Modern phone systems are feature-rich as new technology enables an automated way to receive and disseminate communications in a variety of ways. However, technology is only valuable if you use it. As is true among the majority of cell phone users who use a fraction of the apps available on their devices, many business phone systems share only a few basic features that the majority of users take advantage of. In choosing the right system, it is important to select features that will prove most useful to your company.

Phone System Features You’ll Use

Here are some phone system features that most businesses find useful regardless of size.

1. Forwarding ability. Connecting calling parties is easy with Find Me, Follow Me (FMFM), which sets up a sequence for what happens when someone is trying to reach you. A typical lineup might be: ring the office line first; call a cell if no answer; if no answer on the cell, call a specified coworker. Only then will the call go to voicemail. For sales professionals or others who know that missing a call can mean lost business, trying to connect callers with you or a colleague before going to voicemail means fewer lost sales and better customer service.

2. Transfer to email. Voicemail is no longer a new technology and many users find it tedious and time-consuming to listen to the whole message to get the gist. Phone systems that can send the message to email allows you to quickly scan the message on your computer, phone, or wherever you can receive email. The process uses speech recognition technology which does not always transcribe the message perfectly, but you will get the gist more quickly than repeatedly listening to the message.

3. Easy extension add. Having phone lines installed by the desk of every employee is old-school. If you add more employees, or even if you want to add an additional phone number for a special purpose, such as a reservation line for the annual company golf outing or benefit, the task can be handled via computer. Modern phone systems are often connected to the computer network (VoIP), so new extensions can either be plugged into any computer, the network itself, or even run as software. You will only be limited by the amount of bandwidth you have.

4. Call control. Easy to use digital features make quality control and conference calling easily.

• Monitor: Great for training and monitoring for quality assurance, a third-party can listen to a call without either party being able to hear them.
• Whisper: A third-party listening to a call can offer suggestions to the internal party similar to how a news anchor receives instructions in his ear from the control desk.
• A third-party monitoring call can turn it into a conference call by pressing a button to come on the line and join the conversation.
• Record: By activating two-way recording, the call is saved as an audio file on a network server for later retrieval.

5. Interactive browser interface: Making changes to voicemail greetings, adding extensions, viewing statistics on calls, and managing active calls are a matter of interfacing with a computer browser. The process is so intuitive that most users can learn how to control the phone system easily.

Find The Best Phone System Provider In Dallas/Fort Worth

To find a phone system that is right for you, choose Mid Cities Data Comm for new, used, and leased ESI phones. Call us today at (800) 603-2013 or contact us via our website for a consultation and demo of phone system features that your business needs.