As a youngster, you probably imagined an office to be a place where telephones were constantly ringing, with secretaries and employees tripping over cables. A lot has changed today, and one no longer finds telephone cables and most people speak on their cellphones. Yet, fixed phones still do exist and many companies use what is known as a private branch exchange (PBX) to connect these phone lines.
A PBX helps to switch calls on local lines and reduces telephone bills by sharing phone lines. A PBX comes with a trunk that carries several phone lines which end at the PBX. It also requires a console or telephone operator to switch lines, with the help of a computer. The funny thing is, all this technology is redundant today, and you do not even need clunky PBX systems to help you reduce costs.
Customer Service Takes a Beating
PBX systems often keep customers on hold, and many times they may just hang up before their calls are transferred. It is also possible that a customer service agent is rude and having a PBX is not helping you anyway. Both premise-based PBX and hosted PBX do not guarantee that all your customer calls are handled by excellent staff.
You Can’t Avoid Downtime
If a PBX system fails, none of your phone lines will work, and your customer service comes to a standstill. If this happens, your customers will probably go to your competitors. Cloud-based PBX systems can suffer from downtown too, and there is simply no escape from the possibilities of a downtime.
A PBX Can Be Expensive and Complicated
It is a well known fact that premise-based PBX systems cost a lot of money because one needs to invest in hardware. Hosted PBX can turn out to be expensive too, especially if you have more number of users. Your monthly phone bill may go upwards without your knowledge, and you will be left wondering where you are saving money.
You May Have Network Limitations
PBX is based on data networks such as IP, and you will probably need a router to handle a small business phone system. You might also have to invest in a power over ethernet (PoE) and some additional hardware that your PBX provider might suggest. All this will drive up your expenditure.
PBX Is Simply Unnecessary
If you are a small business owner or a consultant, you simply may not require a PBX system, hosted or on-premise. Even medium sized businesses are happy outsourcing their customer care and telephone handling requirements to an answering service provider such as Abby Connect.
A smarter option is to forego both hosted and premise-based PBX systems and simply subscribe to an answering service. You will not only avoid having clunky telephone line systems in your office, but you will also be able to downsize staff and save money. Virtual receptionist services such as ours will help you make and receive calls, without the need for telephone lines, PBX systems, or in-house receptionists. Things simply couldn’t get better than this.
