When choosing a business phone system, remember the old adage “you get what you pay for.” If you’re struggling to start and grow your business, downsizing and using a free phone service will only get you in trouble.
So you have a growing business and you currently pay very little for your phone calls because you are using a free service. It may seem like a good idea now, but what about as your business grows? Do you want people to continue to see your business as a one man shop? If not, you should upgrade to a professional phone system. And with all the cheap VoIP hosted PBX (cloud telecommunications) options out there, you’re not only establishing yourself as a professional business, but you’re ready to grow as well.
VoIP hosted PBX systems typically offer many features that toll-free phone systems do not, such as: call queues, call reporting, call recording, and transcribed voicemails (voicemail to text).
Now don’t get me wrong, those free phone systems have a lot of fans who rave about the features it gives them. But, it’s just not a professional phone system that businesses of any size should use for their day-to-day operations.
Here are the reasons why you should NOT use a free phone system as a business phone system:
1. It is not a phone system
No admin login, no separate user logins, no call reporting, no call queues, no unlimited phone numbers, no toll free numbers, no registrations for different users, no registrations for different numbers, no e911, no dialing by name directory, no web faxing, no music on hold, etc. etc. It’s just NOT a phone system.
But… if you need more reasons:
2. Most toll-free phone systems are not based on SIP (Session Internet Protocol) and therefore lack features
Systems using SIP have many advantages over a POTS (Plain Telephone System) in that they can use many of the programmable features that only calls sent via SIP can provide. As an example, Asterisk is a programming language based on SIP and is constantly introducing new features for VoIP providers. Asterisk is open source software and is therefore freely available. Some of the features that are lacking in free services that a business will need include: call queuing, conference bridging with a pin number and email reminders, call reporting, management, and user-level logins to manage lines /extensions, web fax, a dial by name directory, music on hold, e911 and much, much more.
3. You can’t use free services on a virtual phone
Since most toll-free phone systems are not SIP-based, users of the system cannot use a SIP-based client as a virtual phone. Softphones are software programs that run on a computer that allow users to make/receive calls over the Internet. An example of a virtual phone is Skype. Many companies use Soft Phones for call centers and instead of a business phone. Softphones are free at first and can later cost a small one-time fee for many additional features. One company that sells softphones is Counterpath.
4. Most toll-free phone systems only offer a local number
With most of these free phone services, you are only provided with a local number. With the advent of VoIP, businesses can finally get local business numbers for any location in the US without having to have a physical location there. Therefore, many businesses are seeing the benefit of maintaining multiple local phone numbers. For example, if your business is located in Austin, Texas, but you have providers in New Orleans, Louisiana, you may want to give them a local number that they can call instead of having to make long distance calls or use your free minutes. on your toll free number. If you have a VoIP hosted PBX system, you can buy as many local numbers from as many US local destinations as you like. And you can forward these numbers to any location you want, including your cell phone, an extension at your business, or your VoIP phone (wherever you are located).
5. Free phone services usually don’t work with powerful VoIP phones
Many of the features that make businesses more successful when using VoIP are only accessible using a VoIP phone. Polycom, for example, has a full line of VoIP phones that are used just for conference rooms. There are also phones used by secretaries that show who is on the phone, as well as basic VoIP phones with buttons like ‘hold’, ‘mute’, ‘headset’, ‘conference’, ‘forward’, ‘Contact Directory’, ‘Call lists’, ‘Messages’ and much more. And with a VoIP phone, you can use your phone anywhere in the world where you have a dedicated Internet connection.
6. HD Voice (wideband audio) is not available with toll-free phone services
Wideband audio is an audio technology used in telephony. Extends the frequency range of audio signals transmitted over telephone lines, resulting in higher quality voice. With HD, voice calls sound crisp and clear, almost as if the person is right next to you. HD Voice is available with most VoIP hosted PBX providers and most VoIP phone providers, but not with toll-free phone services.
7. Toll Free Phone Services – Voicemail to text service is lousy at best
Perhaps one of the coolest features of free phone services is also currently among the weakest. The transcription service can provide you with some less than literal translations. Voice messages may or may not arrive perfectly when transcribed to text. “I hope to see you soon” can pass for “I love your friend June.” Oh.
8. Privacy can be an issue for users of the free phone system
Computer World’s Preston Gralla says: “Lost in all the hoopla about the release of — is this disturbing fact: the service will provide (Internet Browser Company) — enormous amounts of information about the intimate details of your everyday life, including recordings of your voicemail and possibly your phone calls. Combined with what (Internet Browser Company) — already knows about you, it could mean your privacy has come to an end.” Gralla goes on to say, “— it will be offered for free. (Internet Browsing Company) —, however, it will no doubt be looking for ways to make money from it. One of the most obvious ways is through targeted advertising, particularly because the company recently announced that it will discover new ways to target ads based on your interests. It already does this with — So don’t be surprised to see ads targeted based on who’s calling you.”
9. Freephone services do not offer phone support
Granted, this has to be the biggest problem with relying on a free phone service for your business phone system needs. Have you, or someone you know, been able to talk to their support about something? I doubt it. Go with a provider you can talk to anytime, as having a working phone system is probably a crucial factor in the success of your business.
10 Free Phone Services That Don’t Look Professional
The bottom line is that when you’re trying to get a new customer to trust you, the fact that you’re using free phone services instead of paying for a better phone system shows that you just don’t care. You don’t care that your phone calls are possibly being monitored, you don’t care that your phone calls are interrupted and sound terrible, and you don’t care about having reliable business telecommunications.
Conclution
Toll-free phone systems are not intended to be used to operate a business’s telecommunications system. The little “fun” features they all have are just that, fun. They won’t help you run your business more efficiently, and in fact, they will most likely set you back. I mean, who has time to set up different voicemail greetings for different callers when trying to run a business? And do you really need that?? So stick with what works and grow your business without worrying about your phone system dragging you down. Choose a VoIP hosted PBX system and you can’t go wrong.
