New businesses or start-ups have a number of unique demands to consider when working to increase capital and grow the business. With the restricted technology spending budgets that start-ups usually have, smart tech investments become even more important. In a recent Xconomy article, contributor Himanshu Sareen detailed the intricacies involved in smart tech spending for new businesses, noting how oftentimes tech costs are a major factor that limits company funding.
“Remember that the goal of spending on new technology is to increase productivity and potentially cut costs,” Sareen wrote. “By carefully assessing the business value and end result of potential technology, start-ups can conserve cash flow while increasing operational efficiency.”
Make Smart Tech Investments
In a recent article written for Business 2 Community, contributor Rachel Greenberg touted the value of implementing a virtual business phone system, particularly for new businesses working to increase their exposure and grow the company.
“A good place to start is selecting the right business telephone system for your business,” Greenberg wrote. “It might seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but the right phone system will benefit your online startup right out of the gate. When we say phone system, we aren’t talking about an analog phone system, one that uses cumbersome phone cords and the outdated analog phone network known as the PSTN, but rather a phone system that uses voice over internet protocol (VoIP).”
Technology Investments with Hosted PBX Systems
VoIP hosted PBX systems work differently from analog phones in the way that voice signal data is delivered, because VoIP technology converts audio to digital data delivered over an internet connection. Greenberg outlined numerous ways that business VoIP solutions can help startups, including:
- Hosted PBX systems allow startups to reduce monthly phone service-related bills.
- Long distance charges virtually disappear as providers offer low rates for international calling and unlimited calling plans for within the United States.
- Businesses can eliminate hardware and installation costs by opting for a hosted solution such as the virtual PBX for business from AccessDirect.
In particular, hosted PBX systems are especially attractive communication solutions for new businesses because all hardware will be hosted off-premise by a provider, eliminating additional business costs associated with purchasing and maintaining hardware and equipment on site.
“Hosted PBX systems, also often called a virtual or cloud PBX, is based entirely on an internet cloud platform,” Greenberg wrote. “This means that all of the functionality of the PBX is hosted over the internet, which means you don’t need any in-house hardware to support it. All you need is a computer, tablet or phone to access the control panel of your hosted PBX and your IP-ready phones.”
Greenberg outlined a few additional advantages of hosted PBXs, which include:
- Hosted PBX service is affordable, with plans for less than $10 per person per month.
- It is a highly scalable communication option, easily adapted to add new users or eliminate extensions according to business demands.
- Upkeep responsibility is significantly reduced, and eliminated entirely in many cases, as everything is hosted in the cloud by the provider.
- Hosted PBX Systems are particularly reliable, and less phone down time can correlate with increased business growth and success.
