Choosing a Business Phone System: A Plain-Language Guide, by Danielle Lemons

A business phone system decides whether a call from a new customer gets answered, routed or lost. This guide covers the decisions in an order that makes each one easier.

Start with how customers call you

Before you compare plans, write down how calls reach your business today. Note whether most calls come during business hours, whether customers ring a personal cell phone directly, and how many people answer the phone. Those answers narrow the field faster than any feature list.

Decide on your phone number first

Keeping your existing number is usually the first question to settle. Your number appears on your website, your Google Business Profile, your signs and your printed materials, so changing it has effects well beyond the phone. Keeping your business phone number covers what to ask before any transfer. If you are deciding between a local number and a toll-free number, local or toll-free: choosing the right business phone number explains how each one fits the way you serve customers.

Choose the features you will actually use

Most small offices need a short list, not every feature a vendor offers. Start with these:

• Voicemail delivered to email, so messages reach you away from your desk.
• Call routing to a cell phone or second line when the desk is empty.
• A simple greeting with a few options, rather than a long menu.
• Business hours and after-hours rules you can change yourself.
• A way to see who answered a call and who called back.

Ask how after-hours calls will be handled before you sign up. After-hours call handling for a small business walks through the options.

Compare the full monthly cost

Ask every vendor for the full monthly figure. Include per-user charges, phone numbers, taxes, fees, equipment and setup. Then compare the same features on each quote, so you are comparing like with like. Reading your current bill makes this easier, because the line items on a new proposal often look different. How to read your phone bill explains the charges to look for.

Check the equipment and the internet

Desk phones, cordless handsets and softphone apps on a laptop or cell phone all work differently. Ask which ones are included, who supplies them and who replaces them if they fail. Business calling depends on a steady internet connection, so ask what happens to calls during an internet outage. A good provider will have a clear answer.

Decide who answers the phone

A phone system is only as good as the people behind it. Decide who answers during business hours, who takes messages when that person is busy, and who calls back. Write the answers down and share them with the team. If a customer calls with an urgent problem, staff should know exactly how the call gets to someone who can help, without guessing.

Plan the switch

A phone switch goes more smoothly when you treat it as a project:

• Confirm the transfer timeline for your number with both providers.
• Keep the current service running until the new system has been tested.
• Place test calls from outside the office, including from a cell phone.
• Update your website, Google Business Profile, email signatures and printed materials with the same number.
• Walk each person through the new voicemail, transfer and greeting controls.

Questions to ask any provider

• Who supports the system after hours, and how do I reach them?
• What happens to calls if the internet goes down?
• Can I change greetings and call routing myself?
• Is there a minimum commitment period, and what does ending service early cost?
• Who owns the phone numbers if I leave?

Next step

If you are comparing quotes and want a second set of eyes, call Danielle at 615-861-9042 or email danielle@directech.net. Start with the number and the after-hours plan, because those two decisions shape everything else.

More guides are listed on the home page, and the Checklist covers the phone number on your website.

Danielle Lemons is Vice President of Operations at DirecTech Connect. Her web design business, daniellelemons.com, is woman-owned and veteran-owned.