In an age of digital transformation, the cloud offers crucial flexibility and scalability.
With the right cloud environment, businesses have the freedom to adapt and grow, however, they choose. You don’t have to rip and replace an entire investment every time a new trend emerges. Instead, companies can simply add and remove features from their stack at will.
It’s no wonder that so many companies are making the shift to UCaaS. The right Unified Communications as a Service solution isn’t just a tool for excellent communication. These platforms act as pillars of growth for businesses ready to take the next step in user and customer experience.
However, with so many different UCaaS solutions to choose from, it’s not always easy to decide which one you should go for.
Today, we’re going to be looking at two of the most popular options on the market. Avaya Office is the cloud UCaaS solution from Avaya, designed to give companies more freedom as they grow. 8×8 is a comprehensive UCaaS environment, offering ease-of-use and flexibility.
So, which one is best?
8×8 UCaaS Features
UCaaS is a solution for companies looking to reduce costs, improve efficiency, and boost productivity. The 8×8 UCaaS platform is available in the form of the “X Series”. This selection of UCaaS products allows businesses to build their own ideal communication stack based on their unique needs. You can combine everything from collaboration, to voice and contact centre tools.
X Series plans allow teams to mix and match their tools with things like one-click voice and video meetings, HD conferencing, extensive business phone tools, and more. Features include:
- A full cloud environment for calling
- One-click chat, voice, and video meetings
- Integration with leading business applications
- Unlimited global calling in 47 countries
- Switchboard PRO Support
- Customizable dashboards and wall-boards
- Customer engagement analytics
- Contact centre tools
- Advanced speech and interaction insights
- Predictive outbound campaigns
Thanks to the flexibility of the X Series, 8×8 customers can buy the technology they need and nothing more. This makes it much easier to craft a comprehensive communication environment without overspending on unnecessary tools.
Avaya Cloud Office Features
With decades of experience in communications, Avaya has plenty of value to bring to the UCaaS environment. Although the company only recently began to transition into the cloud, it offers an advanced environment for companies in search of performance and security. Avaya Cloud Office gives businesses a global environment for communication and collaboration.
Companies access everything they need in Avaya Cloud Office, including extra add-ons like international numbers, local numbers, and conference phones. On top of that, to ensure that every business has the flexibility to adapt to the current environment, Avaya also provides pay-as-you-go pricing, so you can change your package whenever you like. Features include:
- Comprehensive cloud solution with service management
- Extensive end-to-end security and encryption
- HD voice quality and cloud calling
- Instant messaging and collaboration features
- Video and audio conferencing
- Mobile access for UC on the move
- Unlimited faxes and integration with legacy tools
- Quick and easy provisioning
- Easy and streamline provisioning
- Excellent hardware options for meeting rooms and companies
With Avaya, companies have the opportunity to add and remove any of the features that they like to their cloud communication stack. This means that costs stay low, but productivity and performance levels remain high.
8×8 vs Avaya Spaces: User Experience
The experience that you can give to your end-users with your UCaaS solution is crucial. Employees need to feel comfortable accessing their communication tools, or they’ll avoid them. This kind of thing often leads to issues like shadow IT and data breaches.
Fortunately, leaders like Avaya and 8×8 know how to make adoption and user experience as excellent as possible. 8×8 provides a comprehensive environment that companies can upgrade and enhance however they choose. You can integrate your tools with leading CRM services to boost your customer service, or sync with productivity tools like Microsoft Office and G-Suite.
All the while, 8×8 ensures that companies from all backgrounds can continue to meet with security and data standards from various locations around the world. The privacy shield framework protects sensitive information in any environment.
Avaya Office also provides companies with a flexible and engaging experience. As a leader in communication, Avaya has a good insight into what makes communication tools easy to use. The Cloud Office environment is intuitive and engaging, with very little need for on-site maintenance. Additionally, Cloud Office also offers end-to-end encryption for security.
8×8 vs Avaya: Flexibility
Today’s companies are turning to cloud for the promise of scalability and flexibility. The communication landscape is constantly evolving, with new technology to explore. This means that it’s essential for businesses to have a UCaaS space that grows with them.
8×8 is excellent at offering flexibility and scalability. You can upgrade or downgrade your technology to suit you, accessing different parts of the X Series as you go. There’s the option to link in everything from collaboration technology, to tools for your contact centre. Companies can essentially have all of their communication tools in the same pane of glass.
Fuze consolidates all business communications, internal and external into the same place, and links them to your leading productivity, collaboration, and CRM tools.
Avaya also gives companies the flexibility they need to transform in the cloud. There’s no need for any on-site PBX hardware that you need to install or maintain. Instead, you can connect all of your workers to same convenient system. Avaya cloud safeguards your content for you with exceptional encryption, and keeps you connected on the move.
All Avaya Cloud customers can use the Avaya app to stay linked into their environment wherever they are. This is perfect for the growing remote work landscape. At the same time, Avaya also offers a pay-as-you pricing model that makes updating your tech stack easy.
Which Option Should You Choose?
Both 8×8 and Avaya are flexible and engaging solutions for UCaaS in the current landscape.
If you need something that’s incredibly flexible and customisable, then 8×8 could be the perfect choice. The X series allows you to choose the environment that’s right for you and add functionality as you go. Plus, you get the benefit of integrations with countless leading tools.
Avaya Cloud Office might be a good option for companies that need a powerful communication environment with end-to-end encryption and fantastic business phone control. Avaya’s heritage and customer service really make the company stand out.
Which option will you be using?
