If your business is thinking about the possibilities of setting up a call center to empower your sales team or as an enhanced support resource, what are the kinds of things you should look for, and which providers would equip you with the best solution?
The technology used to equip call centers are as diverse as they are numerous, and they vary a lot in terms of quality and value for money, and in terms of the scope of what they can provide for you. So which phone systems would work best for your own needs?
The phone systems currently available comprise much more than the operator and management staff; their unified combination of hardware and software run the whole show, and can govern the interface between your business, your staff and your customers, so that they can be instrumental in helping to shape your brand.
Phone systems govern all aspects of communications, including call routeing and screening, call logging and call data collection, the agent-to-customer interface itself and such details as predictive dialing and other facets of enhanced software processes which can inform both the sales and the research side of your business. Monitoring of agents' productivity, quality control, opportunities for multilingual delivery and support, customer relations and database building can all be integrated into your telecoms system of choice.
With such a vast selection of possibilities, which phone system is best for your business?
Call Center Phone System Major Players
1. Nextiva
Nextiva Inc. is a provider of VoIP and cloud based applications, based in Arizona. Founded by Tomas Gorny, the tech entrepreneur and philanthropist, Nextiva claims to have over 100,000 business clients, and its many call center features include IVR/auto attendant, automated call distribution, queuing and call monitoring, together with the ability to connect to remote or mobile call agents.
2. Avaya
Avaya Inc. is a multinational business telecoms provider based in California which can provide VoIP, CRM integration and data services. With more than a million customer all across the globe, Avaya is a major player in the telecoms sector. Avaya provides customers with its own bespoke call center facilities called Avaya Aura Contact Center and Avaya Aura Contact Center Elite.
The software which comprises their standard Avaya Aura Contact Center uses Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) to facilitate teleconferencing, and this may be used in conjunction with a client's existing databases and call center software applications to enhance customer support. Their multimedia communications may be integrated with business applications.
The Elite version of this software is, according to Avaya's own publicity, the most widely used call center software system in the world today. It boasts an array of features including automated call routeing and distribution and an "intelligent" operation which is able to match customers and their queries with the staff who are best able to handle them. This can all be integrated into any client business of whatever size.
3. Mitel
Mitel is headquartered in Ottowa, Ontario, and is another global telecoms provider which started out as a supplier of TDM and PBX solutions and which, since 2001, has been providing integrated business telecoms systems.
Mitel offers a branded business telecoms platform called MiVoice Business Call Service, which is able to provide mobile integration to multi-channel telecommunications and seamless operation with third party products, catering for any size of business and capable of handling as many as 65,000 users.
Mitel's MiContract Center Enterprise is an enhanced version which claims to be more comprehensive in scope as it integrates voice, SMS and social media together. It has real-time and historical reporting and provides analysis which purports to enhance both agent efficiency and user experience of the customer.
4. VoIP Logic
VoIP Logic is owned by BroadSoft Inc., and provides PaaS (platform-as-a-service) facilities. VoIp Logic provides what it calls the Call Center with Call Recording PaaS, which is a highly flexible platform which comprises over 15 distinct partners allowing its users multiple service options. Among its many proprietary features are Overflow Call Routeing, Skills Based Routeing, Call Escalation, Priority Queuing and Real-Time Dashboard.
5. Asterisk
Asterisk is an open source software which is free to use. Developed by Digium computer engineer Mark Spencer, it purports to allow any business level computer to be used as a robust communications server, running on Solaris, MacOS, NetBSD, Open BSD or a variety of other operating systems.
Among its own proprietary PBX attributes are IVR, conference calling, voice mail and automated call distribution options. A wide range of functionality and features are possible because it is open source, and this is made possible by using Asterisk's own extension languages. In this way, users can develop bespoke call center solutions in-house or they can easily migrate to new telecoms technology to match whatever needs they may have.
6. Allworx
Allworx provides VoIP technology aimed at small to medium sized businesses, and is based in New York. Originally an engineering company with several blue-chip clients, Allworx created their own in-house phone system out of sheer necessity as there was nothing suitable which was available at the time; the result, an early foray into VoIP, was so good that they decided to market it as a service to outside clients in 2003.
Allworx Automatic Call Distribution is the company's proprietary call center system. It is able to monitor individual call center agents and their productivity, and has advanced queue management, linear priority, a visual alarm warning system and round-robin call methodologies
7. Elastix
Elastix, like Asterisk, is open-source and it also makes use of Asterisk in its software, together with HylaFAX, Postfix and UpenFire. It offers PBX, email, fax and IM utilities and is pitched as an enterprise level solution.
One of its most popular versions is Elastix 2.5, which has gained its devotees due to its flexibility and inherent ability to work with a number of different telecoms brands and systems. Its call center core has predictive dialing proficiency and can be used in both outgoing and incoming phone campaigns.
8. NEC
NEC is a well-known multinational player. Originally Japanese, it now provides a broad diversity of IT technology, electronics and network systems to its many users worldwide. Its recognisable and multi-function phone console units, including the Aspire, DXE, and the SV, XN and SL series, are widely used in call centers globally, as is the UNIVERGE range of phones, virtual handsets and wireless systems which collectively have done so much to make the call agent's work easier and much more productive.
9. RingCentral
Headquartered in California, RingCentral is an innovative communications and collaboration solutions provider founded by Vlad Shmunis in 1999, who sought the innovation of cloud-based products as a flexible and inexpensive alternative to what was then currently available. Business messaging, teleconference utilities and team collaboration are all hallmarks of RingCentral products.
RingCentral's own Contact Center package, which was developed in collaboration with inContact, has historical and real-time reporting capabilities, IVR, multichannel connectivity and a variety of innovative call agent monitoring and management attributes.
10. Shoretel
Shoretel is also a very large telecoms business service provider which uses cloud and hybrid products in its business telephony range. Based in California, its mission was to improve user experience and lower costs, and it has won several awards in doing so.
Shoretel's Connect Cloud is, as the name suggests, a cloud-hosted call center system, while its Connect Onsite is an all-in-one solution which is fixed very much to the ground.
