In 2022, telephony continues to be a central feature of the work experience. Research by Avaya found that email was the top choice among employees when it came to social communication, followed by phone calls (15%). The phone was always a quick, convenient, and accessible way to reach colleagues (and customers) who are in a different location. Now, as employees face growing fatigue from video meetings, our reliance on business phones could grow even further.
Business phone systems can drive two use cases in the hybrid work era:
- Employees will rely on telephony to get in touch with remote colleagues. Phone systems are vital for impromptu discussions, quick query resolution, and peer support
- Business phones are essential for remote/hybrid contact centers. Cloud-based telephony and purpose-built contact center solutions allow remotely seated agents to manage call queues, adhere to SLAs, and deliver prompt support
If you’re looking to strengthen your business phone capabilities for 2022, there are six solutions to consider. These include:
Aircall
Aircall is a French company that offers cloud-based business phone systems for contact centers. It promises a fast and easy set-up experience that can be configured in less than a day. It has both inbound and outbound tools, including unlimited inbound calls, a power dialer, real-time sales coaching, and more. Aircall also integrates with your favorite business applications through its marketplace of 100+ apps. This covers all the major CRMs as well as productivity tools.
Choose Aircall for its simplicity and ease of use. Pricing starts at $30 per user per month.
Dialpad Business Communications
Dialpad is a US-based cloud communication company that has two business phone solutions – internal communications (talk, message, and meet in video) and external or customer-facing.
Dialpad Business Communications is an all-in-one phone system that combines audio calls, text, voice mail, and video in a single platform. It is designed for hybrid work, with excellent feature parity between its desktop, mobile, and web interfaces. It also has built-in AI for call transcription and sentiment analysis.
In addition to Business Communications, Dialpad Customer Engagement provides you with a phone system for hybrid support teams. It allows you to manage live calls, voicemail, and contact center KPIs with ease. The AI also drives sales.
Choose Dialpad for its versatility and powerful AI. Pricing starts at $15 per user per month.
GoToConnect
GoToConnect is a cloud-based business phone system that supports flexibility. It addresses both internal and external use cases in a single solution. Its cloud PBX architecture is compatible with existing phone hardware – or, you can partner with GoTo to buy new phones or use the web-based interface.
GoToConnect is designed to be a comprehensive business phone system for small to medium-sized businesses that have switched to hybrid work. It brings all the capabilities of an enterprise-grade solution such as call routing, international calling, wait time announcement, etc., at a competitive cost of $30 per user per month onwards.
Choose GoToConnect for its holistic feature set.
Microsoft Teams Phone
Calling in Teams happens in two ways – VoIP and PSTN. If you choose PSTN, Microsoft provides you with cloud-based Teams calling plans, or a direct routing alternative, where you can connect Teams with your existing PSTN provider. It is ideal for large businesses switching to hybrid work and needs a telephony interface that works from any device.
Importantly, Microsoft also has a dedicated range of desk phones and displays designed for Microsoft Teams. This gives you access to the full Teams experience from the convenient and familiar form factor of a desk-based phone system. Choose Microsoft Teams phone for its enterprise features and controls. Pricing starts at $15 per user per month.
RingCentral Cloud Phone System
Like Dialpad, RingCentral offers separate business phone solutions for internal and customer-facing use cases. We particularly liked the RingCentral MVP Essentials plan that offers you a compelling telephony experience at an affordable price point. It includes a dedicated phone number for every user (with toll-free options), 100 toll-free minutes, unlimited calling in the US and Canada, advanced voicemail, messaging and document sharing.
It has iOS and Android apps for hybrid use. Choose RingCentral for its fuss-free feature set. Pricing starts at $19.99 per user per month.
Zoom Phone
Better known for its video calling capabilities, Zoom also has a business phone system – similar to RingCentral. It supports both incoming and outgoing calls, with the option to add on unlimited calling to 18 countries or territories around the world. Zoom Phone is perfect for fast-growing companies that want to orchestrate hybrid work in distributed locations. Its advanced plans also include unlimited domestic calls in any one of the 40 countries supported by Zoom.
Choose Zoom for its global reach. Pricing starts at $120 per year per user.
The future of hybrid work will rely on business phone systems in a big way. Even as chat-based collaboration platforms and visual collaboration tools maintain their growth momentum, telephony will make a resurgence for internal use. Lengthy, pre-scheduled video calls involve a high cognitive burden and add to employee workloads. They must prepare agendas, block calendar time and mindshare, follow up after video meetings, and present their best selves throughout the entire experience. Telephony, on the other hand, is more convenient – best suited to quick chats, without disrupting the workday.
These six business phone systems we discussed are ideal for use in a hybrid work environment. They are compatible with multiple devices and interfaces, ranging from branded phone hardware to the web. They can help you communicate with as small or large an audience you wish, with some even supporting affordable international telephony. They are transparently priced so that businesses do not rack up operational costs while maintaining the lines of communications, and some use the cloud to optimize costs even further.
These are some of the key parameters to consider when selecting a business phone system in 2022. Let us know your thoughts on social media.
