Managing Calls with Hosted PBX Features

We’ve talked a lot about Hosted PBX already, so this seems like a good time to go into more depth on some of the individual features. Now, as mentioned, there are an astonishing number of features available with this service. Some come included with standard setups, while others may be considered as extra add-ons depending on the provider. Basic features such as voicemail, 411, 911, and caller ID are essentials and should be included with your service. The advanced features are where you need to figure out what you need, what you can get, and what can help your business. IP telephony has made many new features possible and there are likely capabilities that you didn’t even know existed. It would be foolish to overlook these features when they can potentially benefit your business.

One major feature available with Hosted PBX is the ability to designate Hunt Groups. What is a Hunt Group? Essentially, it is a designated group of employees, usually in one department, who are set to receive calls coming in to their group. If one employee is busy or unavailable, the call will automatically ring to the next phone in sequence until it gets answered. Customers dislike leaving voicemails and with good reason; often voicemail seems to be a black hole from which no reply is forthcoming. Hunt Groups help ensure that customers are connected to representatives who can help them and ensures their calls aren’t lost. This improves the customer experience. It also helps employees by directing calls to employees who are not currently busy in order to share the load. This feature is a must have for customer service divisions or call centers.

Another extremely useful feature available with Hosted PBX is Find Me, Follow Me. This feature is an advanced forwarding service that allows you to manage calls so that you never have to miss one (unless you want to, of course). When a call comes into your office number, you can have it forwarded to any number of your choosing. Calls can go to your mobile during lunch time, to home after hours, or to hotel room phones while you are on a trip. Calls can ring all listed phones at once or in a chosen sequence. With additional scheduling and specific number routing, you can forward calls different depending on the time of the day or week or on the number of the caller. Important numbers can be forwarded, while others go into voicemail for later.