#Choosing a cloud telephony service for business: The Do’s and Don’ts

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Choosing a cloud telephony service for business: The Do’s and Don’ts

Ever since the invention of the telephone, telephone systems have been essential in business communication. With the advent of VoIP in the mid-1990s, businesses no longer had to buy individual phone lines or extra hardware. Instead, they could install software on servers and run their own phone systems.

Cloud telephone system has slashed the costs of setting up, maintaining, and safeguarding premise-based solutions. Cloud communications shifts these responsibilities to the cloud service provider, and on-premise equipment is no longer hosted on-premise. Implementation is relatively cheap with a little upfront cost, and the system is up and running quickly without any downtime.

Despite the commonplace use of desk phones, you can make a phone call from any device with an internet connection, whether that is your smartphone, laptop, or tablet.

Cloud phone systems work anywhere you have an internet connection. A cloud phone system offers the same features as a traditional PBX, as well as the freedom of adding and removing users and features as needed.

Today, companies are not installing premise-based phone systems because the business case for cloud communication is so compelling. There is only one remaining question: which cloud phone system is right for your business.

What is cloud telephony?

The cloud telephony is a communications system in which all your data are backed up in the cloud and you need an internet connection to access and use the telephony features. There are more capabilities today in the cloud than ever before.

A hosting solution allows your business to expand without the restrictions of traditional hardware by providing everything from file storage to VoIP phone systems.

Users can access business voice services through cloud telephony, also known as cloud calling.

Private branch exchange (PBX) solutions provided through these services are managed by third parties off-premise, so your office space will never be taken up.

In addition, hardware maintenance is always taken care of by the service providers.

As well as voice calling, cloud telephony offers many other features and benefits. A world of possibilities is open to cloud telephony thanks to the ability to send SMS and MMS messages, share files, and integrate business workflows.

Compared to a cloud-hosted VoIP setup, your legacy phone system is hopeless. Besides offering a way to centralize customer relationship management (CRM) systems, VoIP phone systems also assist with internal communications among your team members and (most importantly) automate business processes.

How does cloud telephony work?

When you move your communications to the cloud, your calls are routed through remote servers. In contrast to physical equipment in your office, these servers are hosted in a data center of your supplier.

Cloud-based systems will provide you with a comprehensive telephony solution, including SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) trunks and PRI (Primary Rate Interface) lines to routing and switching.

Having those systems installed, maintained, and purchased by the service provider means you do not have to invest on and setup those things yourself.

You can connect to these servers through the internet. This provides the same flexibility and freedom as other kinds of cloud services. Virtual phone numbers route calls to a physical number, but instead of being attached to a physical handset or cell phone, they operate as before.

DDI numbers are typically ported over to cloud services, so companies don’t have to create new phone numbers. The number is routed according to predefined guidelines when called. It might be sent to a colleague simultaneously, to multiple devices, or as a pre-recorded message.

You will not be able to tell the difference in how calls are handled for your staff, customers, or suppliers. Although, you can easily scale your service, manage users, and provide additional services with the cloud system.

Choosing cloud service provider for your business: The Dos and Don’ts

1. Do analyze your pain points

Prior to diving in headfirst, it is imperative that you have a plan. Perform extensive research and test the waters before deciding whether cloud computing is a good fit for your company.

Identify all of the pain points on your current system and write down the results you hope to achieve when you migrate to the cloud. Whether it’s something unexpected, you’ll be prepared.

People and processes have a great deal of trouble adapting to cloud solutions, so ensure that they can change and adapt. Psychological barriers can sometimes impede your ability to analyze your migration strategies correctly. Be aware of these barriers before moving forward.

2. Don’t forget about security

Migrating to the cloud is not possible without security. Don’t expect the cloud vendor to handle everything. You should determine whether the cloud provider provides a security tool to protect your data.

A crucial aspect of automated testing is security, and it should be part of the CI and CD pipeline. DevOps organizations and tools should also incorporate security.

3. Do get the services of seasoned experts

With the advice and help of seasoned IT experts, integrating the cloud into your business can be easy. There is no need for hardware installation with cloud computing, and there is no physical infrastructure to be purchased, but having experts is definitely more beneficial.

As of 2022, the top vendors in the cloud sector include AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, IBM (it recently made the hybrid move), Dell, HPE, and Cisco. It is interesting to note that many companies have started mixing and matching ideas.

The most common pairing is between AWS and Microsoft Azure when customers want to use more than one cloud provider. Additionally, Google Cloud now offers a mix of existing data centers and private clouds for its customers.

When companies move to the cloud, security is a major concern. Thanks to the enhancements in security, customers can enjoy a heightened sense of security that will virtually eliminate breaches and hacks.

Today, companies do not need to be concerned with their customers’ or own data falling into the wrong hands as they did in the past.

4. Don’t be too selective

A private and public cloud can be used simultaneously with no problem. You should, however, check thoroughly for the cloud security risks that usually accompany the service. Be selective, but not excessive.

Although there is a lot of emphasis on security while migrating applications, it is equally important to create multiple backups to ensure that no data is lost in the process. But you should be cautious when choosing cloud storage and hosting options.

5. Do include automated testing

Prior to deploying the application in the cloud, performance issues should be assessed. When an application is in production, performance issues are often overlooked or missed out, resulting in a suboptimal product. Customers will experience problems and bugs when they start using it, and will report these.

You can check the application’s performance, test actions, and outcomes by using an automated test process that runs on the cloud. Through automated tools, test cycles are shortened, and setup and deployment are made faster.

As cloud-based automation tools do not require lengthy installation or setup processes, they are more convenient than traditional tools. Test reports can be viewed from any location, without the hassle of uploading and downloading, and the testing can be performed from any location throughout the world.

6. Don’t transfer everything to the cloud

It’s exciting to decide to change your operational database, but that doesn’t mean you have to move all your files to the cloud. Certain files will have to be retained for a variety of reasons, such as security or efficiency.

Whenever you are unsure regarding what to migrate and what not to migrate, turn to your chief technology officer for guidance.

7. Do collect more knowledge

It would positively impact your business if you were aware of the technological insights even if your business has moved into the cloud and the vendor does all the work.

With this information, you will be able to make better decisions and develop better strategies for growing your business. Attend workshops, conferences, and seminars about cloud computing.

8. Don’t start the project with rigid views of the outcome

In the early stages of cloud adoption, it is wise to avoid experimenting too much. You should not let it go slow or halt delivery simply because you will fail in the beginning.

It is still your responsibility to try the application, test it, and ship it. Failing to do so will make it difficult to deliver. You should still measure its success, even if that’s the case, so the application’s quality remains intact.

Conclusion

In light of cloud telephony being the wave of the future, it may make sense for businesses to abandon the copper wires and instead make the switch to a VOIP service that can provide a customized solution that is perfect for their needs.

The cloud advantage is not only used by large enterprises but also by small and medium businesses. According to Flexera 2021 State of the Cloud Report, 92% of the enterprises embraced multi-cloud strategy. A significant number of SMBs have also migrated to the cloud in the recent time.

So moving to the cloud has been fully adopted by the business sector, as evidenced by this statistic. Prior to making an actual move, though, you must also consider the Dos and Don’ts.

by Sujan Thapaliya

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