Being smart as a Start-Up can not only save you money, but can keep more of your capital free to do bigger and better things!
If you are a Start-up and looking for a good small business phone system to get started on there are some vitals you should consider. In this blog, I will try to identify what you need to look for and when it is time to grow, what choices do you have.
The day 1 start-up phone solution:
So, you have entered the world of self employment, possibly low capital and you need to start somewhere right? Well, the cheapest way to get out of the gates as a start-up is probably with a mobile phone plan. In Australia, we would recommend Telstra simply because you get what you pay for, great coverage, and ample wireless data speed. Both essential for the small business, especially as it usually means you only need a Smartphone to run your business from, and it also doubles as a hotspot for your laptop when you have more serious work to do!
A few months in – your startup starts to grow:
By this stage you probably need to look at setting up a small office, you want to start organising yourself and need a solution that will cater for incoming calls with a local number e.g. “07 3___ ___” so that people start to know where you are. Also, you are burning through that data allowance on your mobile plan, so a little fixed data wouldn’t hurt. At Com2, we would suggest a plan like Telstra’s Biz Essentials, the main reason being, that as you start out, this is really for calls IN to your business you can bundle the line rental plus 50GB of data for as little as $80 per month, Give us a call to sort it out for you if you would like!
Time to add staff to your start-up?
Time to add staff, well, it’s probably time to add a phone system to take your start-up into becoming a small business. Not a budget busting system that melts your bank account, but one that is going to give you the essentials plus some bells and whistles and make your business sound professional whilst keeping your ongoing costs down. Now, you could kit your staff out with a mobile, but if they aren’t on the road, then a phone system over 24 months will work out a much better investment.
You already have a phone line and you can add others for $40 per month without a contract. The beauty of that Biz Essentials pack from Telstra is that it can become your main line for calls out, upgrading it can get you to a plan with unlimited calls and 500GB of data at the top end of the range of plans making for some great savings on monthly expense, and if you only have 2 staff, I would recommend just using the 1 line still and call forwarding on busy to your mobile (this will be free if both on the Telstra business account).
Now time for a small start-up phone system that thinks big!
In regards to the phone system, the team at Com2 would recommend above all others an Avaya IP Office 500 V2. Whilst writing this they are releasing Version 9 of the IP Office and with this will come even more unified communications features in a box that will get you up and running installed for under 4K.
In the basic version of this phone system you get all the features of a bigger phone system without the excessive expense of some of its competitor. The Avaya IP Office also boasts the ability to grow, unlike its competitors in Cisco and Panasonic, the base box will keep you going, no need to swap out and replace as your business gets bigger. Buy now, keep forever! Click here to see the TOP 15 Features of the Avaya IP Office for Small Business and Start-upsSo if you are looking for advice and assistance in connecting your Start-up Business to a new Mobile, Fixed line, Internet or Phone system and are looking for a team you can trust to deliver as well as ensure you maintain value as you grow, Call Mark Pertile or John Boshier at Com2 on 1300 887 495
