subject: Unified Communications And Hosted Voip Options For Business [print this page] Unified communications (UC) has become a popular term used to describe the vast family of technologies and organizational practices used to streamline communication. These include different processes such as phone conversations, email, video and Web conferencing, instant messaging (IM), voicemail, fax, and SMS messages.
Hosted VoIP allows employees to instantly access and reply to messages anywhere from any type of compatible device, making VoIP an important component of unified communications. This reduces response time, making every facet of your company run more efficiently. VoIP can be used for both internal and external phone based communications, and be combined with voicemail options that can be retrieved via PC browser or mobile device.
Hosted VoIP ushered in the era of the true telecommuting worker, reducing costs of setting up work-from-home employees by allowing them to tap into the company PBX. There is no loss of effectiveness, and overhead expenses can be reduced significantly in terms of office space and equipment.
Unified communications can be implemented in some way in nearly every structured situation. Even with limited budgets, there are things you can do to streamline your operation. From large companies to small businesses, non-profits to grass root campaigns, utilizing VoIP and leveraging other types of technology to facilitate real time communication can make any organization work more efficiently and effectively.
UC strategies allow you to be 'present' even when you're physically somewhere else. You can provide real time input and conference with colleagues throughout the day no matter what your physical location is. This 'telepresence' can be invaluable during times of crisis when you need to 'be' several places at once.
UC is also a valuable tool when you have several branches to your office and need team members to be able to communicate quickly and effectively. Mobile technology lets one team member access messages from home or on the road, while another team member is at their desk in a different time zone. This versatility makes it easier for employees with varying schedules to work together.
While many view unified communications as a collection of hard and software solutions that can be mixed and matched to suit the needs of their company, the term is also used to refer to best practices. Hosted VoIP can make everyone's workday a little easier, but the concept of real time communication goes beyond the actual nuts and bolts and concerns how you run your business.
Take a look at what modes of communication your employees already use both in-office and with customers (email, voicemail, phone) and how closely they stay connected to the office when away from their desk (mobile devices, home phones connected to the office VoIP system, fax). This will help you determine exactly how to unify your own communications to work in the most cost effective and productive manner possible.
by: Andrew Wiggin
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