According to Businesswire, the global VoIP services market will grow from $85.2 billion in 2021 to a staggering $102.5 billion in 2026, indicating a 3.8% compound annual growth rate between 2021 and 2026.
Gone are the days when companies used to rely on those old-school traditional landline phones with twisted copper wires. Not only do traditional phone systems require businesses to pay top dollar, but their complicated and time-consuming maintenance has resulted in more than 61% of businesses switching from traditional to VoIP phone systems.
In the next few years, the VoIP adoption rate has been predicted to skyrocket, all thanks to its lower costs and wide range of benefits.
VoIP is a cost-effective option for almost every single business—and that includes retail businesses.
The thing is, retail is a fast-paced environment with ever-changing consumer needs. In the past decade, rapid technological advancements and the digital revolution have changed the retail industry like nothing we’ve ever seen before.
From dealing with market demand and seasonal changes to being in constant touch with different departments to delivering a great customer experience, it’s important to ensure a smooth and streamlined communication process. Even a slight communication gap or delay may result in missed opportunities, revenue losses, and lost sales. Furthermore, retail customers are price-sensitive, which means competitive pricing is a must if you want to beat the competition.
4 Benefits of VoIP for Retail Businesses
If you are still relying on a traditional phone system and are wondering whether switching to VoIP is a good business decision or not, this article is for you.
1- Low Costs
In today’s ever-competitive world, if you want your retail business to be profitable, cutting down on unnecessary costs has to be a priority. If you have been using traditional landlines, then you may already be aware of just how costly making international calls is.
But what if you have no other option but to make hundreds of international calls every week just because most of your vendors and customers live abroad? If that’s the case, chances are traditional phone lines are currently costing you a fortune.
Switching to a VoIP system means you will only be charged for internet access. This means that no matter how many international calls you make to your vendors or customers, you will only be paying for the internet plan—as these calls will be taking place over the internet. You won’t have to worry about long-distance fees.
Additionally, you won’t have to worry about the complicated process of adding any additional lines. While you may have to pay for additional numbers and extensions, the process is simple and straightforward.
2- Scalability
What if you’re looking forward to expanding your business and want to onboard more employees in the next few months? In that case, you may need more lines and numbers.
If you use traditional landlines currently, you already know how tricky—and costly—the process of adding lines can be. From on-premises charges to additional copper wiring to higher maintenance costs, you may find it hard to scale the telecommunications part of your business.
When it comes to VoIP, the process is simple and straightforward. While you may have to pay for additional numbers or extensions, it’s generally hassle-free. And the best part is that you won’t have to worry about additional copper wiring or on-premise charges.
Alongside this, when it comes to VoIP, businesses don’t really have to worry about paying those hefty maintenance charges. Since there’s no copper wiring involved, there’s not much maintenance required. Also, digital updates and upgrades are often automatic, which means you and your team don’t have to worry about going through a manual update or upgrade process every time a new feature or update is rolled out.
3- Advanced Features
As we mentioned already, retail is an ever-changing industry with ever-changing consumer needs. Making and receiving phone calls is the bare minimum.
What if you want to record, store and transcribe your calls for training and analysis? What if you want to redirect or forward your incoming calls to the right department? Or what if you want to gain insights into call analytics to improve the quality of your calls and services?
With traditional landlines, you’re strictly limited to making and receiving phone calls. While you may avail some additional services by installing a PBX phone system, it’s expensive and you’ll have to pay add-on prices for different features. Since VoIP calls take place over the internet, you can tap into additional features without requiring you to install a PBX phone system. Some of those features might include:
- Call Routing
- Auto Attendant
- Advanced Call Management
- Call Notify
- Call Forwarding
- Call Presence
- Conference Bridge
- Find Me/Follow Me
- Instant Messaging
- Number Porting
Also, it’s critical to note that not all VoIP providers offer the same set of features. So, it’s important to choose a VoIP provider based on your specific needs.
4- Ability to Forward Incoming Calls to Mobile Phones
One big reason why most businesses are afraid of switching to VoIP is that the calls take place over the internet. What if your internet connection goes down due to poor weather? A poor internet connection may result in latency and jitter. Poor call quality may result in a poor customer experience. Or worse—what if internet downtime turns out to be the reason behind you missing out on a big opportunity?
Many VoIP providers offer call continuity options, such as the ability to forward your incoming calls to mobile devices. If your internet isn’t working, calls will be forwarded to your mobile device.
And the best part is that you may even receive them from your home—making VoIP a great option for retail businesses that want to give their employees the option for remote work.
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Make the Switch to VoIP
Businesses can save more than 75% upon switching to VoIP. Implementing a company-wide VoIP system can help businesses save an average of about 32 call minutes every single day. And while your needs may vary depending on the size of your business, the point is VoIP phone systems are extremely cost-effective and offer businesses numerous benefits.
