How to Decide
What UCaaS Service Provider
is Right for You

What UCaaS and VoIP Benefits to Prioritize for Your Digital Transformation

A pivotal component of digital transformation is that of Unified Communications as a Service or UCaaS. As a means of digitizing communications technology, services from UCaaS. Together with the related field, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) — should be considered fundamental to any enterprise’s shift to the Cloud. Companies interested in digital transformation need to prioritize adopting UCaaS to achieve greater flexibility, agility and overall capability as an organization.
To help you with that decision, here we’ll discuss what specific points you should look for when deciding which UCaaS and VoIP option is a fit for your enterprise.
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Value-adding capabilities in UCaaS and VoIP

Remember that features are only valuable to your organization if they’re capable of generating an ROI. As tempting as any UCaaS capability might be on its own, these tools are only worth the investment if they can improve profits from a business perspective.
While it’s easy enough to decide the best UCaaS service provider is whichever brand has the longest list of features, an extensive features list doesn’t necessarily make for the best option.
As such, services from any given UCaaS providers or VoIP phone system should only be considered worthwhile if:
a) The features can be used without a significant drain on time and finances
b) The features can be expected to generate more profits or reduce financial losses
Point a refers to the usability of the feature. If a feature can be expected to produce a high ROI, it will generally require little to no extra time spent on training employees on how to use it or calling in IT departments to install, launch or fix it.
Similarly, the feature should not come with high additional costs. Whether they come as maintenance fees, continual training expenses or other general support expenses .These can easily minimize or even negate earnings created from the feature.
Point b means that the feature is capable of improving an organization’s financial situation. If it is intended to generate profits, it should increase internal efficiency, improve customer interactions, or else automate typical or complicated business procedures. If it is intended to reduce expenses, it should remove bottlenecks or mitigate the need for other operational expenditures.
Each feature should be considered in terms of what result they provide to your organization. Rather than focus on novelty or extensiveness, it is more advantageous to evaluate features from UCaaS service providers in terms of how they can financially benefit your organization.

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UCaaS Service
Some of the most common capabilities to fit both requirements a and b are:
  • VoIP calls
  • Internet fax
  • Video conferences
  • Call-me-back reminders
  • Geolocation
  • Indicators for user statuses (available, offline, busy, away, etc.)
  • Voicemail transcriptions
  • Remote working capabilities
It should be noted that many of these components will require a VoIP phone system to be included by UCaaS service providers, in particular placing calls or faxes. However, VoIP brings advantages on its own in terms of flexibility. In addition to using dedicated phones to operate a VoIP phone system. The setup mentioned above can also be operated through software or browser pages launched on personal computers or smartphones.

Integrations through UCaaS or other services

Ideally, services from your UCaaS solution should not only work alongside any tools you don’t intend to replace. But also actively support how your organization uses them. This can be achieved through effective integrations between your UCaaS system and any software you typically implement.
UCaaS Service
By “integrations,” we mean a linking of external software or hardware-enabled applications to your UCaaS or VoIP system. Enabling you to use them in tandem or through a single interface. This allows end-users to use their most valuable applications without launching new applications or switching windows, boosting efficiency.
Some of the most popular types of integrations for UCaaS-related services include:
  • CRMs, such as Salesforce or Hubspot
  • Email servers or programs
  • Microphone or headset integrations for better audio support
  • Programs for automation
  • Contact center analysis tools
This list by no means covers all possible business tools, as when a business is considering integrations, they should prioritize their own most commonly used applications.
Regardless of what those applications are, integrating them directly into your combined UCaaS and VoIP platform will inherently result in a better-optimized system for your enterprise.

Maintenance for UCaaS and VoIP

It should go without saying that when considering UCaaS options, businesses should seek a solution that rarely experiences downtime or errors. However, also worth considering is how the UCaaS service provider handles any downtime or errors the system encounters.
Multiple issues can occur with any given UCaaS or VoIP platform, from incidental to major. Even the most secure system may experience an outage. Still, the most likely errors are minor issues such as a failure to load chat histories, audio errors during calls or poor connection speeds.
In any such event, the system must be fixed in a timely, inexpensive and convenient manner, restoring it to full functionality without much interruption to workflow or additional money spent.
Wildix SIP Trunk
To ensure services from your UCaaS solution will be effectively maintained, potential customers should inquire what will happen when they report an issue with the system.
Will the issue be routed to a call center? Will a technician arrive on-site to fix it? Will a professional enact the necessary changes remotely? Is it possible for an internal IT department to resolve the issue themselves?
Ideally, you should find that your vendor will offer such conveniences as:
  • 24/7 support emergency center
  • In-person maintenance visits
  • Convenient channels for tech consultation
  • Programmable options on the user’s end
Knowing whether you’ll get these advantages before deciding on your UCaaS service provider or VoIP phone system will spare you and your company from countless frustrations further down the road.

Security for UCaaS and VoIP

A similar proactive measure to take when considering your choice of UCaaS service is how effective — and how intrusive — its security measures are.
Security should always be a top priority as any enterprise considers new digital tools, especially ones that facilitate transferring corporate information (as is the case with a VoIP phone system and related platforms). Suppose the channels these tools use are unsecured. In such a case, it can easily lead to a breach of information and allow malicious agents to access confidential data — meaning anything from meeting content to customers’ private info could be leaked.
To prevent this, a business must first consider whether their UCaaS service features powerful security measures, ideally all of the following:
  • Secure channels for all communication methods
  • Secure and up-to-date encryption models (preferably TLS and SRTP)
  • Complex password requirements
  • Detailed system monitoring for insight into possible hacking attempts
  • Regular security updates to stay ahead of new threats
In addition to all these security measures, it’s also pivotal to examine to what extent security will impact the system’s usability, as some security measures negatively affect system processes.
Two of the most common examples of such intrusive security measures are:
  • Virtual Private Networks (VPNs): These effectively establish a private internet channel within an existing internet channel to prevent access to onlookers. While a popular means of security, they often sap additional network bandwidth (leading to slowdowns and quality drops) and provide hackers an easy target to access. Furthermore, VPNs will require additional upkeep from IT professionals, adding to maintenance costs.
  • External session border controllers (SBCs): These are additional devices deployed on an internet connection to police data moving into and out of a VoIP phone system. Usually, SBCs are already built into routers or other networking hardware. However, relying on additional SBCs for security means that if the SBC is breached, there are no additional security measures to stop the intrusion, and a successful attack can quickly spread across an entire corporate server.
The key to consider here is that if a UCaaS solution is overly reliant on these technologies, it is a sign that the system is not sufficiently secure. Utilizing these measures will diminish overall system performance.
WebRTC
A notable alternative to VPNs and external SBCs is the solution known as WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communication). This open-source internet technology operates seamlessly in applications or in browsers. Lightweight and invisible in its functionality, WebRTC establishes direct user-to-user connections.
For more detail on security, be sure to check out our white paper on the subject.

Selecting your UCaaS and VoIP platform

In all points regarding your choice of UCaaS and VoIP system, it is most important to consider the system within the context of:
a) What problems affecting daily operations, it will solve
b) Whether these positives are offset by any cost-related drawbacks
To be clear, “cost-related drawbacks” do not refer simply to the price of the system. So long as a service provider for UCaaS can streamline company procedures and improve sales processes, the investment will represent an ROI surpassing this expense.
More important to focus on is the possibility of unanticipated expenses, as these represent unexpected financial losses and will drain funds without significant benefit. For example, if repairing the system when experiencing difficulties will prove expensive, it may be a sign that this choice of solution will harm profit margins more than benefit them. Similarly, if the system is susceptible to security breaches, it can easily turn into a tremendous drain on company funds and even reputation.
As for the first point, the system’s positive value must be examined in terms of deficiencies in company procedures that it solves. Here, professionals must evaluate if the solution will improve the customer experience, allow more communications data to be gathered and save time switching between company applications and similar points.
One significant point to evaluate is if the solution allows for full business continuity, a continuation of business procedures even if the physical office space becomes unusable. As such circumstances can arise as a result of anything from lockdown orders, to extreme weather conditions, to ongoing construction, it is wise to have in place a backup means of communication and collaboration for the extent of a remote working period.
More information on business continuity can be found in the white paper here.
All this being said, your exact choice among the market’s UCaaS service providers will depend on what communications challenges your business needs to solve.
One especially wise selection in this category is Wildix, the first and only system on the market designed to boost every step of the sales process. An award-winning global brand, the Wildix solution provides businesses with a fully browser-based suite of valuable communications capabilities powered by WebRTC for a fast, reliable and secure-by-design experience. Learn our full story here.

Book a Demo

Have you got the Wildix potential? Ready to dive into its benefits?

Then don’t waste any more time.
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Learn about the Future of Business Communications

Fill out the form to download the White Paper “The Future of Communications”

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