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Working with a Local Phone System Dealer
PBX phone systems are a lot like automobiles - everyone needs to go through a small amount of training to learn how to use one, and everyone users theirs almost every single day. But, when they break, many drivers will attempt to pop the hood and see what's wrong for themselves. Yet, in the end most ultimately turn to a professional mechanic, or PBX dealer, to fix it.
Looking for a certified local VoIP phone system dealer? We recommend FindPhoneSolutions' FREE IP PBX quote request service. However, most small businesses lack the resources to keep a full-time (or even part-time) IT and PBX "mechanic" on staff. Instead, they've historically turned to their outsourced "phone guy" to come in as needed to perform common tasks like regular maintenance, adding a new extension when a new employee is hired, changing their automated attendant schedule, adding new phone lines, etc. Typically referred to as the "phone guy" (how overly simplistic!) there are a number of other terms industry insiders use to describe them, including... - value-added resellers (VAR) - PBX supplier - authorized phone systems dealers - certified PBX installers - system integrators - interconnects - distributors - telecom consultants - managed service providers Whatever name you choose to call them, their services are important to the lifeblood of almost any business. And that's why it's important to select the best one with the right skills, a process which involves performing due diligence, knowing which questions to ask, checking references, and properly negotiating service contracts. But, I Can Save Money if I Do It All Myself! (Can't I?) With today's more sophisticated and intuitive IP PBX user interfaces, many vendors are touting self-serviceability as a core part of their product's value proposition. Thanks to these more user-friendly graphical user interfaces, simplified management software, PC-based hardware, and video learning resources, small business owners have at least a fighting chance, compared to just five years ago, to perform a bigger share of the ongoing maintenance and service chores involved with owning an IP PBX phone system. But, as the old saying goes "stick with what you do best" - in other words, law firms should remain law firms, accountants should focus on accounting, and architects should stick to designing buildings, while letting the "phone guys" handle the PBX business. After all, they're trained experts! Does this mean that a law firm should continue to wait a week for their "phone guy's" schedule to open up to come to the office, for the usual fee of $100 per hour, to perform a simple procedure like adding a new key press option to their automated auto attendant? No, not at all. With today's user-friendly interfaces, performing day-to-day phone system moves, adds, changes, deletions (MACDs) is as easy as changing the screen saver on a PC. Avoiding the Self-Inflicted PBX Money Pit But, lots of small businesses run into trouble when they get duped into believing the "it's so easy your grandmother could install it!" hype. Sure, someone who has a reasonable degree of technology competence (read someone who has set up an office network before) *and* who can read and understand lengthy phone system installation guides, detailed phone user manuals, IP PBX data sheets, support wikis, and technical knowledgebases. But, what lawyer or accountant or architect who you know has that kind of time, will, and patience?! Seamlessly (that's the keyword here) transitioning an office from a monolithic TDM PBX, one that has been installed and humming along smoothly for the last 10 years, to a modern
IP PBX business communication system
, all while trying not to skip a beat in your daily business operations, is indeed a major ordeal. And the small business owner who grows enchanted with the idea of trying to save a few hundred dollars in time and labor often ends up costing their business thousands of dollars of down time, lost business, and late nights of frustration over the long run. After all, as a small business owner, do you know how to the following? Better said, do you want to do the following, even if you could? - perform LAN analysis and VoIP readiness assessments - segment LANs - open and close specific firewall ports (knowing the difference between port 8000 and port 80) - configure IP phone firmware - install PCI line cards and connect FXO/FXS ports in sequence - create domestic and international dial plans with accounting codes - build and assign VLANs - reassign primary DNS server settings - resolve IP address conflict resolution - configure network router QoS assignments Those are just a few of the minor (heheh) tasks involved in installing, operating, and maintaining a new small business IP PBX phone system, which are usually best left to your friendly local professional PBX dealer!
Finding the right phone system supplier takes time. Let us do the leg work for you! We work with a large network of certified, proven PBX dealers! Click here to receive a free PBX quote 
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