As a cloud-based communications solutions provider, 8×8 has a rich history of innovation. The company was founded in 1987, under the names of Integrated Information Technology. A decade later, it went public and shifted its trading to NYSE in 2017 under the ticker symbol, EGHT. This, in many ways, was the beginning of 8×8’s recent momentum of success.
8×8 was named a leader in the 2019 Gartner UCaaS Magic Quadrant, and it also won the 2018 Competitive Strategy Innovations and Leadership Award by Frost & Sullivan. Its flagship product, previously called Virtual Office Pro, has been significantly expanded and is now available as the X Series. This includes nearly every element of business communication, tailored across 8 service levels. In this review, we take a closer look at 8×8 X Series and how its many features solve needs in hospitality, contact centres, team collaboration, and employee communication.
Inside 8×8 X Series
The X Series combines voice, video, chat, and contact centre capabilities under one roof. There are two distinct modules: X Series Lobby – X1 to X4 (telephony) and X Series X5 – X8 (contact centre). A unified global directory is available free of cost, enabling easy integration with Slack, hangouts, Skype, Webex, and a host of other interfaces. Let’s review the features of 8×8 X Series in greater detail:
- Audio/video conferencing – You can talk to up to 100 participants in every plan ranging from X2 to X8. this is enhanced through HD quality audio and visuals. 8×8 also claims that their patented technology improves video conferencing experiences, in addition to a keen eye on data security
- One-click join in – Unlike a number of other tools out there, you (or your customers) don’t need to install an app to join in. You can simply click on the meeting link and join an ongoing conference, or start a meeting from any device
- Remote collaboration – 8×8 X Series is synced with participant calendars, so you can meet at a time that’s convenient for everybody. Screen sharing, meeting records, and records sharing via email are also part of the solution
- Group communication – This is one of 8×8’s newly onboarded feature for an enterprise-grade push. The 8×8 X Series comes with out-of-the-box access to its messaging app and an intuitive, almost-social media like UX. Further, an employee group/chatroom on third-party applications, facilitating ecosystem-agnostic collaboration
- Contact centre – Depending on the plan you choose you can leverage dedicated contact centre tools such as call ques, interactive voice response, predictive AI diallers, native CRM, and post-call surveys. The X Series X8 is designed as the best-fit plan for contact centres
- Analytics – Insights range from basic usage reports available in the X2, to contact centre analytics, customer experience analytics, and supervisor analytics for contact centres. You can even add quality management, speech transcriptions, and workforce management at an additional price component
- Integrations – Interestingly, 8×8 supports the same level of integrations across all plans from the basic options to the most expensive. Active Directory authentication, SSO, and Okta will cover your security requirements, while integrations with G Suite, Outlook, Skype, and Office 365 are geared for better productivity. You can also link your Salesforce, Zendesk, and NetSuite modules for a streamlined contact centre experience
Why 8×8 X Series Makes a Difference
The best thing about 8×8 X Series is probably its pricing & feature structure. The most affordable option isn’t necessarily the least powerful — instead, you have role-specific plans ranging from X1 to X8, each with its individual use case. For example, X2 is called the employee plan which focuses on individual productivity and team wise collaboration. On the other hand, X7 is a mid-tier contact centre plan with almost every feature built-in.
No matter the size of your business, there is a version of 8×8 Series that’s perfect for you. This, along with its support for unlimited calling in every plan, makes 8×8 X Series a promising bet for any company.
What We Think
You could look at 8×8 X Series as a single solution or a set of modular solution components. Plans are hosted entirely on the cloud to give you a scalable and future-ready infrastructure. We like that unlimited global calling is a staple, coverage ranges from 14 to 47 countries, and you can access 1GB of on-cloud storage even in the X2 option.
Finally, its massive library of integrations and an attractive price point starting at USD 28 per user per month (X2) makes 8×8 an ideal partner for your company’s growth trajectory.
