CloudPhone Blog

This summer, will your small business explode like a Roman candle on July 4, or fizzle out like a dud? Here are a few ways to light up your small business with a robust suite of cloud communications solutions:

Increase productivity:  You may be busy, but business continues even when you leave the office. Contacts need to be able to reach you wherever you go. The cloud will give you the ability to carry around your enterprise communications solutions at all times, so you never miss a crucial call or voicemail.  

Cut costs: The costs of maintenance and installation prices for on-premises phone equipment is staggering. It’s much easier—and cheaper—to pay a small monthly fee and gain access to fully baked feature set than to pay for new equipment and make upgrades. You will also avoid the hefty costs of network downtime, which is difficult for a business of any size to recover from.

Leverage big business features: When a customer tries to reach you, they should not be able to tell you are a small business with six employees or a Fortune 500 company. Features such as an auto attendant, voicemail to email transcription and the ability to route calls to other members of your team will add a processional touch to your operation that will let you look like a much bigger business. 

The stats don’t lie: In a recent study, 70 percent of respondents indicated that the cloud can deliver efficiencies and cost savings. So, are you ready to make the great migration to a cloud-based phone and watch your profits explode skyward like Independence Day fireworks?

We just got a really cool recognition from ChannelProSMB - Voxox was named a "Vendor on the Vanguard 2016" in the Unified Communications category, and one key reason is Voxox Cloud Phone!

ChannelProSMB compiles an annual list of "lesser-known innovators you may not have heard of yet, but will be glad to know better" based on the suggestions of analysts and industry influencers. The list is published in the ChannelProSMB March 2016 print issue cover story, which highlights 2-3 companies per industry category. Voxox is on p.24. Here's a quote:

"Voxox Cloud Phone enables cash-strapped businesses to turn a collection of iPhone and Android devices into a robust business telephony system at an affordable cost."

Here's a link to our page in the digital issue of the magazine and our official press release is below:

Voxox Recognized in ChannelPro-SMB's Annual Vendors on the Vanguard List for Innovation

Voxox Cloud Phone featured as major reason for company making prestigious innovation list in channel community

SAN DIEGO – March 22, 2016 – Voxox®, the most comprehensive unified communications Platform as a Service company, today announced that the company was named a "Vendor on the Vanguard 2016" in the Unified Communications category by ChannelPro Network, part of EH Publishing Inc. ChannelPro Network's editorial staff compiles an annual list of "lesser-known innovators you may not have heard of yet, but will be glad to know better" based on the suggestions of analysts and other industry influencers. This list, which is well-respected in the channel community, highlights two to three companies per industry category and is published in the ChannelPro-SMB March 2016 print issue as the cover story. 

Voxox is featured on p.24 specifically for its innovation related to its Cloud Phone service. According to the article by the editors of ChannelPro-SMB, "Voxox Cloud Phone enables cash-strapped businesses to turn a collection of iPhone and Android devices into a robust business telephony system at an affordable cost."

"We are thrilled to be recognized in this prestigious list of innovators in the channel community," said Bryan Hertz, CEO and co-founder of Voxox. "Cloud Phone continues to delight customers and partners with its refreshing user experience, convenient features and affordability. It has gained momentum as an instrumental communications tool for the smallest of businesses and this honor, along with other awards and designations, validates Cloud Phone's role in the market."

This recognition comes on the heels of Voxox's recent announcement in regards to its major end-of-quarter channel sales promotions, including its 200 percent spiff for Hosted PBX and SIP trunking deals turned in before March 31, 2016, and wholesale SMS discounts. For more details, channel partners can contact their Voxox channel managers.

For more information on Voxox business solutions, please visit www.voxox.com/business. Sign up for Cloud Phone at www.cloudphone.com.

About Voxox

Voxox is an innovator in unified cloud communication solutions for consumers and businesses. The foundation of the company's offerings is its award-winning unified communications Platform as a Service, which enables the company and its customers to build powerful, scalable applications and services. For consumers and service provider partners, Voxox delivers cutting-edge mobile and desktop applications that integrate voice, video, messaging, fax, media sharing and more. For businesses, Voxox provides an extensive suite of carrier-grade business phone solutions, including hosted IP-PBX, SIP Trunking, a wide array of wholesale services, such as high volume SMS, and the company's new virtual PBX service, Cloud Phone. Voxox is headquartered in San Diego. For more information, please visit http://www.voxox.com.

Launching a startup business requires a significant amount of planning and could sometimes feel like no matter how much you get done, another task looms. Starting a business takes meticulous planning and extraordinary determination—so we thought we’d help out a bit. Here are a few items to make absolutely certain that are checked off your list as you get ready to launch:

Figure out finances for at least a year

Sure, your company could explode immediately, but chances are it is going to take a little while to gain momentum. Prepare for your first year as if you’ll have almost no revenue. Make sure you have enough capital for business expenses and enough money saved to live on.

Get Social Now, Not Later

You should have your company up on social media on the day of your launch. These channels help give you credibility and give people a quick, fun, easy way to check out your product. If you wait until your product is launched, setting up these pages is likely to take a back seat to other tasks and may be rushed or not done at all.

Have your small business phone system ready to go

Once your product launches you are going to be making and receiving a lot of phone calls. Giving out your personal mobile number projects an unprofessional image you don’t want. A cloud-based phone system, however, can provide many of the same features as an enterprise system at a fraction of the cost.

Network, network, network

As a startup, the greatest assets you have are the people you know. That includes friends, family, former co-workers, college professors—anyone who might be able to make an introduction to a potential contact or customer. Don’t push the people in your social circle to buy anything, simply ask about possible connections that could make your first few months a little easier. 

Want to add something to our checklist? Tell us about it in the comment section! 

In Manhattan, the business capital of the world, the price of office space can run as high as $140 per square foot. Costs are nearly that high in San Francisco and Boston as well, with Los Angeles not too far behind. Billion-dollar corporations can shell out that kind of money without a second thought, but small businesses are far more limited in what they can spend. That's why many small businesses are looking to forego renting expensive commercial real estate but not at the cost of sacrificing their professional image. After all, in business, inspiring customer trust is as important as any product or service a company has to offer.

Photo Courtesy of Flikr User Sebastiaan ter Burg 

Traditionally, business was done in office buildings, but with the advent of new technological capabilities—particularly for communications—that trend is slowly shifting. Specifically, the proliferation of small business virtual phone systems is making it easier than ever to run a business from anywhere.

Avirtual phone systemmaintained through the Web provides all the functionality of a traditional wire-based enterprise phone system without the complex hardware. As a result, companies no longer have to shell out cash just for a space to put desktop phones. Additionally, companies can now rent office space on a per diem basis for meetings, further reducing the need for full-time office rental.

With top-shelf small business virtual phone systems, companies get the modern business phone features they need to stay competitive, including: 

• A toll free business-specific phone number to put on business cards and distribute to customers and contacts
• Reach Me Anywhere technology that connects incoming business calls to any location on any device
• An auto attendant that greets callers professionally and presents them with menu options
• Voicemail transcription that turns voice messages into text that can be read when listening is not an option
• Business-class voicemail that makes retrieving old messages simple and easy
• Settings that are easily adjustable through an Internet interface
• One low monthly bill that never includes maintenance or upkeep costs

Another major benefit of small business virtual phone systems is the inherent reliability that comes with the cloud. Because the service is maintained through the Internet by a third-party vendor and not through on-premises equipment, it is far less vulnerable to hardware failure or natural disaster. Considering research shows that the median cost of downtime for a small business impacted by an extreme weather event is $3,000 per day, reliability is not a feature to be overlooked.

Business is an ever-evolving landscape where trends and strategies can shift quickly. Successful small business owners understand that to thrive while competing against larger organizations, they need to stay abreast of any technology that might provide an advantage. As business owners increasingly adopt virtual phone systems, it becomes increasingly clear that as far as cloud communications and small business are concerned, the future is now.

The only question left to ask then is, are you living in the past?

INTRODUCTION:

The list post is one of the most popular and readable blog formats on the web. It is composed of -- you guessed it -- a list, and includes short explanatory paragraphs about each item.

Use your introduction as a way to tell the reader how this collection of ideas will help them. Keep it light by including a personal story. If you have any data that you can include relating to your list, include that in your introduction, too.

Here are some examples of how we use list blog posts here at HubSpot:

• The 7 Worst Types of Headlines (And How to Fix Them)
• 5 Major Challenges Marketers Face (And How to Solve Them)
• The Top 10 Qualities of High-Quality List Posts

BODY:

Now deliver what you promised in the first section. This is the longest part of the post, so make it easy to read. Use short paragraphs, bullet lists, and bold headings to set different sections apart.

Some common section headers include:

1. Reason #1 why writing a list-based post is helpful

2. Reason #2 why writing a list-based post is super helpful to your marketing

3. Reason #3 why everyone should be writing list-based posts

You can use bulleted lists, numbered list, or multiple headings. Include as many steps, numbers, or bullets that will allow you to discuss your topic thoroughly.

Here are some pointers to make the best possible body of your blog:

• Include visuals
• Include short explanatory phrases in your headers
• At the end, transition into your conclusion

CONCLUSION:

Now it’s time to say goodbye and wrap up your post. Remind your readers of your key takeaway, reiterate what your readers need to do to get the desired result, and ask a question about how they see the topic to encourage comments and conversation. Don't forget to include a Call-to-Action!

Congratulations! What a lovely list post you've created!

As a small business owner you know great customer service is very important for not only keeping your current clients happy, but also for attracting new business by way of referrals. You also know that providing top notch customer service isn’t always possible when you’re on the go or when you’re out working to build your business. So, how can you do both? With SMS.

SMS isn’t just for big corporations with mega marketing budgets. It’s actually a practical solution for small businesses looking to provide stellar customer service. SMS is an affordable and simple way to reach and be reached by clients. When your business phone number is connected to your smart phone, you’ll always be able to help.

Here are a few ways you can use SMS to improve your customer service.

Provide Speedy Service

Texting is a quick and convenient way for clients to communicate a problem or ask a question. Likewise, it’s often quicker and more convenient for you or your team members to respond to a text than answer a call.

Here’s a scenario:

Say you own a two person car repair shop. You have a client at the front desk paying for a repair and your mechanic is out in the garage working on a car. At this same time you receive a text and a phone call – which one are you more likely to respond to in the moment? Our bet is on the text.

Rather than listening to a voicemail, calling back and playing phone tag, the text allows you to read the question or comment and reply immediately – you could even include a photo (ie: a snapshot of your mechanic working on the client’s car). Prompt responses make customers happy. Phone tag does not.

Record Keeping

Texting gives both you and the customer a record of the conversation, conveniently storing important information right on your phone. Have you ever been in a situation with a client where referencing a text saved you face or helped you provide better customer service? So have we. Not only is it handy to know what you and a client have discussed but having the ability to easily pull up important information like an order number or an address straight from a text makes staying on top of customer care easy.

Here’s a scenario:

You own a small screen-printing shop and do work for all your local schools. Baseball season is right around the corner and the team has ordered new jerseys. A pre-season game was added to the roster last minute and they need the jerseys stat! The client texts you with the order number asking if it can be rushed. You research the order number and see that only half of the jerseys have been printed. You assure the client you’ll have them ready by the end of the week – plus you’ll even drop them off. The client messages you the address and you’ve not only made their day, but also made it super easy on yourself to map your route on your phone’s GPS. 

Skip the Hold Music

Texting allows you and your clients to reach one another directly. No waiting on hold, no phone tag or leaving voicemails that go unreturned for days – or for eternity. Ease of communication can make or break a business deal and can cause current clients to love or leave your business.

Here’s a scenario:

A potential client of your PR company is coming into town to meet you and your team. The client is arriving early and wanted to bump the meeting time up. They call to let you know but are stuck on hold. Out of frustration they hang up and call again. After several attempts and a voicemail, they show up at your office annoyed (and two hours early). You’re in the middle of a conversation with another client and have to cut the call short in order to accommodate the in-person meeting. Now – imagine all of this would have been avoided if your potential could have texted to let you know they were arriving early!

Help Multiple Clients

Juggling phone calls isn’t easy, but messaging several people at once can be. Whether you have a steady stream of messages or experience bursts during busy seasons, you’ll find SMS to be a customer service life saver. 

Here’s a scenario:

You run a small floral shop and are always slammed around the holidays. While you’re able to take orders over the phone and in person, text requests are easy and allow your clients to message in an order without waiting on hold, reaching a busy signal or coming into the shop. Once the order comes in, you can send a confirm number, ask any questions and also get card messages, verbatim. Plus, once the order is ready you can send a text alert, or even give them a heads up when the order is delivered.

Your small business already has a reputation for providing exceptional customer service, so keep it up and make it easier on yourself with SMS. Learn more about SMS for business here and get started today. It’s fast, easy and your customers will appreciate it!

Find out more about Cloud Phone features!

Last night we reduced the cost of additional phone numbers from $5/month to $1/month. To celebrate I thought I would share some of the reasons for this change and provide some examples of how you can use multiple numbers to help grow your business.

Also, it's notable that if you already have additional numbers on your Cloud Phone account; the cost has also been reduced from $5 to $1 per month going forward.

At Cloud Phone, we aren't just trying to provide another virtual phone service. We are trying to provide an incredibly valuable service that also disrupts the marketplace and challenges our competitors. When I explain the service, a common response is often, "Oh, it's like Google Voice". While there are similarities to Google Voice, I could write an entire post on why Cloud Phone is far different and more valuable and why Google Voice would never be a good business solution.One of the most important ways that Cloud Phone is a better solution is that you can have more than one phone number with Cloud Phone.

Until now, we charged $5/month/number on your account. You get one included number at signup, but have to pay for additional numbers. The awesome news is that now numbers are only $1/month/number!

So the big issue for a lot of customers is why they would need another number to begin with. Here are the main reasons why additional numbers can help you grow your business:

1. Appear More Established & Professional
   Toll-free numbers are immediately associated with business, even more so - established business. Having both a toll-free and local phone number provides an immediate sense of professionalism that leads to credibility with customers.
   
   
2. Secure a Local Presence & Reach New Markets
   For some businesses, having a phone number that begins with a recognizable area code is key to capturing the market. Additionally, adding numbers in neighboring area codes or other markets can be a great way to reach new markets and grow your existing business. In just a few minutes, you can add office locations in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Dallas!
   
   
3. Measure ROI for Marketing Campaigns
   One way marketers track the ROI of campaigns is to use a dedicated local or toll-free phone number for various campaigns. With Cloud Phone, it's easy to measure incoming calls to a phone number and judge the ROI for that campaign. Real Estate? Assign a number to each property you are working.
   
   
4. Improve Responsiveness with Direct Lines
   While having a main company greeting and menu with options is great for general calls, it's not the best experience for established customers or closing new clients. Setting up a main number and direct numbers for each employee is a great way to improve customer satisfaction related to reaching staff directly.
   
   
5. Run Multiple Businesses!
   Today's entrepreneur is often working more than one opportunity. Maybe you aren't just a wedding planner, but also an event planner, florist, photographer, online seller, etc... Often, a single person is running many businesses. Having a dedicated number for each within a single account makes it easy to manage them all (and know which way is up) all from a single account on a single cell phone.

In conclusion, this just touches the surface of how to leverage multiple numbers for your business - but we are thrilled to have made it one step easier (and more affordable) tonight!

To add a number to your Cloud Phone account, here are the steps;

• Login to Cloud Phone from the web portal
• Navigate to the "Account" section
• Choose "Numbers" from the menu on the right side
• Click the "Buy a Number" button

Once you add a number to your account you'll be billed on your next statement. The charge will reflect $1 for the current month, and $1 for the upcoming month. After that, you'll be billed $1 each month per additional number.

Your mobile is ringing but you don't recognize the number. It could be a cable sales call that you don't have time for right now... or it could be a major new lead for your business. How do you decide whether or not to take the call? This is where virtual PBX services like Voxox Cloud Phone come in super handy -- they offer advanced call settings that allow you to customize how your inbound calls are handled – a.k.a. call screening.

With call screening, you can require callers to speak their name/company before the system connects them to you, which also allows you to discretely screen unwanted callers. You can also set up your system to immediately connect callers to you without screening, if you so choose. These simple controls allow you to accept or reject calls without wasting any precious time.

Here are a few tips on ways to use and enhance your call screening capabilities to stay in touch with clients and partners, while also running your business:

1. Name Screening

Set up your call screening feature to ask each caller to state their name. You can listen to the caller’s name before you pick up—or send to voicemail if the call can wait. This process is discreet, and your callers will never know that you are opting to not accept their call.

2. Voicemail Screening

You've screened your incoming call and decided that the call is not high priority, thinking that you'll just listen to the voicemail message at a later time. But what if the call really WAS important and you missed it? Voxox Cloud Phone provides a really neat screening feature called Eavesdrop, which lets a user listen in real-time while a caller is leaving a voicemail with the option to pick up the call out of voicemail at any time. This is a pretty unique feature, reminiscent of those answering machines from the 90s but with a modern twist.

3. Call Recording

Thanks to your call screening feature, you took an important call that came through while you're out and about. You're not able to take notes while on the phone, so use your virtual PBX service to record calls with the call recording feature – listen back later, if you missed any details.

4. Voicemail Transcription

If you really can't pick up the call - perhaps you're in a meeting - then voicemail transcription is a great way to get a glimpse of what the message is about. Simply read your voicemails in text form as if they are emails or text messages and then figure out your next move.

Call screening is a simple way for busy business owners to add another layer between themselves and callers, saving time on unproductive phone conversations each week. Plus, with all the advanced features available with modern technology, it’s easy to customize a call screening structure that is just right for you and your business.

As a small business owner keeping a close eye on your company’s fiscal health is a fact of life. With a limited budget, your ability to turn a profit rests heavily upon how well you allocate your resources.

With the advent of cloud communications, small business owners are increasingly turning away from legacy PBX systems to realize major savings. A cloud-based phone system provides big business features like an auto attendant, voicemail transcription, virtual extensions and voicemail-to-email notification through a web-based service—all without breaking the bank.

Here are a few of the primary ways you can save your company some hard-earned cash:

No Installation Fees

Deploying a traditional wire-based system typically requires an on-site visit from a technician. By the time equipment and labor costs are totaled, phone service installations tend to get costly. With cloud communications, however, there is no hardware involved. Without hardware there is no technician visit and without the visit, there is no hefty bill.

Third-party maintenance

In much the same way that cloud communications help you avoid installation fees, the lack of on-premises equipment also wipes out upkeep costs. The vendor takes care of maintaining the system so you can worry about growing your critical business processes.

One small monthly bill

Legacy phone systems can be rife with hidden charges and add-ons. But with a best-in-class cloud communications application you get one bill each month for your service with no surprises or tricks. In other words, you can stop opening your phone bill with fear in your heart. 

Running a small business is never easy, but throwing away money on expensive legacy phone systems makes it harder than it has to be. So take a closer look at cloud communications begin your journey towards major savings right away!

Big news for Cloud Phone!  Our web app has just been dubbed the winner in the Best Mobile Utility category of the 2014 Silicon Valley Business App Awards, organized by market research firm Regalix. Approximately 200 nominees -- including well-known brands such as Citrix, AT&T, Accenture, HTC, Cisco, Sugar CRM, ADIDAS, and others -- were considered for several categories, and 8 emerged in the winning slots, including yours truly!  (Did we mention that we beat out some of our large, established competitors, including Ringcentral and Grasshopper? ;)

Here's the official press release....

Voxox’s Cloud Phone Named Winner in Best Mobile Utility Category of 2014 Silicon Valley Business App Awards

Cloud Phone is one of eight competition winners among roughly 200 nominees, which include well-known brands such as Citrix, Accenture, AT&T, HTC, Cisco, ADIDAS and more

SAN DIEGO – October 15, 2014 – Voxox®, the most comprehensive cloud-based rich communication service for consumers and businesses, today announced that its virtual PBX service, Cloud Phone, has been named the winner in the Best Mobile Utility category of the 2014 Silicon Valley Business App Awards (SVBA) - sponsored by Regalix, Inc. Hailed as the most prestigious app and device awards program in Silicon Valley, the SVBA recognizes and rewards the best achievements in mobile, social, and wearable technology. The SVBA Awards attract entries from across the world and are judged by a panel of independent, highly respected experts. This year’s competition had approximately 200 nominees, including well-known brands such as Citrix, AT&T, Accenture, HTC, Cisco, Sugar CRM, ADIDAS, and others. Cloud Phone, an HTML5-based web app that launched earlier this year, garnered top honors over large, established competitors, including Ringcentral and Grasshopper.

"Voxox’s Cloud Phone has set the standard for innovation and creativity in the mobile utility app world," said Vikas Sharan, CEO, SVBA Awards. "This award is a testament to the skill, ingenuity, and vision of its creators."

Cloud Phone empowers small business owners with a dedicated toll free or local business telephone number that can be forwarded to a user’s existing phone. Cloud Phone supports multiple employee extensions worldwide, and offers convenient telephony features, such as sophisticated call routing, transcribed voicemail-email delivery, web callback and more. The all web-based service is managed through a sleek user interface and can be set up in under a minute. Since its introduction to the market in February 2014, Cloud Phone has won multiple awards for its simple yet effective phone solution for one-to-10 person businesses. A 30-day free trial is available to all new subscribers.

"We are thrilled to see Cloud Phone take home the win in the prestigious Silicon Valley Business App Awards, having competed alongside such renown brands as Cisco, HTC, ADIDAS and other household names,” said Bryan Hertz, co-founder and CEO of Voxox. “We launched Cloud Phone earlier this year to address the gap in the micro-business market for a powerful yet easy-to-use business phone solution that centers on the smartphone. This award is a milestone to our commitment to Cloud Phone’s continuous evolution.”

The SVBA panel of judges, comprised of industry experts who have made significant contributions to the advancement of technology, selected the winners from submissions received from around the globe. For more information about the SVBA competition, please visit http://www.svbaawards.com/. To learn more about Cloud Phone, please visit www.cloudphone.com. 

About Voxox

Voxox is an innovator in unified cloud communication solutions for consumers and businesses. For consumers and its operator partners, Voxox delivers cutting-edge mobile and desktop applications that integrate voice, video, messaging, fax, media sharing and more. For businesses, Voxox provides an extensive suite of carrier-grade business phone solutions, including hosted IP-PBX, SIP Trunking, a wide array of wholesale services, such as high volume SMS, and the company's new virtual PBX service, Cloud Phone. The foundation of the company’s offerings is its award-winning unified communications platform in the cloud, which enables the company and its customers to build powerful, scalable applications and services. Founded in 2006, Voxox is headquartered in San Diego. For more information, please visit www.voxox.com.