HOSTED UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS: BIG BENEFITS FOR SMALL TO MID-SIZED BUSINESSES

INTRODUCTION

If a small to mid-sized business wants to grow, it has to think big, work

big and act big. Hosted PBX Communications (UC) is a solution that

allows any size business to communicate – both internally and externally–

just like the largest corporation. Best of all, it does so at a price that is

affordable even for the smallest start-up.

Purchasing and installing an on-premise business phone system can cost

tens of thousands of dollars. Setting up a Hosted or IP PBX, however,

costs much less. In fact, in many cases, there are no setup fees at all –

just a low monthly per-person fee. In addition, there is no equipment to

maintain or update. Since all functionality is in the cloud, all updates and

upgrades are delivered by the provider as soon as they are available,

usually at no extra cost.

Whether you are opening a new business or looking for a

communications upgrade, Hosted UC can be implemented almost

instantly. In some cases, like with the GVTC Hosted PBX Communications

solution, the process is automated, allowing you to be up and running

less than 15 minutes after the order is placed.

That means you can start thinking, working and acting big right away.

And in business, every minute counts.

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All functionality is in the

cloud, all updates and

upgrades are delivered by

the provider as soon as they

are available, usually at

no extra cost

$ vs. $$$

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WHY UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS IS A MUST FOR SMBs

According to research by InfoTrack, spending on Unified Communications

(UC) solutions by small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) is expected to

increase by 10% each year through 2017. That means businesses that

refuse to adopt the new collaboration technology will certainly be at least

a few steps behind their competitors.

Available as an additional feature with most business VoIP solutions,

Unified Communications tools—which include presence, instant

messaging, video conferencing, web conferencing, voicemail-to-email

and fax-to-email features—create a favorable environment for effortless

collaboration among employees. According to an article from B2C –

Business 2 Community – the addition of UC tools to a business arsenal

can increase team-based collaboration by as much as 2,800%. The

tools also help reduce the average length of a phone call by 20%, and

increase text-based communication between individuals by 320%, both

of which help increase the speed of productivity and the sharing of

information.

What does it mean for businesses that don’t have UC tools? All of their

interaction is done either in person or on the phone. Because 73% of all

business calls go to voicemail (also from the B2C article), communicating

by telephone is simply not very efficient.

On the other hand, some estimates have shown that SMBs with 100

employees can save up to 191 hours each day, on a company-wide

basis, by implementing UC tools into its business VoIP solution. Over the

course of the year, that’s 6,207 eight-hour workdays – or $920,000 (based

on average salaries) – which is the equivalent of adding more than 23

employees to a business for the entire year.

Companies that already have a business VoIP solution should consider

integrating Unified Communications tools into that system, if they’ve

yet to do so. For businesses that haven’t adopted VoIP technology,

the costs of overhauling a phone system might seem daunting. But, as

demonstrated, UC tools will start saving businesses money immediately,

and the increase in productivity will prove invaluable.

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Here’s a more in-depth look at some UC features and how they’re beneficial to SMBs:

PresenceThis is an easy, at-a-glance way to determine whether someone you’re trying to reach is available or not. Presence features allow UC users to know availability ahead of time, so they’re not wasting time trying to contact someone who is not reachable.

Unified MessagingThis is a seamless way to combine all emails, voicemails, text messages, video messages and more. These days, we’re bombarded with messaging. Unified messaging features enable users to get all of these messages from one inbox, rather than having to check every device.

Video ConferencingThese days, coworkers can’t always expect to find themselves under the same roof. Still, they might have to work together on a project. Video conferencing tools allow them to connect face-to-face and collaborate, no matter where they happen to be.

Instant MessagingIf an employee has a quick question and can see his or her coworker is online and available due to a presence status, instant messaging allows them to quickly get in touch with one another.

[ Unified Communications is expected to increase by 10% each year through 2017. ]

HOW HOSTED UC MAKES A SMALL BUSINESS SEEM BIG 4

The digital age has opened up the world to businesses of any size, but

for small businesses struggling to compete in a global society, Hosted UC

is making it easier and more cost-effective to stay ahead of the curve and

in front of the competition.

Vendors that provide Hosted UC services are giving small businesses an

affordable way to expand their company to all corners of the globe using

the latest scalable technology and software, while providing the service

at a cost that makes sense for any industry.

These cloud-based solutions let managers stay connected to their

employees, and let customers receive the best service possible,

by providing multiple avenues through which to communicate. The

tools also shed light on which practices are most effective, and where

there might be room for improvement in a company’s day-to-day

business operations.

Providing a single platform where email, instant messaging, video

conferencing, SMS and voice are completely integrated, a Hosted UC

solution allows coworkers to stay constantly connected, and in ways

that make the most sense. Instant messages can be exchanged to keep

everyone up-to-date, regardless of where they are in the world. Full

conferences can be hosted and include everyone necessary while they

are all continents apart. And if you’re trying to reach a coworker, their

presence status will show you exactly when they can

be reached.

A business with a small home office in Miami might need to send one

of their employees to New York for training. Another employee might

need to make an international trip to Europe for a possible expansion

opportunity. From the home office, a manager can host all three in

a videoconference at a time convenient for everyone. With Hosted

UC, everyone is constantly kept in the loop, and in a way that makes

interaction feel natural and inclusive.

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UC provided by a third-party hosting company also allow small businesses

with tight budgets to have all the communication features typically reserved

for large businesses, including advanced Auto Attendant, voicemail-to-

email and more.

Better yet, by utilizing the Hosted UC opportunities offered by an

experienced provider, small businesses can begin to grow their bottom

line, while being fiscally responsible. These solutions provide small

businesses the ability to expand as they find more focused ways to provide

service and stay connected. By keeping managers, employees and

customers more directly connected, the business can always be on, even

when it is still moderately staffed and continually growing.

When they take advantage of the services offered by a quality provider,

small businesses can suddenly become big players. There’s no longer a

reason small businesses can’t be global competitors in a world market.

HOW HOSTED UC MAKES A SMALL BUSINESS SEEM BIG

THE BENEFITS OF UC FOR REMOTE WORKERS

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86% of employees want to work from home

25% are more productive there

In the business world, UC is trending way up, with companies

understanding how the tools can drastically increase productivity and

efficiency, all while saving money on operating costs. If you’re a decision

maker wondering whether enabling employees to work remotely is the

right move for your business, consider the following reasons why it might

be beneficial:

Keep your good employees and attract new ones.

If you’ve got a great employee who needs to move to another state

because of his spouse’s new job, you don’t have to lose him. Instead,

he can set up shop at his new home and remain connected. At the

same time, the pool from which you can draw new employees expands

dramatically. In addition to the usual qualifications, the only requirement

a prospective employee must absolutely possess is the ability to connect

to the Internet.

Increase productivity and collaboration.

Your employees all have meetings with different clients, have different

projects and have different schedules. But they also have to work on

projects together. Unified Communications solutions enable employees

to collaborate when it’s convenient. Rather than having to travel long

distances to work together at the same table, employees can hop on

a quick videoconference and save a lot of time and money.

Prove to your employees that you trust them.

Giving your employees the privilege of working from home is an

outward expression of trust. You’re giving them the freedom to not

have to be bound to a desk, and you’re showing you trust they will

still get the work done. Your workers are your biggest assets; they are

intelligent and industrious and do not need to be monitored when their

output itself proves their worth.

Provide flexibility necessary in today’s world.

Recent research indicates as many as 86% of employees want to work

from home. Maybe they prefer a quiet environment to a noisy office,

don’t want to commute or just don’t want to spend money on daycare.

Whatever the reason, employees want the flexibility to work from home

and, according to that same research, are 25% more productive there.

UC AND THE BYOD MOVEMENT

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According to the Pew Internet Project’s 2014 research, 42% of all

American adults own at least one tablet, and about 65% of all American

adults have a smartphone. As is the case with technology, as more time

passes and the products become even more affordable, these numbers

will continue to rise.

According to Gartner, 40% of the workforce will be mobile by 2016 and,

of those employees, two thirds will have their own smartphones.

With employees increasingly owning their own mobile devices—which

can serve as extremely helpful tools for business purposes—comes the

rise of the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) movement. While small to

mid-sized businesses might not have it in their budgets to equip entire

staffs with these devices, they don’t have to altogether forsake the idea

of implementing them into business operations.

According to the ReadWrite Survey, 82% of companies are now allowing

some form of BYOD in the workplace. Why? Because the devices

improve workers’ productivity. In their annual report, Intel wrote that their

BYOD program, for example, allowed workers to reclaim 57 minutes each

day by utilizing their own devices – an annual company-wide productivity

gain of about 5 million hours.

Unified Communications Integration

The BYOD movement leads to increased collaboration in businesses

of all sizes. By integrating UC solutions into smartphone and tablet

technology, employees are able to instant message, email, chat,

videoconference and hold web meetings, among other things, with

ease. If a coworker isn’t available, presence features enable employees

to have that information at-a-glance. Rather than wasting time trying to

track an employee down or wait for a response, UC caters to real-time

collaboration.

82% of companies are now allowing some form of BYOD in the workplace

65% of all American adults have a smartphone

42% of all American adults own at least one tablet

BYOD, UC AND DISASTER RECOVERY

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Costs associated with downtime can be staggering. According to

research from the Aberdeen Group, for small businesses that employ less

than 100 people, downtime costs an average of $6,900 per hour. This

sets companies back about $25,800 each year. For medium businesses,

defined as those that employ between 100 and 1,000 people, that

number balloons to $74,000 per hour, or $880,600 over the course of

a year. For the most part, businesses aren’t in a position to open their

wallets for these kinds of bills, especially in this economic climate.

With so much money at stake, it’s more important than ever that

businesses of all sizes put in place strong disaster recovery plans. In

the event that their servers get knocked offline due to human error,

storms, flooding, technology issues or other unpredictable events, they

must ensure business continuity. Though many businesses aren’t in

the financially lucrative positions they were in previously, there is still

good news to be had: The rise of the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)

movement, coupled with the evolution and integration of Hosted PBX

Communications solutions, can drastically help businesses operate as

close to normal as possible, even when events outside of our control

might deter that from happening.

When mission critical systems went down in the past, customers had a

much harder time getting in touch with businesses. More than ever, time

is money, and every minute that a client couldn’t get in touch with you

could potentially have moved that client one minute closer to choosing to

do business with a competitor. Thanks to Hosted UC solutions, decision

makers no longer have to worry about such lapses in communication.

Protected by geo-redundant facilities, and overseen by a team of well-

trained professionals, Hosted UC solutions enable your team to

remain connected, even when disaster strikes.

Downtime costs an average of

$74,000 per hour or

$880,600 over the course of a year

for medium size businesses

CONCLUSION

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With more and more employees opting to use their own devices in the

workplace—after all, they are more comfortable with them—it continues

to make sense for SMBs to harness these resources, allowing the

integration of Hosted UC solutions on these devices. Employees keep

their own devices on their bodies, or at least nearby, a majority of the

time. This means that when an office is closed, employees can’t make

it in or systems are simply down, business can continue as usual in the

eyes and minds of customers and clients. They will simply be able to get in

touch with your team as they have in the past.

As the saying goes, “You never get a second chance to make a first

impression.” In business, this is more than a saying; it is the truth. You

want to impress new clients, customers and partners with your company’s

strength, experience and size. With features like auto attendant, music

on hold and integrated mobility, a Hosted UC solution will help you make

a good first impression. But features like presence, collaboration tools

and videoconferencing will do much more for your company. Because

these features will help your employees communicate more efficiently

and effectively, a Hosted UC solution will actually contribute to your

company’s growth.

Now that you have a better understanding of how a Hosted UC solution can help your business, the next step is deciding

which Hosted UC solution to adopt. The GVTC Hosted UC solution, GVTC VIP, was designed and engineered to be a full-

featured, fully integrated solution, offering as many productivity – and financial – benefits as possible. And with a unique,

widget-based Customer Administration Portal, the solution is easy to use and manage.

Here is a small sampling of what makes GVTC VIP unique:

Fully Integrated:

All GVTC VIP features are fully integrated and can be managed in one place. Other Hosted UC products have separate user

interfaces for certain features.

A Customer Administration Portal Designed for the Customer:

GVTC VIP has a unique, widget-based Customer Administration Portal to monitor and control every aspect of the phone system.

And thanks to the drag-and-drop convenience of widgets, every page can be personalized to give each employee the experience

they desire. Navigation is intuitive and requries very little training.

Unlimited Local, Long Distance and International Calling:

While most providers offer local and long distance calling, only GVTC VIP includes unlimited local and long distance, plus

international calling to 22 countries – at no additional charge. For a company conducting business internationally, this can

make a world of difference.

Reliable Nationwide IP Network:

GVTC owns a nationwide IP network, backed by a 24x7 Network Operations Center. Every month, millions of end users rely

on the power of the GVTC network to meet their communications needs.

WHY GVTC

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FOR MORE INFORMATION To learn more about GVTC hosted PBX communications, call us at

1-800-367-4882.