Business phone systems continue to consume the business communications markets in many of the world’s developed economies. Everyone is using VOIP.  If you are not using VOIP for your company’s communication solutions, you are paying too much in communication costs, and you are missing out on other benefits and features. Business phone systems offer a lot more than the standard software applications many consumers use, such as Skype. Here is a look at some of the features that business phone systems offer, that you probably aren’t aware of.

• VOIP and Traditional telephone systems Can Co-exist. You probably know that you can purchase a telephone number from a company like Skype, and you can make and receive calls from normal phones and mobile phones. Business phone systems do a lot more than that. Business phone systems can integrate your VOIP system and your normal telephone calling functions. In some cases, it will be cheaper to make a local call using your traditional phone line, for example. In this case, the business phone system will know, and it will not make the call using VOIP.

• Extension Location. With a tradition phone system, such as the PBX, you can allocate a number of extensions in your office or office building. Business phone systems are not limited in the same way. VOIP business phone systems use the internet which means that you can have an extension anywhere in the world. You can have one single number for your clients to call, and each extension could be someone in a completely different country. The caller and call-receiver will not know any difference. You can change, and modify these extensions in a matter of seconds too.

• Mobile. Business phone systems are not limited to office use. Many of the best business phone systems integrate smartphone as well. Even a smartphone can be used as an extension, as long as it is connected to the internet. The multi-device functionality of the soon-to-be released Windows 8 operating system, will make the integration of mobile devices into VOIP based business phone systems much easier.

• Quality. If you still think VOIP calls and video calls have poor quality, you are way behind the times. The increased availability of fast internet connections has meant VOIP quality is just as good, and even sometimes better than traditional phone calls. This is particularly the case with international phone calls. Faster processing power of devices also improves the quality of VOIP calls. For example, using a broadband satellite connection I tried Skype with the latest Macbook Pro. My internet consumption rate doubled when compared with my normal use.

If you are not using a comprehensive VOIP-based business phone system, you are missing out on too much.