Cloud telephony in the firing line!

In the family of unified communications solutions, we're talking about telephony in the cloud!

This comes against the backdrop of the end of the traditional telephone network and analogue telephone numbers within 5 years.

We're going to decipher the language of telecoms for you and help you discover the future of business telephony.

Are you ready? Let's get started!

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The time for change is now!

The end of an era

In November 2018, Orange (formerly France Telecom) will stop marketing traditional telephone subscriptions that go through the famous T socket.

However, they will remain operational until 2023, when the operator will completely cut off the traditional PSTN network (switched telephone network) and the new T-socket. (switched telephone network) and the PABX, or PBX, system using it ( Private Automatic Branch eXchange).
As is already the case in many homes, telephony will then be provided via the box or an IP box.

There are currently 36 million fixed lines in France, regardless of their connection.
Within the next 5 years, at least 8 million of these lines, which are still at low speed, will have to switch to ADSL.
Goodbye traditional copper telecoms network, long live the internet connection!

What is the alternative to the PABX or PBX?

The alternative is telephony via the Internet, known as VoIP.

Also known as IP telephony or hosted telephony, this is a solution hosted on a server by a specialist operator, using a router and the Internet.

There are several possible systems:

• IPBX
• IP Centrex
• Virtual PBX

Glossary: VoIP, IPBX, Centrex IP, Virtual PBX

Discover the definition of IP telephony, VoIP, ToIP in our guide to business telephony.

IPBX (or PABX-IP) system definition

The translation is Internet Protocol Branch eXchange (or private branch exchange using Internet Protocol).

The company that uses it equips itself with a router connected to a high-speed link, a switchboard and IP telephones (known as the telephone infrastructure).

Unlike the old PABX system, which is set to disappear, the company can add and configure new lines easily from a computer interface.

The system is hosted on a dedicated server, but not necessarily in the cloud.

Definition of a Centrex IP system

This is an external switchboard, with an IPBX installation, but hosted by an operator who pools its telephone infrastructure, in cloud mode, between several customers. As the switchboard is external, all the company has to do is buy IP telephony workstations.

It is for security reasons (problem of watertightness of the data hosted on these shared servers) that certain solutions using the IPX system have been developed.s) that some solutions using the Centrex system are evolving towards dedicated SaaS platforms (Software as a Service, in the cloud). Skype is one of these.

Centrex IP is suitable for small to medium-sized organisations (VSEs, SMEs), as the number of workstations connected is limited to around twenty.

Virtualised IPBX (or Virtual PBX for Virtual Protocol Branch eXchange)

I promise, we'll stop after that!

This is a private, 100% cloud-based external switchboard, a cross between an IPBX (dedicated server hosting) and a Centrex platform (no telephone infrastructure to manage). It is reputed to be more secure than Centrex IP, which routes all communications through a single point.

This is the system offered by many software packages in SaaS mode, because it enables customised value-added services: UcaaS (Unified Communications as a Service). These services include

• shared diaries
• instant messaging
• CRM integration,
• audio and video conferencing, etc.

Telephony in the cloud

The virtualised IPBX is the 100% cloud telephony system of the future. Let's take a closer look at the benefits of this new trend.

Mobility

Cloud telephony is particularly well suited to multi-site or even international businesses:

• connection to telephony services from anywhere, 24/7, as long as there is Internet access,
• identical or compatible unified communications solutions anywhere in the world.

Cost savings

• Pay-as-you-go or flat-rate billing,
• savings on communication costs (identical regardless of distance),
• easy installation, with no maintenance costs.

Adaptability

• for all types and sizes of organisation,
• in-house or roaming use,
• Differentiation between business and personal life, from the same phone, for independent entrepreneurs,
• Keep your number when you're on the move (associated with a person rather than a line).

Security

• data preservation thanks to replication and backup systems,
• confidentiality, security (contractual): restriction of operator access to identifiers, passwords, CRM.

Other benefits include

• optimisation of bandwidth,
• a multitude of additional services offered by software in SaaS mode:
  • document sharing
  • collaborative meetings,
  • audio and video conferencing, etc,
• upgradeable applications.

Tip: The local network must be compatible with IP telephony. An audit is preferable before setting up hosted telephony.

The best cloud telephony solutions in SaaS mode

Efficient business telephony is very important.

It has an impact on the work of your sales teams, your mobile teams, customer relationship management and your internal communications, to name but a few.

It's essential, whether you're a self-employed entrepreneur, a multi-site business or an international group.
Here is our selection of the latest SaaS solutions.

Aircall

Aircall is a "collaborative softphone" that creates value for the company, whatever the number of employees and the volume of calls. The solution integrates with all your business software.

Key benefits :

• access to numbers (including special numbers) in over 60 countries,
• call handling via a mobile application or desktop,
• quick set-up of your call centre,
• accessible and intuitive interface,
• choice of a range of telephone numbers for your employees,
• adding or deleting numbers at the click of a button,
• dashboard for analysing incoming and outgoing calls,
• connection with your CRM (around twenty native integrations with the most popular CRM and helpdesk tools [Slack, Hubspot, Salesforce Sales Cloud, etc.],
• application programming interface [API] enabling you to use Aircall with any other online solution.

▷ from €30/month/user
▷ all businesses

Dialfire

Dialfire is cloud-based call centre software that supports small to large-scale campaigns, offering call prioritisation, predictive dialling and interface customisation.

Key benefits :

• import your contacts with a simple copy/paste operation,
• management of duplicates,
• choice of call number visibility: masked, single number or number per campaign,
• configuration of a back-up team to manage the flow of incoming calls at peak times,
• unlimited personalised fields on customer records,
• management of several call campaigns in parallel,
• integration with your own tools such as Pipedrive, Google Suite, Zoho CRM, etc,
• ability to share campaign tasks with another call centre, with limited access rights,
• generation of predefined reports that can be accessed in real time.

▷ pay-per-use billing, with no monthly subscription fees
▷ all businesses

Ottspott

Ottspott is scalable and modular, from simple business telephony to an advanced call centre management tool, via Slack or Gsuite.

Key benefits :

• choice of telephone number in 60 countries,
• portability of your existing numbers
• one-click invitation of users and allocation of call management to one or more numbers,
• definition of office opening hours and call handling flows,
• interactive voice server,
• personalised greetings,
• automated integration with your CRM and support tools [Slack, Gmail, Hubspot, etc.], so there's no typing involved,
• analyse your performance using statistical dashboards.

▷ from €20/month/user, minimum 2 users
▷ from self-entrepreneur to SME

PureCloud

PureCloud is an all-in-one contact centre [voice, chat, email, social networks] in the cloud. More than just telephony, it centralises and simplifies multi-channel exchanges for seamless customer relations.

Key benefits :

• intuitive, customisable interface,
• interactive voice response [IVR],
• can be connected to an existing telephony system [PBX, etc.],
• omnichannel routing: recognition of your customer and automatic redirection to the best support,
• dashboard with real-time indicators and customer relations history,
• quality management, performance monitoring,
• CRM integrations with Salesforce, Zendesk, Oracle Siebel, SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, etc,
• presence in over 100 countries,
• value for money.

▷ from €15.99/month/user
▷ from SMEs to large groups

RingOver

With RingOver, everything happens in the cloud, and its ability to evolve towards more widely unified communication is very interesting.

Key benefits :

• Send and receive SMS, chat, fax and voice messages,
• set operating times,
• interactive voice switchboard,
• can be integrated with a CRM system,
• real-time monitoring,
• automatic call history,
• dedicated smartphone application for mobility,
• options that allow the tool to evolve: conference, SIP account, additional number or premium number,
• plug-and-play integrations with Salesforce, Zoho, Pipedrive, Zendesk, Zapier and Hubspot.

▷ from €25/month/user
▷ all businesses

Spoka

Spoka is a new telephony solution for small businesses from three major players in the telecoms, IT and networks sectors: Arkadin, NTT and Cisco.

Key benefits :

• almost immediate installation and use,
• unlimited local calls,
• choice of a single telephone number,
• automatic replies and transfers,
• live user status,
• quality and clarity of communication: clear and uninterrupted,
• mobile application available on any terminal (smartphone, tablet, etc.),
• a modular, flexible solution with no commitment: the telephone package (Spoka Talk) can be upgraded to a unified communications solution (Spoka Connect) in just one click,
• interoperability with Gmail, Microsoft OneDrive, Google Drive, Twitter, Salesforce, Outlook and Microsoft Office 365.

▷ from €10/month/user
▷ VSEs and SMEs with fewer than 100 employees

See all software VoIP

A new era: telephony in the cloud

Telephony remains one of the most widely used communication channels.
In an increasingly collaborative and mobile working environment, telephony needs to move with the times.

Thanks to cloud telephony, other tools have been integrated to meet the new needs of businesses: video, collaboration, chat, etc., which strengthen communication systems.
This is what we call unified communication.