The fact that conventional telephony requires the laying of individual wires throughout the office can make it less profitable and sometimes even not applicable at all. At the total cost of implementation and use, VoIP business phone systems are ultimately much more economical.
The adoption of VoIP solutions allows you to manage the communication network more effectively, quickly integrate new applications, and expand the capabilities of the system depending on the needs of the enterprise. The created VoIP infrastructure is a single local network, which can include absolutely everything necessary for the quality work of the enterprise. It may have IP phones with a full range of system functions, wireless mobile Wi-Fi phones, PCs using softphone software, and unified applications, as well as traditional things like ordinary analog wire telephones and fax machines.
VoIP Providers
Ooma: Best VoIP for Small Businesses (with less than five employees)
Simplicity and flexibility are exactly what each company wants to get from its phone system. Avoid hiring the whole IT sector to manage a sophisticated system; it’s essential to find such a business solution that can combine easy of use with all necessary additional features. Ooma has it all. Being founded in 2004 in sunny California, this business VoIP provider has an understanding of all small business needs. Ooma office phone system was made, taking into consideration everything the small enterprise can require for good work. In addition to multiple features, it has an affordable price.
It is easy to set up, doesn’t demand IT experts to manage and work with both analog and IP phones. Even though the system doesn’t offer all the features some of its bigger competitors do, it provides some of the most useful ones, like voicemail, auto- attendants, and call managing. The system is cost-efficient and offers full-time support. Ooma Business Services support team can be reached on the phone or live online chat 24/7.
As distinct from cloud-based phone solutions with only fees billed monthly, Ooma Office has a one-time fee for equipment and regular service fee paid each month.
Below is shown Ooma Office price explanation:
- Equipment Fees. It is a one-time sign-up service fee. The starter equipment package (including the base station, which is the system’s main component and two Linx devices) starts at $119.98. The Linx devices are necessary to connect analog phones to the network. IP phones can be connected directly into an ethernet port and don’t need any particular connection. The additional Linx devices can be purchased at $50 each. Every base station can serve up to 5 analog phone devices. If you need more phones, you will have to pay $100 for each additional base station.
- Monthly Fees. Ooma Office’s monthly fee is $19.95 per user. All the features Ooma offers are included in this price along with unlimited domestic calls and a dedicated phone number for each user.
Desk phones can also be added at extra cost. Most other business IP phone solutions require IP phones, but Ooma Office provides the opportunity to use analog phones. At the same time, IP phones allow expanding the system by adding more users to it. This way, the company offers several different Yealink and Cisco phones, ranging between $79.99 and $399.99.
Ooma Office doesn’t require signing the contract. All fees are paid every month. This business VoIP provider also offers a 30-day, risk-free trial to learn all the advantages of the system.
Vonage: Best VoIP Service for Growing Businesses
If your business is growing, a flexible and easily adjustable phone system that can grow as your business expands is the keystone. Switching phone systems each time your business develops and enters a new stage isn’t an option. In such a situation, a cloud-hosted VoIP phone system can be the best solution. Having all the equipment hosted in the cloud, you are free from adding, configuring, and maintaining the new hardware as your company develops. You can easily add new users and the features you need from your account panel online.
Cloud-based phone systems also have flexible pricing. They generally offer different service plans that may vary in features.
This price structure guarantees that you are paying only for the features and services you need and use. Nevertheless, you can add to a service plan and apply any additional ones when you need them. Auto-attendants of various levels, call managing, Internet faxing, CRM integration, instant messaging, and video conferencing are some of the features growing businesses might find interesting.
Based in Holmdel, New Jersey, Vonage business phone provider was founded in 2001. Delivering flexible and multipurpose VoIP cloud-hosted solutions both for small and large-scale businesses, it has become a recognized top business phone service provider. Lots of its regional offices are established in the USA, Asia, and Europe nowadays.
The most popular plans for ten lines business phone system are described below:
- Mobile ($179.99 per month). This option is a cost-effective solution for mobile businesses not using desk phones. It includes unlimited calling and SMS messages, mobile apps for Android, iPhone, iPad, plus a desktop app, and team messaging.
- Premium ($279.99 per month). The optimal solution for traditional office work and business model. It offers everything from Mobile plan plus CRM integration, multi-level auto-attendant, file sharing, and video conferencing for up to 100 persons.
- Advanced ($379.99 monthly). The extended solution designed for the need of large-scale businesses. It consists of all other plans features and Vonage visual voicemail, 15 hours of call recording per month, call group, Orange-Glove setup added.
All service plans have 14 days risk-free trial period with no additional charges and cancellation fees.
Vonage customer service can be reached on the phone from 8 am to 12 am EDT Monday-Friday, and from 9 am to 9 pm EDT on Saturday and Sunday, or by filling in the form online 24/7. Also, the Vonage website has lots of useful information for customers, including articles, user guides, webinars, videos, and case studies.
Jive: Best Features
Today modern cloud-based VoIP phone systems significantly expand the range of communication opportunities available for businesses of all sizes. With no need to install expensive PBX equipment, the customer nevertheless can benefit from using such advanced features like call managing, auto-attendants, video calling, and conference meeting.
Other useful tools that businesses may need from business phone system include different call options (forwarding, queuing, monitoring) extension dialing, and CRM integrations.
Offering all of these features and many other services, Jive is the best choice for any company looking for advanced and affordable business phone. Founded in 2006 and headquartered in London, Utah, Jive is a cloud-based VoIP solution with powerful features and simple setup for a reasonable price. Nowadays, the company ranks near the top of the IT business phone systems market.
The service efficiently maintains both voice and video calls easily integrate with existing CRM systems and offers excellent support service. Moreover, it is reliable and works well for both small and large businesses.
Jive can claim to deliver the most user-friendly and adaptable phone solution relative to the services offered by the competitors. All plans, even the cheapest option, give the complete access to all the features and tools (call managing, video chat and conferencing, CRM integration, mobile and web apps, and so forth), except GoToMeeting service. That is an online meeting service that is a part of Jive’s phone system. It can be included in your phone system for no additional charge if you sign for a 13-month contract. If you prefer monthly billing but still want to have GoToMeeting, it will cost you an additional $39.95 per user/ month.
The cost of the plan is based on the number of customers. However, more ordered users make the per-user rate reducing. Jive suggests five pricing levels:
- 4 customers $29.95 customer/month;
- 5 – 9 customers $25.95 customer/month;
- 10 – 24 customers $23.95 customer/month;
- 25 – 49 customers $21.95 customer/month;
- 50 – 99 customers $19.95 customer/month.
Business owners requiring over 100 users can claim custom pricing. However, important to note that Jive doesn’t demand customers to sign long-term contracts or pay annually. But, those companies that do will get better deals on service or phones.
Customer support service is available by email, phone, and 24/7 online chat. Also, the company’s website contains lots of valuable information, guidelines, FAQ section, and video tutorials.
Mitel: Runner-Up for Mobile Businesses
If your business has a contact center, your phone system should be flexible and advanced. It means you need such a business phone system that provides outstanding services and support to your entire company.
Mitel, Ottawa, Canada based company founded in 2001, is the a business phone system for call centers. It is a powerful traditional phone solution that offers extensive contact center features. The best part that making Mitel the perfect option for businesses of all sizes is the multiple ways it can be rolled out. The system is available as an on-premises system, as cloud-hosted or as a hybrid combining the two. Different service plans give businesses the versatility to guarantee that each employee has the features and tools necessary to best support the job responsibilities.
Availability as both a cloud-hosted and on-premises system means that these two hosting options have completely different pricing. The cloud-based solution is billed on a monthly basis. The on-premises system consists of one-time, initial fees.
For the cloud-based system, Mitel offers three different service plans the customers can choose from.
- Essentials (starting at $20.99 per user per month). This plan includes unlimited outbound calling in US and Canada, PBX features, audio conferencing and video collaboration for up to 8 people simultaneously, web conferencing (desktop sharing) for up to 4 participants, instant messaging, Outlook, and G Suite integration.
- Premier (starting at $26.59 per user a month). It is the most popular plan containing audio and web conferencing for 25 participants, video collaboration for 12 people at a time, Business SMS, Mitel mobile apps, Salesforce and CRM Integration, On-Demand call recording.
- Elite (starting at $38.49 user /month). The elite option allows a user to get all the features of the premier plan plus audio and web conferencing for 100 people at once, video collaboration for 24 participants, Always-On call recording, archiving, and operator.
All prices are based on the number of total users up to 100 and do not include additional taxes and fees. The guaranteed quote can be provided upon contacting the company’s sales team.
The contact center services are charging separately. Call center agents will be additionally charged $12 – $20 per user per month, while call center supervisors will be monthly billed $112 per supervisor.
Customer support is available on the phone 24/7, via live chat or by filling in the form on the web page. Mitel consultants are highly professional and can quickly resolve any issue.
MegaPath: Best Customer Service
MegaPath business phone provider is the perfect service for Unified Communications, and it allows staff and customers to flawlessly take part in web and video conferencing on the go. The company headquartered in Pleasanton, California, was founded in 1996 as a business telecommunications company and now delivers reliable cloud communications and connectivity of all kinds. It is known for its set of business products, from Business Phone Service and Internet to Networking and Security. Today its customers can benefit from cloud-hosted VoIP solutions with over fifty features for professional and smart business voice calls and conferencing.
At the present moment, MegaPath offers three basic service business phone plans:
- Unlimited National Calling ($19.95 per month). It includes unlimited calling within the US and Canada and over 50 additional features (auto-attendant, visual voicemail, audio conferencing, sequential ring, etc.).
- Real-Time Collaboration ($24.95 / month). The system of Unified Communications provides video calls, Business SMS, instant messaging, and conferencing implemented in the one-click application. A set of valuable tools for more intensive business use, such as web conferencing, mobile to desktop call pull, auto-attendants, and desktop sharing, are available.
- Global calling ($39.90 / mo). This plan contains all the features and services from previous ones plus unlimited international calls, which makes it perfect for the company doing lots of international business.
Also, MegaPath offers its customers various phones ranging from simple VoIP phones to video and touchscreen devices for more comfortable and more intuitive video and conference calls and Unified Communications. For smaller businesses and entrepreneurs, the MegaPath Unified Communications app can be linked to a laptop, tablet, or mobile device. It is presently available for both iOS and Android devices.
The main idea of UC is to create a stronger and easier connection for the employees. Video, audio, and web conferencing improve teamwork, boost the exchange of information, and decision-making process. The ability of the app to invite guests from outside the company for conferencing is essential to expand the communication opportunities and improve the work quality. The CRM app integration is also well-developed allowing easy and fast set up for 25 CRM applications, including Zendesk and Salesforce.
US-based customer service is available on the toll-free phone number 24/7 for all service plans and by creating a trouble ticket online. Also, the company’s website contains lots of valuable information, articles, Voice Learning Center with tutorials, and how-to sections covering all features and services from all plans.
1-VoIP: Most Flexible
Having over 40 years of telecommunications experience, the professionals from 1-VoIP genuinely know all the needs and demands of businesses concerning phone service and communication features. Since it was started in 2005, the company has worked hard to deliver affordable and advanced business phone solutions to its customers, building a solid reputation regarding reliability.
This commitment has resulted in occupying an excellent position within the highly-competitive VoIP industry along with numerous satisfied customers. Providing unique business phone solutions, affordable price structure, helpful technical support team, and impressive customer service 1-VoIP has everything the businesses of all ranges can use and benefit. Switching centers located in four different areas ensure proper back-ups and fail-safes, guaranteeing the standard operating of all the company’s products even in case of an emergency.
At the present moment, the company offers three business phone plans described in detail below:
- Metered ($14.97 per month, per extension). This plan is billed monthly and doesn’t require signing any long-term contracts. It allows you to pay only for the services that you use. All calls will cost you 2 cents/minute in addition to the regular monthly rate. All business features (auto-attendants, call forwarding, call parking, call recording, call waiting, custom music on hold, and so on) are available.
- Corporate ($19.97 month / extension). This option also doesn’t require any commitment and can be canceled at any time with no fees or surcharges. It includes unlimited minutes for calling and all advanced features (voicemail, digital queues, intercom. extension monitoring). A call blocking list will help to ensure the privacy of your employees, blocking unwanted inbound calls.
- Professional ($29.97 per month, per extension). This plan features the benefits of all previous (no contract, no cancellation fee, monthly billing, HD call quality) plus lower starting cost and VoIP phone rental with a phone number included. Sending faxes using the excellent opportunities of this business phone service plan is a significant improvement compared to the traditional fax machine.
Moreover, 1-VoIP offers an excellent solution for customers who are tired of annoying robocalls and telemarketers. Nomorobo, the service filtering all unwanted and irritating calls, is a partner of 1-VoIP. The feature making the phone service safer and better is included in all plans for free.
The customer support centers are located within the US and operate 24/7. The user is guaranteed to talk to a highly-professional live representative and not any automated service dialing the customer service. Also, it’s possible to reach them filling in the online form on the website.
Frontier: Honorable Mention
Created in 1935 as a telecommunications company committed serving the communication needs of rural customers, Frontier Communications now headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, United States, and offers Internet and business phone services nationwide. The company’s Unified Communication features, Office Mobility, and Collaboration Services are valuable solutions for any growing and expanding the business. Affordable prices, local and long-distance voice services, including essential telephone wireline services to business customers, easy setup, and packages of cloud-hosted communications features, are undoubtedly strong arguments for using Frontier business phone services.
Frontier offers its customers two business phone service plans:
- OneVoice Local ($29.99/mo). This plan includes unlimited nationwide calling and full access to all premium business features.
- OneVoice 100 ($34.99/mo). In addition to unlimited domestic calls and all the features, this plan offers 100 min for calling outside the USA every month.
Each business phone plan requires a minimum one-year agreement.
A bunch of premium features available in both options can be beneficial for both small entrepreneurs and large-scale businesses:
- Call waiting assists you do not miss important inbound phone calls.
- Voicemail lets you do not lose customers when you are not available.
- Three-way calling is a good option to make a mini-conference on the go.
- Premium Feature Pack can help you to avoid annoying telemarketers and prioritize incoming calls from customers.
- Texting service is a great way to keep your customers updated with your news, discounts, and special offers by sending individual text messages.
- Conferencing features are convenient tools beneficial for developing strong long-distance working relationships between your employees from regional offices. No additional hardware required.
- Choosing a business phone number (local number, 800 number, vanity number) is a keystone of any company to make it memorable and recognizable.
- Auto-attendant is an excellent tool to avoid missed calls, personalize your greeting, and forward the customer to the necessary employee.
Based on the size of your company and business specifics, Frontier Communications offers hosted PBX or cloud-based VoIP solutions to simplify your working day and improve communication with clients.
Contacting Frontier customer service and tech support team is possible on the phone 24/7/365 or scheduling the setup call. The company’s specialists are always polite, friendly, and ready to help quickly resolve any issue or problem.
Moreover, the help center on the company’s website is filled with useful information and articles related to different topics ranging from billing to technical issues. Besides, the FAQ section contains detailed answers covering a broad spectrum of topics.