What is inside a cloud PBX and how can it benefit your company?
A cloud business exchange (CBX) is a digital phone system that connects the phone over the internet to cloud services, features, and functionality . It is a system built, hosted in a quality telecoms centre(s), and managed by the cloud service provider. Premitel is one such provider.
The traditional private branch exchange (PBX) usually runs on an on-site business server while a CBX is hosted off-site and is accessible over the internet.
What are the CBX (Cloud Business Xchange) features?
A CBX can come with the following basic features:
- Call forwarding
- Call screening
- Default call barring (choose between a number of options)
- Voicemail to email
- Abbreviated dialling
- Call splitting
- Line busy lamp
- Do not disturb
- Call transfers (blind and attended)
- Music on hold (standard)
- Call waiting
- Daily spending plans to combat fraudulent use
- Fraud traffic profiles
- Real time access to detailed call records and usage summaries
- Fax to mail
- Conferencing
- Geo risk management
- Softphones for various operating systems
As a Premitel CBX client, you can have the above features along with the following additional features:
- Direct Inward Dialable (DID) phone numbers
- Porting of numbers
- Auto Attendants (AVR) for different call capacity requirements
- Day and night service modes
- Direct Hunt Groups (DHG)
- Hunt groups selectable from an AVR
- Pickup groups
- Call Queues
- Queue announcements
- Call Barge
- Call Monitoring
- Call Whisper
- Call Recordingmessaging on hold
- Custom call barring
- Custom music/messaging on hold
- Telecoms Management Service (TMS)
- Office hierarchy/multi company setup
- Multi site setup
- Voice VPN
- PIN Codes
- Connectivity solutions
- Selection of IP phones
Setting up a CBX is a relatively quick and straightforward process for the client. This is because the service provider will do most of the heavy lifting, and the product is purely digital. Once customers are onboarded, they can use their self-service interface to add users, phone numbers and customise the features.
A CBX does not need much hardware, because most of it is provided by the service provider. The business can get started with connected devices and a stable internet connection (low latency and 150 kbps per call is recommended). The company can use IP phones and PC or mobile applications to connect to the CBX.
What are the benefits of a CBX?
CBX is a cloud telephony technology, so most of its benefits are similar to that of cloud services. Here are a few:
- It offers enterprise-grade services at a lower cost. So companies can get high-end service without compromising on quality or increasing expenses. CBX also makes this enterprise-grade services available to SMEs at a lower cost than their current telephone systems.
- There is flexibility in choosing the device the business can use to access the service. Companies can use an IP phone, mobile phone, desktop or any device that can connect to the internet.
- A CBX is easily scalable. You only pay for what you use, and if you need to scale up, it can be done in an instant. Scaling down is just as easy.
- A CBX is a cloud service that can easily integrate with other cloud services. Easy integration makes CBX a more versatile telephone system that can evolve with the company's needs.
- The service is entirely on the cloud, so the business does not have to invest in hardware or its maintenance. The service provider handles all of that.
- Since the service is on the cloud, it is accessible from anywhere through the internet. This makes it easier to connect mobile and remote staff.
- It switches the expenditure on a business's phone system from a Capex to Opex model. This eventually leads to a lower cost of ownership.
- The technology uses internet protocols to communicate, which makes it cheaper than analogue voice calls. According to the ICASA: State of the ICT Sector Report March 2020, prepaid call rates ranged from R0.66 to R2.00 per minute. With Premitel CBX, your business could save 60 percent or more on-call rates.
- Using a CBX is more straightforward than a traditional PBX. That is because a CBX is user friendly. The business can quickly onboard, configure, route, and organise permissions of the entire system.
- Cloud systems, including CBXs, have redundancy protocols which can deliver continuous uptime.
- The service provider maintains security and updates at no extra cost. So the phone system is always secure and operating at optimum levels.
- All calls are automatically logged, and they can be recorded. So compliance will be easier and less costly.
Premitel differentiates in the market by providing a basic solution that includes extensions and features at no monthly service fee. Customers may add premium features for scalability, automation and leverage of resources.
Often providers use office based hosting to provide cloud services based on open source software. Beware of the dangers to stability and service levels. Premitel invested in carrier grade software hosted in world class data centres. This allows us to provide a function rich product with outstanding level of service.
To become successful and competitive, one must always strive to be innovative, productive and cost-efficient. A CBX provides all of these benefits on a simple-to-use platform.
Ton find out more about our solutions, please contact us.