Cisco – Wireless Training Video

Funny video used for internal training at Cisco. The basics of wireless. Shot a few years ago but still pretty cool.

Benefits of Business Phone calls over home phone calls

Benefits of Business Phone calls over home phone calls

The need to be constantly in touch with business partners, clients and customers is vital for most business’ to work effectively. Being out of contact for even a few hours can be catastrophic with the possibility of customer’s queries going unanswered and opportunities missed. If your business is to thrive then it will need an effective communication network in order to stay in touch.

A business phone line system is core to this as whether your business is small or large you will likely need to use the telephone at some point such as contacting suppliers or customers as well as talking to clients and providing customer service. If your business requires a customer service department then the telephone is the most common method of communication in the field and your customers will expect a phone line where they can contact your business to resolve a fault or answer a question.

Business phone systems vary from traditional home phone lines as there are many other functions that a business phone line will need to perform which a regular phone line will not be able to handle. One such feature is having a reception or primary contact line for the entire company. This initial phone can answer any calls coming in to the office or place of business and then be redirected or transferred to the relevant person with ease.

A regular phone line would need you to take their number and get the person to call them back, with business setups you can transfer them instantly letting your company deal with the issue as quickly as possible. Another feature is the ability to hold telephone conferences or use a specialist line for business broadband packages. Dedicated business ISDN lines can provide much more bandwidth for connecting multiple computers to the internet which could be vital to your business.

Business phone systems may also have in house switchboards and telephone systems that can make getting a new desk phone installed much easier than it would be to get a new landline installed from the phone company. For larger businesses with lots of employees this is vital as to order separate lines for each member of staff would be incredibly time consuming and impractical.

So if your business relies on communications then dedicated business phone lines setups is the first port of call on the road to making your workplace a success.

How important are Business Phone Lines to your business?

How important are Business Phone Lines to your business?

Businesses thrive on communication; many businesses will hold regular meetings for teams to catch up and provide updates on their progress but also to ensure that everything is running OK. Similar meetings can be held with customers and clients of the business to provide performance reports and take on any feedback.

Communication is key in business as many teams in one company need to be able to liaise with one another to get the job done. One way in which the company can help communicate better is by having business phone lines, business phone lines at every staff member or team’s bank of desks can ensure that they are reachable at any time for any queries to be answered instantly.

Some client facing jobs may require a phone line in order to deal with their clients and respond quickly, in that line of business if you are unable to get a hold of a representative then you could miss a deadline or have a problem that goes unsolved. In businesses such as customer service or IT support being able to effectively deal with any problems the customer or member of staff have is key to ensuring continuing or future business with one another.

Business phone systems vary from traditional phone lines found in the home as a wider range of functions may be needed that can help the business operate more efficiently. Obvious functions such as being able to put the caller on hold whilst you get what they want and being able to transfer the call if you are unable to answer their question but know someone else in the business can are basic requirements for business phone services.

Some phone systems are able to allow other more advanced services that can be beneficial to your business such as using ISDN lines which can be used for getting internet access as additional channels are available to provide more bandwidth to your network. As well as this some lines can be used for teleconferencing too, meaning you can conduct meetings over the phone with multiple callers if you are unable to meet face to face.

Some ISDN lines are used for videoconferencing too which can be an even more effective way of having remote meetings with clients or customers who are far away. If your business values it’s customer service and responsiveness it would be a wise idea to get efficient business phone lines installed to make sure your business is always just a phone call away.

Conducting business on the move

Conducting business on the move

In today’s working world the old cliché of “time is money” rings more true than ever, business men and women all want their information as soon as it’s available and for their business to have the advantage over competitors by getting a deal or piece of information first.

This need for information is shown clearly from the way we use our phones and internet, these days you can get internet coverage whilst you are sat in a coffee shop or at an airport, some American companies are even including Wi-Fi hotspots on board planes now so you can surf and email from tens of thousands of feet in the air.

If your business requires constant connection with workers who may be off site such as salesmen, home workers and the like then you may need to look at possible ways to stay in touch with them in places where there is no wireless internet. Luckily the past few years has seen a rise in popularity of mobile business broadband. Mobile broadband may not be the fastest connection in the world like those used in offices but they can provide a significant boost for workers away from the office on their laptops or at home.

All that is needed is a USB dongle which looks similar to a USB pen drive and inside the dongle is a SIM card very similar to the ones found in mobile phones. These come with either a “pay as you go” or contract connection which gives the user access to the internet, emails and even able to send SMS messages to other mobile phones which could be another way to stay in contact with workers.

The typical business user will not need to worry about going over the monthly usage limits as business use such as web surfing and sending and receiving emails are not likely to use large amounts of data. The speed much like mobile phone coverage can vary depending on where you are, many people will be familiar with mobile phone coverage and so will know what to do if they have a weak signal. Again sending emails shouldn’t take too much time as many people already use their phones for checking emails anyway.

If mobile broadband isn’t fast enough or your remote workers are finding getting a decent signal a problem then installing business broadband packages at their house can be beneficial especially if the worker works from home a lot.

What matters most when buying business broadband

What matters most when buying business broadband

Whether you are working from home or your office requires some form of internet connectivity the requirements remain the same: You need to get connected to the internet in order to conduct your business and link up with clients or customers. Business broadband has become as vital as water and electricity for places of business as it not only allows them to communicate with the world but also opens up a world of information and opportunities for your business.

By being connected to the internet you can get information as soon as it becomes available whether this is a vital email from a client or co-worker or by announcing a new product line on your online store. A business may need a faster internet connection than those that are available to home customers as well as other requirements too, the following is just a short list of requirements you as a business will have when deciding what broadband provider to go with:

Speed

Speed is the obvious factor that business and home users will consider. What is not well known though is that whilst many people will want to know what their download speed is, not many people take into account the upload speed. Upload speed is important in business as this could be uploading files to a company website or transferring important files to other offices or customers. Business broadband providers will often offer fast 8mb business broadband but this service will also include an upload speed that may even surpass the download speed.

Usage allowance

Speed is all well and good but with many Internet Service Providers needing to provide the same service to many customers they may have to shape internet traffic by limiting the speed of some users who are excessively using their connection. As this can affect other people’s service it is only fair but if your business is relying on the internet and a fast connection then this can be a problem. Dedicated business broadband providers may offer unlimited packages that are both cost effective and perfect for your business needs.

Types of connection

Broadband internet comes in many varieties and the way people connect is equally diverse. It used to be the case of only connecting via an Ethernet cable, nowadays there are wireless routers which cuts out the need to be tethered down especially laptop users. It also gives your business a greater freedom over where their PCs can be placed which is great for home workers. Staff that are on the road a lot such as salesmen may need a connection back to the office so mobile business broadband can be helpful for sending important documents or checking emails on the go too.