Three Important VoIP Features for Business Owners

Literally everyone has heard about the cost advantages of using VoIP technology. It is almost inevitable for business owners to look into this technology for communication and collaboration purposes. Take note though even after you decide to take the plunge, there are more decisions to be made. First of all, you need VoIP service providers, an IP phone system, or PBX. It is important to determine the type of features you require before choosing any provider.

If your business is small, you most likely think that all you need are the basic features such as voice mail, call-forwarding, and three-way calling. However, try to look deeper and conduct VoIP comparison because certain advanced VoIP features can benefit your business in big ways. Among the most sophisticated features that should be considered include:

Auto Attendant

Auto attendant is a lot more beneficial than the voicemail. It is usually available in high-end IP PBX and phone systems. Consider the Auto Attendant found in the Asterisk open source IP PBX; it lets you play prerecorded messages to customers on hold and includes a voicemail “tree” that categorizes directories by employee, extension, or departments. It can also route calls based on the caller’s requirement.

Find Me, Follow Me (FMFM)

No matter where employees are, they can still receive calls as if they’re in the office. Whether the person is telecommuting from home, on the road, or traveling around the globe, the FMFM feature finds the worker so he can answer the phone. It is possible to configure the system so that first, the employee’s desk phone rings, then his mobile phone, then his home phone, until the VoIP system locates the employee.

Presence

The Presence function is an extension of the Find Me, Follow Me. But instead of relying on users to set up locations (where the calls will be forwarded to), the Presence will locate them. For instance, the feature can detect when a user has logged on using his username in another department or checked his mail at the reception.