Hosted vs. On-Premise Phone Systems: What’s Best for Your Business?
As anyone in the modern day can see, communication has changed rapidly. We’ve come a long way from rotary phones and fixed landlines, with every year bringing another advancement in smartphone technology. For a business, though, how does this change things? While traditional landline systems are still alive and well, modernization has brought a few options. A company can now decide whether they’d like a hosted phone system or retain their current one.
There’s no right or wrong here, only a matter of which one best suits a company’s needs. For the most part, the differences come down to service and cost. The functionality of either system might not be the same, so it’s important to consider what’s gained/lost and whether that impacts your business negatively.
The cost differs as well. Generally, when established an on-site communications structure, the initial investment will be higher. This is because there’s actual physical equipment to install while establishing a network for incoming/outgoing calls. However, this investment doesn’t incur a monthly fee. A hosted service, on the other hand, has those monthly fees but is much cheaper in regards to startup costs.
Still, when discussing the reduction of costs, it’s important to consider service and maintenance. Physical hardware requires routine maintenance, especially an expansive communication infrastructure. Depending on the company, this can get pricey. With hosted services, however, updates and maintenance are handled on the service provider’s side, so a company is only left with monthly charges. Not to suggest that it’s ultimately cheaper. Some third parties charge based on quantity and use, so a large company could pay larger fees for a hosted system.
Even so, large businesses utilize cloud communications for several big reasons. One of them is how effectively it guards against downtime. Downtime can make or break many companies, especially those reliant on outgoing communication, like in sales. So the longer a business cannot use a basic service, the more they lose out. In times of crisis, such as a disaster situation or external issues impacting service, a third party can still keep universal communication up and running. In many cases, that’s a lifesaver.
Another is that cloud phone systems are scalable. Again, the cost is often based on what degree of service is used. That means that instead of paying a flat fee for services a business might not even use, they’re only charged on a needed basis. Reducing or increasing infrastructure has a more predictable cost while on-site phone systems can have high usage fees even when not totally utilized.
It’s still up to management to decide if using cloud communication is an effective solution. It can be difficulty switching legacy systems to an entirely new service and does require informing staff how to properly use new systems. Still, for many modern businesses, using third party systems has benefitted them greatly and should be considered if current infrastructure is too costly.
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