There’s nothing more central to business than communication. From the way that information is shared and accessed to the way that businesses communicate with each other and with customers, communication tools are a key part of any enterprise. Access to the cloud has radically transformed the way that people conduct business across the world, and UCaaS is the next step in that transformative evolution.
According to the latest IDC survey covering UCaaS, enterprises are discarding their legacy phone systems in droves. What they’re switching to is unified communications as a service, or UCaaS. Naturally, switching a core, key business service requires thoughtful analysis, so some businesses might be reluctant to switch to cloud communications. But the businesses that use UCaaS today are hardly rogue outliers.
As of the end of 2017, nearly 44% of businesses used UCaaS, up from 37% in 2016. 56% plan to implement UCaaS by 2019. Why? Because UCaaS streamlines all communications, reduces costs, and increases employee productivity and efficiency via collaboration. Robust, tested, trusted, and easy-to-implement cloud-based software services make it possible.
Legacy phones have been using the same system of underground copper wires since the 1800s. These are sometimes called PSTN, landlines, Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), or fixed-line telephones. These satisfied the hardware-based mindset that some businesses used to have and did one thing well . . . they connected an individual caller to an individual phone. But, it has drawbacks. Companies with multiple locations require multiple devices. Companies require multiple devices dependent on the number of users. In addition, legacy phone systems require costly upgrades whenever there’s an increase in the number of users. Changing locations may mean changing phone numbers. And, not to mention, you can’t check email or play Candy Crush on a landline phone!
How unified communications works
Unified communications are built on what is referred to as a UC platform. The platform facilitates integration among various services and among the users. UC uses VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol, a technology that translates visual and audio information into electronic data in the form of “packets,” and sends it out via the same technology that the web is based on ”it’s how you check your email or connect to a website ”to whatever the destination is. UC uses a special form of internet protocol called SIP trunking, which eliminates the need for a physical connection to a phone company.
There is no need for hardware, wiring, or circuit boxes. SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) unites your business’s server with the internet via a virtual connection over your business’s existing internet connection. UC allows users to switch from one mode of communication to another within the same session. For example, an interaction that started over email could be seamlessly switched to a phone call, or from a voice call to a video call, because they’re all connected.
Benefits of UCaaS
Landline phones are one system that does one thing. Unified communications is an interconnected system that does many things. The transformative nature of UCaaS is that it makes business communication as seamless and easy as how friends and family communicate outside of work: text message, instant message, video calls, etc. With UCaaS businesses can leverage technology to achieve that same ease and versatility with their business communications.
Cost savings – The cost savings of the SIP trunking technology are substantial. SIP Trunking is a virtual product, therefore it doesn’t require any hardware to be installed onsite. There are no “technician truck roll” calls. Hardware won’t have to be maintained or replaced. With PSTN, users are required to buy channels in multiples of 24 with one channel for the call and the other mostly unused but necessary for signaling between the voice network and the phone branch. You only use one channel but are required to buy all of them. With SIP Trunking, you pay for only the calling paths you need.
Scalability – As your team grows, you don’t have to invest in new hardware for each member. Need to deploy some new phones temporarily, then scale back? No problem. Because SIP trunking uses a virtual connection, adding lines or modifying service is easy and fast. You will never have to wait on hold to place an order for new equipment or services and then wait for it to be installed. If your company is growing quickly or growing in an unpredictable way, this service grows along with you, however you need it.
Reliability – Non-wireless landline phones have a reputation for being reliable, because you can still make a call when the electricity is down. But with SIP trunking and VoIP, there’s a level of redundancy that you don’t get with landline phones. With VoIP, your unified communications system works even if the power goes out. If the internet is out, you’ll still get your communications because SIP Trunking providers can reroute or forward services.
Keep your numbers – UCaaS users can transfer and use the same phone numbers they already have. Move your business to a new location? Keep your numbers.
Pay a flat rate – You won’t be surprised by long-distance calls or overcharges for more calls than you normally make.
Work anywhere – Your remote team can be anywhere at any time and still have access to the same communication tools your in-house team gets. The 2017 State of Telecommuting in the U.S. Employee Workforce report found that 3.9 million employees are working from home half of the time. Whether they’re scheduling a video conference with another employee or IM’ing a customer, UCaaS makes it easier for workers to stay connected at all times.
Collaborate better – Answer your calls with any device. On-site or remote employees can use instant messaging, video chat, web conferencing, and file sharing to collaborate with other workers or communicate with clients.
Streamlined everything
Good communication is at the heart of everything you do. Unified communications provides not only the template but the tools and the map to get your business from where you are to where your business wants to be. The unified communications platform provides a single solution to manage everything you either are already doing or dreamed of being able to do: basic things like crystal clear phone calls and voicemail (of course) but also remote meetings, interactive events, online workshops, and webinars. No matter where you are, where your employees are, or where your customers are, you can access instant messaging, email, chat, phone, and fax from any device you happen to have with you.
If you’re doing any of these things now, you may be trying to piece together these services using diverse communication tools that may or may not work well together. If you’re collecting any data from one tool, it isn’t shared with the other tool. Transforming a business of today into a data-driven business of tomorrow requires access to reliable data. You’ve just solved a major problem with your CRM because now instead of using a mashup of seven or eight service providers, you’re using one, and all the data that it gets is equally shareable and accessible to your team.
Switching to UCaaS is Easy
Virtually every business uses some kind of SaaS (Software as a Service) to do business faster and easier. It’s a no-brainer that Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) can also radically improve overall operations and communications. According to Synergy Research Group, the UCaaS market is seeing an annualized growth rate of about 29%.
Similar to other SaaS options, the hardest part is deciding to use it. Unlike setting up a large phone bank system, most of what will be required to shift will be handled by your provider. Select a vendor that provides a full range of communication services from the outset. Even if you do not use all of the services available to you when you first switch, choosing a provider who offers everything will ensure that the services are available to you when you want them.
You can connect to your UCaaS provider either over the public internet or by directly connecting your business’s LAN or WAN to the provider’s data centers. UCaaS can be either hosted or multi-tenant. Hosted UCaaS provides the greatest opportunity for customization and integration with existing platforms. Multi-tenant products provide a single type of software for multiple customers. Your data is never shared with anyone else, but all customers receive the same list of features.
The bottom line
The benefits that UCaaS offers are not theoretical. They are tangible, known, and growing. A platform like this gives your business ”regardless of size or outlook ”the opportunity to reduce costs, work more flexibly, increase resilience, and increase collaboration. That alone is enough to propel most businesses to a more quantifiable definition of success.
