On the surface, replacing the phones at your office probably seems like a fairly straightforward project; in the grand scheme of technology projects, this one is pretty simple, right?
There are of course far more complex initiatives for your business to take on, but make no mistake: if you don’t approach the selection of your new phone system with care, you could be in for undue costs, downtime, and even damage to your reputation.
While our company doesn’t resell phone systems, over the course of nearly 3 decades in business our clients have relied on us to guide them in the right direction.
To help guide you in the right direction, here are some of the most important questions to ask during your selection process to make sure you cover all your bases.
Choosing the Right Phone System: Key Considerations
There’s more to making the right decision than comparing feature lists. Here are the most important questions to ask yourself as you work through your selection process:
- Is the goal simply to replace the existing phones in the office, or to keep/improve service level but lower contract costs?
- How does the new phone system compare with the current system (or others on the market): features versus cost?
- Are we looking to add any phones/lines, and are there enough connections/ports in the office for them? Will additional wiring work be required?
- Are you looking to keep any of the existing phones? Are the models you have compatible/supported by the new system?
- Do you have any remote staff who would need to use your phone system for inbound/outbound calls (caller ID)? Do they need physical or virtual phones?
- Is the vendor going to perform the installation or do you have someone to take care of it?
Once you have your answers, feel free to check with your IT resource and see if they’ll help you identify the system and vendor that will meet your criteria and be the overall best fit for your organization.
If the phone vendor you select will handle the implementation project, make sure you keep your IT team in the loop – especially if the system will connect into your network (some are self-contained, some are not).
And, as with any technical endeavor, make sure your vendor will do their part to minimize any downtime or disruption during the transition.
From there, enjoy your shiny new phones!