Blog

4 Signs your business has outgrown your phone system

18th October 201718th October 2017
by BDM-Voice

Growth is the most important objective for many businesses, however when a business grows, the telephone system is often left behind. This article outlines 4 signs which might suggest that your business telephone system needs upgrading.

1.Your customer service is starting to fall behind.

Great customer service is the backbone of your business, it’s what helps you retain loyal customers and find new ones. If you are finding that your phone system prevents you from offering the service you want to provide to your customers, you need to look into upgrading to a more versatile phone system.

2. Your Phone system cannot handle all the incoming calls.

Running a business often requires you to be outside of your office. If you are finding yourself tied down to your desk because you have to answer incoming calls and as a result you are missing important meetings, then the ability to root your phone calls to your mobile phone might be beneficial to you.

3. The number of your staff has overtaken the number of your phone lines.

Growing the number of your employees is a vital part of business growth. Having an old fashioned phone system can make it difficult to provide your new employees with a working phone. Setting up a new phone line should be something which is easy and doesn’t require too much time. If you find this process to be very difficult, then a modern phone solution may be more appropriate for your business.

4. Your phone system doesn’t integrate with your CRM

Customer relationship management software is vital to managing and analysing your customer interactions. Inputting data manually can be a huge drain on resources, therefore a phone system which can streamline this process can save you time and money.

If you feel you can relate to the issues mentioned in this article, then it is probably time to upgrade your phone system. BDM Voice offers the latest business telephone systems and our friendly sales team can provide you with expert advice on which phone system will work best for your business. Click here to Visit the BDM Voice website to find out more.

VoIP

Choosing a telephone system.

18th October 201719th October 2017
by BDM-Voice

Choosing the right provider

There are many great telecoms companies in the market that can give good advice and execute a phone installation very well. I’ve seen some really nice phone installations recently from the team at BDM along with other companies such as Focus and Chalvington Communications.

Unfortunately, like any industry, a phone system can be bought cheap, sold cheaper and the results can be less than promised which leads to a bad customer journey. When choosing your provider, find a direct partner of the brand of phone system you want. Any direct partner will have been awarded their accreditation based on a proven commitment, service and experience with dealing with the brand equipment.

Understanding your business objectives

As your communications are one of the key assets in your business, give some thought about what you want internally as a business but also what your customers expect of your service and brand. This exercise is a great way to engage with your employees as the receptionist will know more about the downfalls of the system than most.

Like any network change, you should allocate the right amount of time to this project. Discuss the project with your allocated team that installs the system for you to see what is expected from your business. It is very evident that many companies ignore this part of the process and this leads to many telecoms platforms being installed where only 10% of the features are being used.

Understand your budget but don’t let that get in the way of the right solution

Having a budget in place can be useful. Most systems can be put on a lease which allows your business to upgrade on a OPEX basis. I am a strong believer that you should not sacrifice on quality because of price. If an extra day of training would help make your staff more efficient then it may be worth investing in. If call recording is going to save you a dispute in future then it’s worth getting it installed. You will be glad when you have PCI call recording and can back up your claim in a court of law if required.

Ensure you don’t change the values of your business through technology

The way you engage with your customers is hugely important. Having a phone system answer calls can help in dealing with large call volumes or can get the customer to hold onto the line longer but let’s all remember that people buy from people! I recently dealt with a funeral director who needs the calls answered by a comforting voice straight away. No auto attendant would suit this and would only turn his customers off. Instead, we found other ways to increase his business with sympathy/marketing messages on hold and also diverting site calls to other branches when the sites didn’t answer after 6 rings.

Your business values, brand and image is key and a new phone system should complement your business while giving you more business opportunities moving forward.

BDM are a direct partner with NEC. For more information as to why business continue to use BDM then click here to enquire for your telecoms audit.

VoIP

Why the time is now to tackle ISDN switch-off

18th October 201718th October 2017
by BDM-Voice

It doesn’t seem that long ago that ISDN was considered a cutting edge technology. Now, it’s a business communication method that’s heading for extinction - ISDN lines within the UK will be switched off in 2025.

It means that companies currently relying on ISDN lines have an eight-year period to find an alternative. So if you’re one of the three million remaining users - is this something you should be worrying about now?

The answer is…absolutely.

ISDN is being discontinued because the technology is outdated and can no longer match the efficiency and cost benefits of internet-powered phone systems, such as VoIP and SIP. The advantages include:

Flexibility - create a system that matches your company’s exact needs
Money savings - no line rentals, cheaper calls and free internal communications
Work anywhere - employees connect from wherever they have an online connection
Increase productivity - unlock smarter, faster and more efficient ways to work
Future–proof - digital integration ready to work with tomorrow’s tech
Scalability - systems can evolve and grow alongside your business
Security - compliance tools to handle any regulatory demands

As investment in the traditional copper wire phone structure is phased out and the UK Government continues to invest in the national roll-out of an ultra-fast ‘full fibre’ network, the gap between old and new technology grows by the day.

So while the end of ISDN may be looming, the core reason that any business should be making the switch is because of the bottom-line business benefits that are available in the here and now.

Get in touch today.

Call 03301594000 or email info@bdm-voice.co.uk

Call Recording

MiFID II, Time is running out

11th October 201712th October 2017
by BDM-Voice

Make sure your business doesn’t get caught out by MiFID II

Time is running out.

On January 3rd, 2018 a raft of new financial regulations will kick into gear. These European Union laws, commonly referred to as MiFID II, strengthen and widen the regulatory standards required within the finance sector.
Unless your business is ready for this change, you risk facing non-compliance fines of up €5 million or 10 percent of your company’s annual turnover. So with the deadline looming, here’s what you need to know.

What exactly is MiFID?

It’s an acronym for the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). This is a complex set of regulatory standards that were first introduced by the European Union in 2007 to create a more transparent, efficient and secure financial market.
Following the 2008 global financial crisis, EU regulators started to work on tightening and expanding the scope of this legislation. This includes beefing up the rules governing the way that financial information is tracked, monitored and stored.

When is the deadline?

This updated legislation (MiFID II) goes live on January 3rd, 2018. The deadline has already been extended by 12 months to give businesses a fair chance to prepare, so there’s no ‘wiggle’ room for those companies that do get caught out.

Who is affected by MiFID?

The reason it’s liable to catch so many businesses out is that the financial regulations have been widened to include many companies who are currently exempt. It now covers all of the steps leading to a transaction - not just the final contract.
So it doesn’t just encompass investment companies and banks but all of those organisations that provide any kind of advice relating to ‘financial instruments’.

Doesn’t Brexit remove the need to comply with this?

No. When the MiFID II legislation lands on January 3rd, UK companies will have to comply in exactly the same way as any other nations within the European Union.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has released a statement to reinforce this message. And with the current two-year negotiations likely to be extended, possibly by another two years - MiFID II will remain for the foreseeable future.

What needs to be done to comply?

The MiFID II legislation covers a multitude of different areas but the most immediate impact is the change to ways that any communications relating to ‘financial instruments’ must be tracked, monitored and stored.
Article 16(7) of the Directive states:
“Records shall include the recording of telephone conversations or electronic communications relating to, at least, transactions concluded when dealing on own account and the provision of client order services that relate to the reception, transmission and execution of client orders.”
Businesses must be able to monitor all calls and to record any conversations that relate to a potential financial transaction. This information must be stored and accessible for a minimum of five years.

What’s the best way to manage communications?

If your current communication system isn’t able to handle the heightened compliance requirements of MiFID II then you need to switch to something that can. Finding a solution that will securely future-proof your business is something BDM Voice is geared to helping you do.

To make sure your business will be compliant in time get in touch today.

Call 03301594000 or email info@bdm-voice.co.uk

Call Recording

How to future-proof your phone system for MiFID II

26th September 201726th September 2017
by BDM-Voice

If your company hasn’t yet got to grips with the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) II – the time is now. These are the new set of regulatory standards drawn up by the European Union in response to the 2008 financial crisis. They come into force on January 3rd, 2018.

Uncategorised

The dangers of telephone fraud

31st July 201731st July 2017
by BDM-Voice

Telephone hacking is a fraudulent attempt by a hacker to gain unlawful remote access to a phone system. Attacks are often highly organised from an automated server and once accessed, fraudulent calls are connected and over a period of time run up call charges to the cost of potentially thousands. Typically these attacks will occur during out of office hours and are usually discovered after the event when it’s too late.

Uncategorised

BDM becomes NEC reseller

6th July 20176th July 2017
by BDM-Voice

ICT leader NEC has welcomed a new reselling partner after recognising the expertise and skills of the team behind growing provider BDM Voice. The addition of BDM Voice forms part of NEC’s plan to deliver new approaches to how ICT services are managed for enterprises as they grow and go about daily operations.

Read more “BDM becomes NEC reseller” →

Call Monitoring

BDM ‘Reveal’ even more!

5th June 20175th June 2017
by BDM

BDM’s industry-leading critiquing of telephone calls through their ‘Reveal’ programme has recently been upgraded further. The unbiased, dispassionate evaluation of inbound and outbound calls has long been an industry leader. However recent developments have allowed BDM’s clients to even further understand their level of customer service delivery.

Read more “BDM ‘Reveal’ even more!” →

Call Recording

Why Should I Be Recording Business Calls?

5th June 20175th June 2017
by BDM

If you care about customer retention – call recording is a must. If your business deals directly on the phone with your client base, then your business has frequent ‘make or break’ opportunities to cultivate loyal, happy customers and generate further business. Read more “Why Should I Be Recording Business Calls?” →

Call Recording

Evaluting the sales process

5th June 20175th June 2017
by BDM

A sales teams fundamental requirement is to sell more cars more profitably. In order for them to do this it is vital they have a sales process that can help achieve this consistently and efficiently, whilst delivering the businesses standards of customer interaction. Read more “Evaluting the sales process” →

Paul Brakewell - Sales Manager

Choosing the right provider

Understanding your business objectives

Understand your budget but don’t let that get in the way of the right solution

Ensure you don’t change the values of your business through technology

Get in touch today.

Call 03301594000 or email info@bdm-voice.co.uk

Make sure your business doesn’t get caught out by MiFID II

Time is running out.

What exactly is MiFID?

When is the deadline?

Who is affected by MiFID?

Doesn’t Brexit remove the need to comply with this?

What needs to be done to comply?

What’s the best way to manage communications?