In a recent blog, we explained how a cloud-based communications solution can work for your business. Now, we’ll break it down even further by providing six reasons why your organizational leadership can not afford to wait to migrate an older, out of date telephony system to a cloud-based business communication system.
And perhaps you have been waiting, even though you know that Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) is the update that your business needs, thinking that you can temporarily avoid the cost of implementation. Not so. Playing the waiting game only leaves you vulnerable to both the headache and recovery expenses that would come from a major system failure, and the slow trickle profit-loss from (what may seem like) the minor annoyances of having to work through a patchwork of outdated telephony systems and VoIP applications.
So, what are the risks of waiting to implement a UCaaS business communication system? Here are the six major reasons to migrate, plus a (brief) explanation of how ignoring the problem could leave your organization vulnerable.
Six reasons to move your business to a UCaaS system
- Systems Integration. You’re already maintaining a database to manage and track important organizational items. Those systems might be housed on a server, or in a public or private cloud. Telephony systems, including your legacy PBX, can’t be integrated in the way that would allow your team the efficiency to manage from a single system. A universal communications system with cloud-based wireless service allows you to integrate your systems in a way that increases efficiency.
- Modernity. Certainly, this one seems like a no-brainer. The PBX systems of old very often have a limited life expectancy of less than a decade. We all intuitively know that outdated technology can’t be expected to last, or perform the way it was intended past the 5-year mark. You may be prepared for this inevitability, but also consider that at the end of its shelf life the outdated telephony systems you’re using may not longer be supported by manufacturer service-level contracts. What’s more expensive: updating your technology, or hobbling along with an unsupported system due for expensive maintenance?
- Mobility. All of your employees are mobile. But wait, you say! I have an in-office staff based in a brick and mortar location. While that may be, your employees will inevitably go home, or travel. In addition, your office staff is mobile even when they are seated at their desks. They use cell phones and other mobile devices to connect to the system. If you have an outdated telephony system, you’re hobbling your employees ability to connect. To work collaboratively, to connect from any device, and to have the freedom to access the data we need to work requires, you need a UCaaS.
- Data Collection and Insights. Older telephony systems don’t have the same capability as a UCaaS to track calls, times, use, and other indicators. Patching in from a separate VoIP system might allow for data collection a limited capacity. But, there are tremendous benefits to be gained from the adoption of an system designed to gather that data as a part of the process, and integrate that with your other systems.
- Security. A cloud-based system is inherently more secure both in terms of protecting yourself from data loss, as well as theft through vulnerable network systems. Consider that your data, when backed up on the cloud, is less vulnerable to loss than it would be sitting on an out-of-date mainframe. Additionally, use of the cloud gives you the ability to manage access levels for your staff in a way that isn’t available with older systems.
- Efficiency. Implementation of a UCaaS allows for all of the above. Waiting means you have to work around those issues. Additionally, a UCaaS makes it easy to scale up or down, depending on market circumstances and the needs of your organization, and allows you to easily update the APIs you’ll want to keep up with. You also replace unused landlines and old technology sitting around.
Whether it be the more reliable lines of communication your business benefits from or simply the reduced capital costs, a UCaaS solution might be just what you need to take your business communication efforts to the next level. Want to learn more about how you can do that? We’re waiting for you to contact us.