5 Ways to Save On Your Business Phone System

5 Ways to Save On Your Business Phone System

As you start your new business or move into a new facility it is crucial to save money where and when you can. Now, I am not advising you to be cheap – there is a clear difference. Being cheap will come around to hurt your business in the long run. A new business or facility is always a risk, and if you are working within a business loan, or a budget you have saved up, you want to make the money go as far as possible. Cutting corners is not the answer, careful research is. Consider every service you will have to pay for to get your business or facility up and running and hunt for deals or packages that offer what you need for less. 

Communication is an integral part of every business, and its one area where inefficiency can easily sneak in unnoticed. From paying too much for a service or product, to using a business phone system that is slow or unfit for your needs, subtle differences can make a big difference financially. Getting the right product at the right price will make your business more profitable by streamlining your communications while saving some money as well.

1.   Go VOIP: By using a VoIP service provider instead of the typical landline you can save over 50% on your telephone service costs. VoIP uses your high speed internet connection instead of a phone line, so instead of paying for two connections, you only pay for one. Most VoIP services come with a multitude of features included, instead of paying for these features separately, choose a telecommunication service provider that includes the features you need.

2.   Buy a Business Phone System: Don’t go to a department store or office supply store and buy a bunch of individual phones. Assess how many phones, and what kind of phones, your office will need and buy a business phone system. A package of phones will certainly come cheaper than buying individual phones. On the other hand, some dealers only sell in bulk. They want to sell you 30 phones and other equipment, yet you only have six employees. Find a provider that specializes in small businesses and get exactly what you need.

3.   Buy Your Phone System and Service Together: In efforts to follow my advice you may find one company that offers your ideal phone system for a great price, and another that offers phone service a little cheaper, and you think this is a great way to get what you need at a more affordable price. Unfortunately, hidden costs and problems can come around to bite you from behind. The last thing you need is to get your PBX phone system installed, and the technician for the service provider comes in and can’t get your phones to work. Then the service technician, and the equipment technician spend hours blaming one another and you still don’t have a system that works. If you buy your phone system and service together you will have one technician to deal with and you will be assured that the product and the service are compatible. 

4.   Look to Bundle Services: As I said earlier, if you know you need specific services try to buy them together. For example, many VoIP providers also offer conference calling and online faxing as well. Bundling services will drive down cost and make them easier manage.

5.   Avoid Unnecessary Costs: Free instillation and free trials are great ways to save money up front on the services you will need. At first steer away from plans that force you to buy a certain amount of minutes. With a pay-as-you-go plan you can be sure you won’t be paying for minutes you never use. If buying a certain amount of minutes is more cost effective, wait a few months so you can get a bearing on how many minutes you use monthly. Then you can buy the plan that fits your needs best.  

If you make many long distance or international calls, let’s say your office is in New York, but most of your business is in California, Oregon, Texas and China; find a provider who offers unlimited long distance or special international rates.

There is no secret to getting your money’s worth in business products and services. The trick is to know exactly what your business needs are, and to do the research and shop around. Saving money and cutting overhead is a goal for every business, choosing the right business phone service is one place you can do that without compromising quality.