In the world we live in today, having a reliable phone system is a necessity for a small business, especially when most of our communication these days is through texts, phone calls, and video chat. Are you h aving trouble choosing a phone system for your small business? Well, we are here to help!
We at 体育娱乐平台 Design Chicago have researched the best phone systems for your business considering certain features, pricing, design, what are cloud-based phone systems, and what you should consider when picking your phone system. We have done all the hard work and ranked the best business phone systems for you!
Table of Contents
1. RingCentral (Best for Small Businesses)
RingCentral is a cloud-based communication system that caters to every one of your business’ needs. It has everything you want in a phone system for your business, and offers so many features to their customers. It is easy to use and they offer different plans for reasonable prices.
In order for your small business to thrive , y ou need your systems running at all times. RingCentral’s uptime is at 99.9999%, meaning RingCentral works all day and night to keep you connected to your customers and associates.
As we mentioned earlier, RingCentral provides many features to their clients. RingCentral brings everyone together. It allows you to create teams and share agendas and other documents before meetings, and during those meetings you can connect RingCentral with tools like Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.
You can also use your personal phone as a way to communicate with clients and coworkers while keeping your personal number private and send messages from your RingCentral phone number. The list goes on and on: automatic call recording, call analytics, business intelligence, multi-site admin and management, software integration with Sales Forces and more.
Pricing
RingCentral offers customers many different plans that w ill fit perfectly for your business. The plans start at $19.99 a month with their basic features of team messaging, document sharing, unlimited calls, and texts. The plans go up to $24.99, $34.99, $49.99, and $34.99 is their most popular plan that offers many of their popular features.
Pros:
- cloud-hosted system that doesn’t require any special equipment or wiring
- numerous data centers worldwide
- allows number porting
- the system is controlled entirely from an online portal
Cons:
- essentials plan doesn’t include any audio or video conferencing
2. 8×8 (Best Value)
8×8 offers small businesses everything you need in a business phone system, without costing you an arm and leg. It is a cloud-based communication system as well and offers many tools besides just regular calling. 8×8 offers team chat, file sharing, online voicemail and more.
8×8’s uptime is at 99.999% uptime, meaning their services are only down a couple times a year, comparable to RingCentral.
8×8, for a reasonable price, still offers several features. Setting up 8×8 is fairly easy and takes minutes. You can enjoy unlimited calling from both US and Canada, and are able to use call forwarding and music on hold. 8×8 allows you to text and chat to get a hold of coworkers and customers. You can also enjoy your business from anywhere with scheduling meetings in Google Calendar, keep business calls separate from your personal ones and handle these calls through your desktop or phone. Other services 8×8 offers are auto attendant, mobile app use, file sharing, video conferencing, and more.
Pricing
8×8 has 3 different plans to choose from. 8×8’s express plan is $12 per user and per month offering a small business phone system unlimited calling, team chat file sharing, and business SMS. X2 is a $25 per user per month plan; including a little more than the express plan adding all in one voice and video with basic analytics. Lastly, is X4 $45 per user, per month providing advanced analytics and call management features.
Pros:
- doesn’t require any special equipment or wiring
- 8×8 handles all of the maintenance and upgrades.
- has a online portal
Cons:
- can’t hold conference calls with more than 15 callers
3. Grasshopper
Grasshopper is a cloud based VOIP where instead of buying new equipment you can download Grasshoppers apps to your phone and computer you already have and offer a plan with unlimited extensions perfect for a small office.
It provides many features. You can create professional greetings with the voice actors they offer if you want a more professional greeting. Never want to miss a call? Add Ruby Receptionist that will deliver a personalized experience for your customers. Grasshopper also offers call screening and call forwarding. With Grasshopper, voicemails and inbound faxes can be converted to email saving time and paper documents. In a small office where you may have several employees, Grasshopper allows for everyone in your office to have their own personal extension.
Pricing
Which plan is right for your business? Grasshopper has 3 different options to choose from. Solo is the first option which is $26 dollars a month with 1 phone number and 3 different extensions. The second option is partner, most businesses pick this plan. You will be able to call and text from 3 different phones and have 6 different extensions. The last plan is $80 dollar month with 5 phone numbers and unlimited numbers of extensions perfect if you have multiple employees or different departments.
Cons:
- absolutely no equipment or desk phones are needed to use the system.
- employees have total control over how calls are routed to them.
Pros:
- doesn’t offer a traditional phone system.
- call recording or integrations with programs like Microsoft Office
- limits the number of participants in those meetings to 10 in a conference call
4. Ooma
Ooma Office offers services if you are just looking for basic needs for your small business, while still offering some features at an affordable flat rate price. It offers virtual receptionists, extension dialing, conferencing, music on-hold and some other features. With Ooma Office, you can keep your current phone number or they can give you a local or toll-free number. Ooma Office still allows you to work on the go by using their free mobile app that allows you to manage calls from your smartphone.
What’s best about Ooma? They have do-it-yourself installations that only take minutes to set up. If you need help, you have 24/7 customer support available for you.
Pricing
Ooma has a flat rate starting at $19.95 per month with a free toll-free number and including 500 minutes for free however, they allow you to purchase additional minutes also.
Pros:
- can the Ooma Office on-premises VoIP system in less than 20 minutes.
- online portal
Cons:
- doesn’t offer all of the features that some of its competitors
- conference calling participant restrictions.
Cloud-Based Phone System for Small Businesses
In this article, we have talked about how many of these systems are cloud-based phone systems, but what exactly are they? cloud-based phone systems, also known as (VoIP) Voice over internet or internet calling. cloud-based phone systems allows you to make calls over the internet rather than a regular analog phone that uses wires to make a connection. With cloud-based phone systems you can use traditional phones or can use smartphone apps or your computer, and all of your information is stored in the cloud.
Pros:
- Low cost
- Reliable
- Allows you to add phone lines, extensions, and features.
- Flexibility (can answer your phone anywhere with internet connection)
What You Should Consider When Picking Your Phone Company
When picking a phone company you need to consider what is best for YOUR company? Do you want just a basic phone system or do you want all the bells and whistles? Here are a couple things you should consider when picking the best phone systems for your business.
What features are most important to your business?
Many phone systems provide many features from call forwarding, call screening, call logs and up to 20 to 50 features where you can utilize your computer and phone simultaneously answer calls and video calls. But not everyone needs all the bells and whistles.
How much are you willing to spend?
Many of the phone systems ranked above are cloud-hosted systems making them a cheaper option because you pay a monthly fee but these fees can range for 10-80 dollars a month. However, with systems on site you could be paying up to thousands of dollars upfront.
Mobility
Do you and your employers need a phone in the office and on the go? Many business phone systems provide customers to use their business lines on your phone that allows you to answer business calls while you are out of the office.
Other things you should consider
- The size of your business
- How much you are willing to spend
- What kind of features are you wanting
- How many extensions do you need
- Do you want video chat as a feature
Reach out to us at 体育娱乐平台 Design Chicago today if you have any questions, comments, or concerns regarding business phone systems. Whether you need help choosing a business phone system, or setting up phone call conversion tracking , we can help you!
FAQs about the Best Business Phone Systems:
- What phone system is best for me?
- How do I know I picked the right one?
- Do any of these options offer a free trial?
- What features do I need for my businesses?
- How easy are these options to set up?
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