system up and running in less than 15 minutes
- Keep your existing number or pick a new one
- Easy to set up a 1-800 or toll-free phone number
- Features like call recording, virtual extensions, overhead paging, and more
- Create “ring groups” (like sales or customer service)
Ooma’s phone system starts at $19.95 per user per month. There are no contracts or hidden fees. You can even get a new phone number for free. Try Ooma today.
#4 – Freshcaller Review — The Best Business Phone System For Contact Centers
Freshcaller is a bit unique compared to other business phone systems on the market today. This solution is designed specifically for customer support teams.
There are no hardware or download requirements to run Freshcaller. As a cloud-based PBX system, your customer service reps can access the software from anywhere.
40,000+ businesses worldwide trust Freshcaller. If their reputation isn’t enough to convince you, here’s a quick overview of the top features:
- Ability to port your numbers or purchase new numbers from 90+ countries
- Advanced inbound call routing capabilitiesSupervisor controls for conversation monitoring, call queues, and more
- Easy to use for remote customer service teamsSmart escalations, call transfers, agent notes, and conferences
- Use AI voice bots to engage with your customers
While Freshcaller is definitely geared towards support teams, the phone service could double as a solution for sales representatives as well.
Local phone numbers start at $1 per month, and incoming calls start at $0.016 per minute. You can try Freshcaller free for 21 days.
#5 – Dialpad Review — Best Business Phone System For Remote Teams
Dialpad is another modern business phone solution. This provider leverages cloud technology and VoIP for their phone systems.
Plans start at $15 per user per month, and you can try it free for 14 days.
Dialpad has carved out a niche in the remote workspace. A quick visit to their website, and you’ll see #WorkFromAnywhere plastered in big letters on the homepage.
These are some of the reasons why I recommend Dialpad:
- Easy to deploy, add users, and change numbers in real-time
- Seamless integrations with tools like Zendesk, Salesforce, G Suite, and more
- SMS, MMS, and group chat business messagingCreate smart call routing paths to the right sales rep, agent, or operator
- Tools for sales, contact centers, and conference calling
More than 70,000 organizations across the globe use Dialpad. So you know that it’s a trustworthy and reliable business phone system.
#6 – Line2 Review — Best For Individuals and Small Teams
Line2 is exactly what it sounds like. This business phone system makes it easy for anyone to add a second line to their existing phone.
Your new business phone number can easily be managed directly from the Line2 mobile app.
The entire process is as simple as 1, 2, 3—sign up, choose a number, and download the app. That’s it! Now you’ll be able to make and receive business calls from your smartphone without giving away your personal phone number.
Other features worth mentioning include:
- In addition to smartphones, Line2 works on Macs, PCs, and tablets
- You can continue to add multiple lines as you scale your business
- It’s easy to deploy with no hardware or IT requirements
- Line2 is always coming out with new calling and messaging features
Overall, the concept behind Line2 is pretty straightforward. It’s perfect for individual users, freelancers, and small business owners.
Plans start at just $9.95 per month with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
#7 – Intermedia Unite Review — The Best All-in-One Business Communication Platform
Intermedia Unite is more than just a PBX business phone system. You’ll also get tools for video conferencing, live chat, file management, and screen sharing.
All of these features are bundled into a fully integrated unified communication and collaboration platform.
If you’re just looking for a basic business phone system, this option probably isn’t for you. But for businesses seeking an all-in-one solution, I can’t really name a better option than Intermedia Unite.
- Auto-attendant for connecting customers with the right person
- Wide range of integrations for building efficient interactions
- The system works from the Intermedia Unite mobile app and desktop app
- Phone support on pre-configured desk phone devices
- Award-winning customer service, 24/7Admins benefit from custom management tools and actionable analytics
Intermedia Unite pricing starts at $27.99 per month per user. It’s a bargain, considering all of the features you’re getting in this package.
Summary
To say you have lots of options to consider for a business phone system would be a drastic understatement. But by using this guide, you’ll be equipped to make the right decision based on your needs.
In a market that’s saturated with phone systems for businesses, I really only like the seven options reviewed above.
So start your search there, and use the buying guide outlined earlier in my guide. This will steer you in the right direction.
The post Best Business Phone Systems appeared first on Neil Patel.
Source: feedproxy.google.com
Best Call Recording Software
Call recording software is a useful tool for businesses and individual users alike. From quality assurance to employee training, compliance, record-keeping, dispute resolution, and more, there are dozens of reasons why organizations can benefit from recording calls.
Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.
But there are so many different call recording solutions on the market today. With so many options to consider, finding the best one for your unique situation can feel like a tall task.
Use this guide to learn more about my top picks and methodology for finding the best call recording software for you.
The Top 6 Options For Call Recording Software
How to Choose the Best Call Recording Software For You
There are certain factors that I looked for while narrowing down the top recommendations on my list. You can use this methodology as well when shopping around comparing different tools side-by-side. Consider this as your buying guide for call recording software.
Use Cases
Why are you seeking a call recording solution?
The answer to this question will help narrow down your options. Some tools are better for sales and marketing, while others are better for training, management, monitoring, and quality assurance.
There are smartphone apps for call recording for personal use and full-scale business phone solutions with built-in call recording features.
The type of calls you’re recording will impact your decision as well. Some solutions only support traditional calls, while others support WhatsApp call recording, Skype call recording, and other third-party platforms.
On-Demand vs. Automatic Recording
Do you want every inbound and outbound call to be recorded automatically? Or would you prefer to control if and when a recording starts and stops?
The ability to choose between on-demand and automated recording is definitely something to keep in mind as you’re shopping around.
For large-scale business use, automatic recording will probably be your best option. It’s one less step your staff has to think about during a call. But for personal use, you probably don’t need to record every single call you make or receive.
Live Monitoring and Call Evaluation
Live monitoring is a crucial tool for call centers. In addition to recording the call, this feature allows managers or admins to listen in on calls in real-time.
Overall, this is a proactive way to improve quality assurance.
Some software takes QA one step further by providing call evaluation metrics. There are tools out there that can use recordings for sentiment analysis, conversion insights, and more to provide advanced scoring grades for each call.
Security and Compliance
Security needs to be a top priority for conversations that include sensitive information. Examples include credit card information, medical information, personal details, and more.
Certain businesses must follow industry-wide regulations to ensure compliance. Make sure the software you’re considering meets all necessary regulations, even if it’s something as simple as notifying the caller about the recording and giving them the option to opt-out.
Storage
Another factor to consider is to assess the way recorded calls are stored and accessed from platform to platform.
What type of storage restrictions does each plan have? How easy is it to access, organize, and listen to those recordings at a later time?
For example, let’s say you’re dealing with a customer dispute. A customer claims that they never gave your staff permission to charge their credit card over the phone. Can you quickly locate that recorded call to find out what happened? The best call recording storage systems are searchable and well-organized.
The Different Types of Call Recording Software
Call recording software comes in different shapes and sizes. Generally speaking, these tools can be segmented into four major categories.
Smartphone Apps
Smartphone apps for call recording are pretty self-explanatory. There are OS-specific apps you can download from your respective app store for recording phone calls.
Most smartphone apps are intended for personal use, as opposed to large-scale business use. These are typically better for on-demand call recording, as opposed to automatic call recording.
Call Center Solutions
Many all-in-one call center solutions have built-in tools for call recording. These are great for inbound support teams, outbound sales teams, and call recording at scale.
In most cases, you can set up automatic call recording with your call center software. The majority of these tools have advanced features for live monitoring, quality assurance, and other administrative tools.
VoIP Phone Services
Similar to call center software, most VoIP business phone systems have built-in call recording capabilities. With that said, this feature may not come standard with every VoIP phone plan.
You might have to upgrade your package to get this feature. Additionally, storage limits and the length of time that recorded calls are available will usually vary from plan to plan.
Browser Extensions
If your team takes and receives calls from a computer, a browser extension for call recording could be a great option for you to consider.
Most of these tools are browser-specific and may not work from anywhere. For example, some call recording extensions may work for Chrome, but not for Safari or Firefox. So, keep that in mind if you’re considering a browser extension.
Call Recording Software in the Market
#1 – Talkdesk — Best For Voice and Screen Recording
Talkdesk is a modern cloud contact center solution. One of the main benefits of using this platform for business communication is the built-in call recording capabilities.
With Talkdesk, you’ll gain deeper customer insights with encrypted screen and voice recordings.
By synchronizing the playback of voice and screen recordings, you’ll have more context for evaluating customer interactions with your support team. This also makes it easier to ensure compliance and provide your agents with in-depth feedback on their performance.
The software has a feature called Talkdesk Speech Analytics. The tool is perfect for analyzing calls based on customer sentiment, keywords, topics, and more.
Some of the other key features and benefits of using Talkdesk for call recordings include:
- Inbound and outbound call recording
- Custom storage options
- Ability to pause and resume live recordings
- Store recordings for as long as you need
- Storage available on Talkdesk’s cloud storage or use your own storage system
Talkdesk even has tools for quality assurance. Admins can add time-stamped annotations to recorded calls and fill out scorecards to improve agent performance. All of this can be managed from a simple and intuitive interface.
Request a demo to get started. Pricing for this contact center solution is based on the number of agents on your team.
#2 – Cube ACR — Best Call Recorder For Android
Cube ACR is a smartphone app designed specifically for Android devices. It has 10+ million installs worldwide.
In addition to cell phone calls, this simple tool makes it easy to automatically record calls from VoIP platforms like Skype, WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram, WeChat, LINE, Slack, Hangouts, and more.
For such a basic app, Cube ACR has surprisingly good recording quality, and you can clearly hear both sides of the conversation. Just customize your settings to enable VoIP calls, automatic recordings, and control storage backups via Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.
Cube ACR is always coming out with new updates to ensure recordings are stable and reliable.
Other noteworthy features and highlights of Cube ACR include:
- Cloud backups
- Silent mode
- Geotagging to see where calls take place on a map view
- Data security with a PIN lock
- Automatically remove old recordings to free up storage
If you want to mark an important part of the conversation, simply shake your phone, and Cube ACR will highlight that part of the call so that it’s easy to find later.
While the app is popular for individual use, the software has business-specific features as well. It integrates with certain business tools, has custom development, and offers special business licensing options.
The app is free and has a 4.3/5-star rating with 510,000+ reviews on the Google Play Store.
#3 – Callcap — The Best For Call Monitoring
Callcap is a bit unique compared to some of the other software on my list. It’s not really a standalone call recording tool. This platform is branded as a call tracking and monitoring solution, but it does have call recording capabilities.
Marketers leverage Callcap to gain deeper insights into consumer behavior. Any business seeking an advanced solution beyond basic call recording should consider Callcap.
Callcap will automatically record all of your business calls. These recordings are available at any time. You can use them for agent training, employee recognition, lost opportunity analysis, disputes, and more.
All recordings are stored in the cloud and accessible from anywhere, and it is easy to share recordings with team members.
But Callcap takes these recordings to the next level with third-party monitoring services. Their trained analysts provide unbiased scoring for all inbound and outbound calls. The data from Callcap allows agents to improve, close more deals, and increase customer satisfaction.
Other benefits of Callcap include:
- Catalog item tracking reports
- Track revenue by campaign or employee
- Secure and PCI compliant recording and monitoring
- Manual pausing and automated scrubbing
- Call tracking
- Call recovery
Callcap is not for everyone. If you just need a basic solution for recording calls, look elsewhere. But if you want one of the most advanced call recording and monitoring services on the market today, Callcap should be at the top of your list.
#4 – Rev Call Recorder — Best Call Recording App For iPhones
Rev is best known for its online audio transcription and video captioning services. It’s trusted by more than 170,000 customers worldwide, across industries like marketing, legal, media, education, and more.
But they also have an excellent iPhone app for recording calls.
This is a simple and straightforward solution for call recording. It’s a viable option for both personal and business use cases.
Here’s a quick overview of Rev’s key features:
- Automatically record incoming and outgoing calls
- Free and unlimited call recording
- Convert any recording to text with the in-app transcription feature
- Easy to share recordings and transcriptions via Dropbox, email, and more
Aside from the ability to transcribe and share, Rev is a no-frills solution for call recordings. It’s perfect for anyone who wants a free and simple way to record calls on their iPhone.
#5 – Aircall — Best All-in-One Business Voice Solution
Aircall is more than just call recording software. It’s a complete cloud-based call center solution made for business teams.
You can set it up in seconds without any hardware, downloads, or headaches associated with traditional phone systems. Best of all, every Aircall plan comes with call recording capability.
If you just need a way to record calls on your existing phone system, Aircall probably won’t be a viable option. This software is designed for businesses that need a completely new phone system. The call recording features are just some of the many perks you’ll get with an Aircall subscription.
Some features of Aircall include:
- Automatically record inbound and outbound calls
- Customize recording settings at any time
- On-demand playbacks
- CRM integrations
- Clear recording quality
- Unlimited calls in the US and Canada
Aircall has additional services for things like call monitoring, call whispering, and call analytics. These advanced features are not available on the entry-level plan.
Pricing starts at $30 per month per user, and you can try it for free for seven days.
#6 – Kixie PowerCall — Best Chrome Extension For Call Recording
Kixie PowerCall is another all-in-one business phone solution. It’s a top choice for remote teams looking for a simple way to manage calls.
This robust Chrome extension can be installed in seconds on Mac, Windows, and Chromebook devices. All Kixie PowerCall plans come with call recording capabilities.
As a Chrome browser extension, it’s easy for agents to make and receive calls from anywhere. Recordings can be managed with a single click, and the software is ready to use out of the box.
Since Kixie PowerCall is an all-in-one phone system, you’ll also benefit from features like:
- Single-click voicemail drop
- Local presence phone numbers
- Click-to-call dialingLive call coaching
- Call reporting insights
Like some of the other software on our list, Kixie PowerCall is better for teams that need a complete business phone solution. If you just want basic call recording features on your existing phone service, you’ll find other options more suitable for your needs.
You get 300 free minutes when you try Kixie PowerCall free for seven days.
Summary
Call recording software comes in different shapes and sizes. The best option for you will depend on your unique wants and needs.
Consider a smartphone app or standalone call recording tool for simple call recordings. More advanced call recording software will come with features for screen recordings, call monitoring, and customer insights. Choose an all-in-one business phone system to get features that go above and beyond just call recording.
Regardless of your call recording needs, you can find what you’re looking for using my recommendations listed in this guide.
The post Best Call Recording Software appeared first on Neil Patel.
Source: neilpatel.com