In this post, we’ll explore what Unified Communication is and how it benefits an organization.
Introduction
In the last 30 years, the Internet and World Wide Web have dramatically changed how people live, work, and play. There’s hardly a single aspect of life those technologies have not affected. Employees who used to work in an office at a single desk with a single phone number assigned have evolved into a “digital workforce” with a host of communication services available to them. Unified Communication (UC) ties several technologies together so employees can more effectively collaborate, work in teams, and serve customer needs.
What Is Unified Communication?
Unified Communication is a framework, a strategy for connecting and integrating various communication services.
Conceptually, UC integrates all your communication channels, apps, and services so you can stay in touch whether you’re at home, waiting for a flight at the airport, on a train, or in the office. UC “melds” channels into an interconnected array of services.
For instance, when a customer calls your office phone, it can also ring on your mobile phone, making you more accessible to customers. Or, you might receive a voicemail that’s transcribed to text and appears in your email inbox. You have the option of returning the call by voice or email.
Workers today have dozens of ways to communicate with the company, other employees, and customers. Email, landlines, mobile devices, instant messenger, SMS texting, voicemail, and video chats are just a few of the communication services most companies support. However, no one wants to remember all the various ways to reach you. With a UC approach, people can reach you through a single point of contact (usually a phone number or email address), and you can reply using the most appropriate communication method.
UC aims to streamline, optimize, and blend all your communication channels into an easy-to-manage, device-independent communications suite.
How Does UC Help Grow Your Business?
Increased Functionality
- UC delivers capabilities that traditional communication services cannot. For instance, rather than making a voice call, you can make a video call to collaborate with your colleague. That call can include screen sharing, document sharing, file transfers, and other services.
- A foundational feature of unified communication is known as Presence. Just as Facebook shows you which of your friends are online at any moment, a UC implementation tells you if colleagues are online and available and where they are — all in real-time.
For example, imagine a customer calling with a question that requires help from someone in, say, Engineering. You can instantly determine if the person you need is present. If that person is available, you’ll be able to get the answer your customer needs quickly; if not, you can find another suitable person who is present. This eliminates voicemails and phone tag; it makes needed information readily available. As a result, you’re able to satisfy your customer almost immediately, which leads to improved customer satisfaction — a widely recognized driver of revenue and profit.
Improved Efficiency & Productivity
- Because UC integrates your communication channels, it gives you a single portal where you can check messages received through any of the channels your company supports. For instance, you can listen to voicemails by clicking a list of VMs rather than having to log in to your voicemail system. Your text messages, emails, and other communication channels are equally easy to access, even when you’re not in the office.
- Employees can collaborate and exchange information in real-time through screen sharing, document transfer, video, and other channels. You can complete what might have taken a day or a week in short order.
Fast, Smooth Implementation
- Rather than buying hardware and installing UC on premise, many companies use cloud computing providers who offer UC as a Service (commonly referred to as “UCaaS”).
Deciding to use a turnkey UCaaS solution places the cost of implementation into your operating budget rather than the capital budget. This means you can expense your costs in the current accounting period rather than taking the longer-term amortization and depreciation route the capital budget requires.
- A UCaaS solution gives you flexibility. You can choose the communication channels best suited to your company, then, as your business goes through seasonal cycles, you can add or remove capacity to match business needs right now with a click or two of a mouse.
- As technologies advance, UCaaS providers generally stay in sync with the latest proven products and apps, both to satisfy their customers’ needs and to avoid falling behind their competition. Choosing the right UCaaS provider assures you’ll remain current with tech trends and advances.
Improved Security
Securing a half-dozen or more communication channels against bad actors is far easier and more manageable when they’re organized into a single UC platform. If you plan to use a cloud computing firm that offers UCaaS, be sure to shop for one that has expertise and recognized security certifications.
Conclusion
Extended Office Systems has helped companies ranging from small businesses (less than 500 phones) to large enterprises implement unified communication. We provide the hardware you need on site, the connectivity, and the backend processing for one affordable subscription. Then, as you’ll see under the “Resources” menu at our website, we provide training and the documentation you’ll need to get your entire staff up and running without delay.
Contact us to learn how UC can help grow your business.
