Is it possible to buy a professional image? Of course it is. People do it everyday with business cards, an expensive suit and haircut, a nice office front and well designed websites to name just a few examples. All of these things tell your potential customers about you and your business before you even get a chance to talk to them. It is important that they are portraying the right image. A common mistake many small and home based businesses make is not including their phone system in their image campaign. All too often a potential customer is impressed by the professional image that is presented to them until they go to call. Then two things can happen that turn them off. One, the business only has a local number. And two, if they decide to go ahead and dial the local number, the whole experience can leave them wondering if there really is a reliable company behind the image they first encountered. Now, with virtual PBX systems small and home based businesses never have to sound small and unprofessional again.
Here are just 3 features of a virtual PBX that contribute to it’s effectiveness at portraying a professional image for its users.
1. A Toll Free Number. A virtual PBX with a toll free number conveys an image of professionalism right off the bat. People feel that a company with a toll free number is more established and reliable as well. And when businesses make that toll free number a vanity number, the feeling increases 3 fold. This is especially important in online businesses where consumer confidence tends to be lower. Sure, business owners can get a toll free number with the “Bells”, but the impact the toll free number has when combined with the other features of a virtual PBX is unbeatable.
2. Automated Attendant. A virtual PBX with an automated attendant will answer calls professionally and consistently the same way every time. An automated attendant also gives small and home based businesses the ability to sound more like their bigger competition. With a professional recording, callers can hear options such as press 1 for sales, press 2 for technical support, 3 for billing and so forth. The caller does not know that all of those key presses might take them to the same place and the same person. This is also a very useful feature for a small business with a dispersed work force. If there are employees that work from home or in different locations, a virtual PBX automated attendant can forward calls to each of their locations based on their extension.
3. Call Forwarding. Some virtual PBX providers call it “find me” or “follow me” call forwarding but no matter what they call it, it all means the same thing. It means that a small or home based business using a virtual PBX can receive the calls coming into their toll free number anywhere they wish. This is especially important in the scenarios above. If a small business only has 1 employee for example, they can sound much bigger with different “extensions” all leading to the same person. A dispersed workforce could receive calls in New York, Florida, Texas and California all from one virtual PBX toll free number. As well, those businesses that operate out of their homes can set up the virtual PBX to forward calls to their home office or even their cell phone. Most systems will even allow the call to be announced in a specific way, taking the mystery out of whether the incoming call is business or personal. This allows business calls to be answered professionally every time.
These are only a few of the features that can be found with a virtual PBX. Other features that help portray a professional image are after hours greetings, dial by name directories, a recorded list of extensions, on hold music and the list goes on. A standard PBX with these capabilities would cost thousands of dollars. Not to mention the cost of maintenance and upgrades as new features and users are added with growth and time. Comparatively, virtual PBX systems can be found from about $10.00 – $50.00 a month depending on the features and number of users. The cost of the right phone system will pay for itself in the confidence that it instills in potential customers. How much is your professional image worth?
Brandi Cummings, an expert in the field of virtual telecommunications, recommends checking out Freedom800.com (http://www.freedom800.com), a leading provider of toll free numbers and virtual office technology for small businesses.
Author: Brandi Cummings
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Programmable Multi-cooker
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