3 Ways Cloud Business Systems Help You Avoid Growing Pains

The challenges that accompany business growth can be wide ranging: office space decisions, capital investments, staffing and HR issues, to name a few. A common concern is whether your business systems can scale seamlessly to keep your growth transition manageable. Otherwise, business growth can be slow and painful. The good news is that you have a distinct scaling advantage with cloud-based business systems – especially with a hosted VoIP phone system.

The Cloud Advantage for Scaling!

The ability of your phone system to scale seamlessly with business growth can vary greatly between a traditional landline service and a cloud-based service like Vonage Business. Traditional providers can require ongoing maintenance or installation to keep up with a business’s growth needs. But cloud systems are managed virtually and quickly, making scaling easy for the business. With your business phone system in the cloud, the logistics, cost and speed of scaling are both predictable and efficient. That’s important for a growing business, so let’s explore all three:

(1) Easy Logistics

Whether you’re adding just one new employee or staffing an entirely new location, adding extensions to your cloud-based phone system is quite simple. You can add new extensions and/or new calling features yourself via your Admin Portal or by calling a Customer Care agent. Even if employees are at separate locations, the cloud integrates them within the same phone system as if they were in the same office. When new employees’ configured desk phones arrive, they simply plug them into high-speed internet to join the account.

Adding extensions or features to a traditional service involves a site visit from a paid technician. And adding service to a new location is a completely different story for traditional providers, involving the expense and installation of PBX equipment in a closet or server room at the business. Also, the option of tying multiple offices together may be unfeasible or entail a complex networking arrangement. Scaling with a traditional system is just not the same as with a cloud system.

(2) Cost Management

With the logistics involved in scaling up a traditional phone system, you can imagine some of the associated costs:

• To add extensions or calling features: With traditional providers, technician visits are either covered within a service contract or billed additionally. Cloud-based providers like Vonage Business don’t require annual contracts, since their systems are managed virtually and technician visits are not required.
• To add service to a new location: Traditional providers will install a PBX at the business location, which enables phone service functionality. So, the business is faced with a new hardware expense and the need to schedule the installation. Cloud providers use a hosted PBX model, with phone service enabled by software running on a cloud-based architecture. So, no on-site equipment or installation is required.
• To tie multiple office locations together: Again, this is not a simple undertaking for traditional providers. If the option is offered at all, it can require a complex networking arrangement and an associated expense. With cloud providers, on the other hand, the customer simply adds extensions to the account virtually and – even if employees are in separate locations – when they plug their phones into high-speed internet, they’re immediately connected to the account.

(3) Speed of Implementation

When a business is growing quickly, a long wait for its business systems to scale is a luxury few can afford. Fortunately, scaling up with a cloud-based phone system is quite simply – fast. Unlike traditional service, with cloud-based service, ongoing maintenance and installations are not required and there are no technician visits to schedule. When you’re growing, this kind of efficient scaling is a true business advantage.

Yes, scaling up your cloud-based phone system is easy – but this seamless simplicity also applies to scaling down, as needed. Some businesses need to temporarily scale up during their “busy season.” Others may scale up for limited-time fundraising efforts, or even during election campaigns. Whatever the need, it’s as efficient and fast to scale down as it is to scale up – so you pay only for the extensions you need, when you need them.

If you’re a growing business, Vonage Business salutes you! And our cloud-based phone system is designed to support you every step of the way.