There are some things we don’t do very often, and when we do them, we assume things will be the same this time as they were last time.

Usually, we’re pretty close to being right. For instance, the process of leasing an office space hasn’t changed very much over the years.

However, the process for buying a phone system has changed dramatically. Phones are very different today than they were just a few short years ago.

Out With the Old . . .

Back in the day, buying a phone system for your office went like this (it was painful):

1. Call around and find a recommended vendor. Ask your friends who they use, who they like, and who has good service.
2. Invite a few vendors over to talk and give the vendor information about what you need.
3. Wait a week for the vendor to call back with a proposal.
4. Have a meeting with the vendor who brings a nice notebook filled with information, sales material, and pricing. The vendor also brings some phone handsets for you to hold up to your ear and some speakerphones to admire for conference rooms.
5. Make a decision among the vendors and begin the process of arranging financing (usually in the form of a lease).
6. Execute the documents and wait for the equipment order to be processed (usually a few weeks).
7. Set aside a day for installers to come to the office and install a big box on the phone board or in the closet and place the handsets around the office.
8. Have a training for the entire team focusing on how to use the handsets.
9. Use the system for a day or two with constant calls to the vendor for instructions or fixes.
10. Use the system for three to six years as features improve around you (on other people’s new systems) until you reach the point where your system starts to die or you can’t stand not having the features so you start the process over again by going back to number one above.

And In With the New

Today, it’s different:

1. Ask your friends which business VoIP provider they’re using. Check the online reviews to confirm the recommendations you get. You’ll likely be talking to someone in another city. There’s no need to involve a local vendor most of the time.
2. Check the vendor website to be sure it offers the calling features you need.
3. Fill out a contact form and talk to a representative by phone or actually make your purchase online.
4. Do an online demo of the administration and user web interface and be sure you like it.
5. Answer some questions and have the system set up online (usually the same day).
6. Install soft phones on your laptops, tablets, or other mobile devices.
7. Have your numbers ported over to the new system, and you’re up and running.

Buying a phone system today is much more like buying Westlaw or Lexis/Nexis. The need to have a vendor come to your office is diminished.

Features to Include in Your System

The world has changed from back in the day when we had handsets. You won’t need handsets in your conference rooms as your users all have devices in their pockets and so do your clients and other visitors. No one is looking for a hardware handset anymore.

• Your users should be able to plug an earbud into their head and make a call from any device, and they should be able to do it from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection.
• Your users should be able to access all the functionality of the system from their tablet, mobile device, or their laptop.
• Your users should be able to control their calls, voicemails, etc. via a web interface.
• Your users should have access to a broad range of features, such as follow me, call recording, fax, unified inbox, voicemail transcription, call screening, call announce, etc. Most vendors provide a broad range of features.

Some things really haven’t changed much. Phone systems most definitely have.