Perhaps many of my fellow business owners have been feeling a bit gloomy over the state of the economy. I know I have. Here in Florida unemployment is currently at 12.3%, an unheard of rate. Contrast that with a record low rate of 3.3% just four years ago. Add in the tax deadline that just past, and the fact that our political leaders seem not to have a clue, one cannot help but fight the blues.

As many of you, I’ve had to make some tough decisions about my business. With virtually no new commercial construction, and no one adding staff, our industry has slowed. Is your business in the same boat? What should you do? Give up and close the doors? No, that is only the last resort.

Small business owners literally pour their blood, sweat and tears into business. Employees become friends, not just a bottom line that can be easily cut. I started North Florida Communications in 1990, right after my 21^st birthday. Should I simply give up and go look for another job? NO WAY! And you shouldn’t either!

Times will get better. The economy will turn around at some point. When it does, my business will be there to assist our current customers, and many of the new entrepreneurs who will emerge. I encourage my fellow business owners to take the actions necessary to keep your businesses afloat.

My friend, I know how hard it is to make the tough decisions that may be necessary to keep your business going. I also know that fear of making the decision can be gut-wrenching and that fear can keep you from taking the necessary actions. Do not be overcome by that fear! Make the decisions that need to be made to help your business survive. When I think of someone who was able to overcome his fear to make the tough decisions, I think of George Washington.

During the French and Indian War, Lt. Colonel Washington served as an assistant to British General Edward Braddock. In July 1755, a fierce battler broke near Fort Duquesne, now the city of Pittsburgh. During this horrible battle, more than half of the British soldiers were killed or injured, while the French and Indians had few causalities. Did Washington cower in fear? No, he continued to encourage and lead his men. They had to retreat in order to fight another day and eventually go on to victory.

During that battle, Washington had two horses shot out from beneath him. Later, when the battle was over, he discovered four bullet holes in his jacket, yet he miraculously was uninjured. . The defeat wasn’t his fault, (the battle plan was Braddock’s) but Washington stayed in the battle and made the tough decisions.

Is the current state of your business your fault? If so, correct your mistakes. If you’ve made the right decisions, your business may still be suffering because of the sour economy. You must "play the hand you’re dealt" and make the decisions necessary to keep your business going. It won’t be fun, but at least you’ll be around to fight, and win, another day!

Have you ever called someone only to be told that, "Mr. Busyman is not available, would you like his voice mail?" Of course you have. In fact, Jeffery Mayer, in his informative book Time Management for Dummies, tells us that almost 80 percent of all business calls are not completed on the first attempt. If the vast majority of business calls require leaving a message, doesn’t it behoove us to know the best way to leave a voice mail message? Even more importantly shouldn’t we know the best way for us, and our staffs, to take messages?

In today’s competitive business environment we cannot afford to offend any customers by failing to return calls. We must be able to communicate with our clients and our vendors in the most efficient manner possible. Here are a few tips to use with voice mail:

( When leaving a message, or recording a greeting, always take a deep breath. This will give your voice more volume and will help slow down your speed of conversation. It is very important that you speak slowly, with a clear, strong voice.

( When leaving a message, always say your name and phone number at the beginning and at the end of your message. You should also spell your last name and any other words that may have an unfamiliar spelling, such as cities, streets, or company names.

( Always smile while talking on the phone. Believe it or not it really comes through the telephone.

( Tell the callee when you will be available for a return call. This helps eliminate telephone-tag.

( Leave as much detail as possible. For example, "This is Joe Prospect at Wannabuy Company, (352)378-7730. I am calling in reference to your proposal #780. We would like to know how much it would cost to add two more telephones to this quote. I will be in until 5:00 P.M. today. Joe Prospect, P-r-o-s-p-e-c-t at Wannabuy Company, (352)378-7730." This message would allow the callee to have the pertinent information at hand when the call is returned, saving both parties time.

( If at all possible, when setting up a voice mail system, leave the caller an easy way to speak to a person. "At any time you may press ‘0' to speak to an operator." This will avoid customers being trapped in your system, otherwise known as Voice Mail Jail. If customers get trapped in Voice Mail Jail too often, they tend to escape by going to your competitor.

( Use announcement boxes on your system. Always let the caller be able to choose an announcement box that has routine information such as mailing address, fax number, business hours, etc. . . . This saves the caller and your company time.

( Change your message often. If you are going to be out of the office until Thursday of next week, put that on your message. Let the caller know when he or she can best reach you. If possible, tell the caller to talk to your assistant if the message is urgent.

( Always call into your voice mail system to see how it sounds. Is the voice good and strong? Is the voice speaking at a good speed? Are the menu options logical?

( Most importantly--return your calls. Check your mailbox regularly and return the calls promptly. After all, how many times will you leave a voice mail message to someone who fails to return your call?)

Many companies occasionally have a need to do a multi-party conference call. Most modern telephone systems will easily accommodate a three party conference, and some systems will even handle five parties. But what happens when you need to talk with ten or twenty people at a time? You can buy some fancy (i.e., expensive) conferencing equipment, or you can utilize a third-party conference system.

North Florida Communications is now providing a conference solution for small to medium businesses. For less than $10 a month, we will provide you with your own conference telephone number. This number can be local or toll-free. You’ll then be able to set up a conference at any time and simply pay a few cents per minute, per caller.

Want to go a little further? We can provide you with a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) conference phone that will allow you to connect your entire conference room to a phone call, while allowing everyone to hear and be heard.

Please contact me if you would like more information.

Larry Nazworth

Last week I was able to attend ITExpo (Internet Telephony Exposition) in Miami Beach. It truly is amazing to see the products being developed in our industry. Here are a few things that I think are very exciting:

SIP Trunking- In a nutshell, SIP is a connection to an ITSP (Internet Telephony Service Provider) that connects a phone system, or a simple gateway, to the PSTN (Public Switch Telephone Network), which is the traditional telephone network that we all think about when we discuss "The Phone Company".

SIP Trunks have become a very reliable way to make telephone calls that also can save you 50% (more or less) on your phone bills. SIP Trunks also provide more advanced features, such as Direct Inward Dial (DID) numbers, call pairing (have your cell phone ring with your desk phone) and faster setup/tear-down times.

Hosted PBX- Imagine a small company getting a powerful telephone system without having to buy any equipment, except the telephones. This can be done with a Hosted PBX. A company, such as North Florida Communications, rents a customer a server, or a portion of a server that is located at a remote location. Customer phones then connect via the internet to the hosted system.

The hosted solution gives all the standard features such as auto-attendant, voice-mail, etc., while allowing the customer to pay a monthly reoccurring fee, instead a big chunk of money up front. Since SIP Trunking is often used, those monthly fees can be equal to the cost you may pay to the local Telco just for the phone lines you would use with a traditional telephone system.

A hosted solution is also great for companies that have many remote users.

Unified Messaging- Imagine getting all of your voice-mails and faxes sent directly to your cell phone via email. That is what Unified Messaging can do. Personally, I love it because I’m on the road a lot. I no longer have to dial in to check messages, or ask to borrow someone’s fax machine so I can see an important document. Very nice!

Guess what, these are really not new technologies. They have all been around for a few years and are now mature technologies. Are you ready to start a new decade with some time AND money saving purchases? If so, please contact me!

Larry Nazworth

Happy New Year! In 2010 North Florida Communications celebrates 20 years in business. I started the company in August of 1990, and I’ve seen a lot of changes!

When I first started NFC, 1a2 systems were a dying breed, but still in use in many businesses. 1a2 systems were the big bulky phones with a red hold button and five or more clear lines keys that mechanically clicked each time you pressed one. Each phone required a 25-pair cable (50 wires). Loads of fun!

Analog telephone systems were the big things in the early 90's and they only required 2-4 pairs of wire. Digital systems started taking over in the mid 90's and continued to have dominance well into the early 2000's, or should that be 00's? Voice Over IP (VoIP) systems are now taking over the business telephone system market.

In 1990 computer network cable was serial based. Each wire had to be soldered onto a DB-25 connector. The pinout of the cables was different for each system. Today we have much clearer standards to follow.

It really is great to be in a business where things change! Change helps to keep us on our toes and helps us to grow emotionally and mentally!

NFC had about three customers in August of 1990. I started the business by subcontracting to other companies. Today we have more than 1,100 contacts in our database. It has been great to meet so many people over the years. I still find it humbling that people allow us to take care of there most critical communications needs. We really do appreciate our wonderful customer base.

On a personal note, in August 1990 I had just turned 21 and was single. Today I’m 40 (for a little while longer) and have been married to my wonderful wife, Leslie, for 15 years. We have three boys: 9, 11, and 13. We’ve been blessed as a family.

Last year was a hard year for most companies. We were fortunate to be within 4% of our 2008 sales, thanks in large to a big job that took us several months in the first quarter of ‘09. Spring and summer were bad, but things started picking up in the fall. I’m thankful that we have not had to lay anyone off.

2010 looks very promising for us. I really think the economy is starting to turn around. Small businesses that have persevered through these hard times will need to implement some much needed system upgrades that they have been putting off. The poor economy will produce more entrepreneurs that will be needing telephone systems and networking. Our new SIP Trunking product will help our clients reduce their phone bill. Business Owners will start to see the light at the end of a recession and will start to spend money again. New employees will be hired that will need telephones.

I hope you are as optimistic about 2010 as I am! As always, if there is anything I can help you with, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Happy New Year,

Larry Nazworth

Many thanks to our wonderful customers and my faithful employees for a good year. While times have been tough economically this year, we've been blessed to keep everyone working. Enjoy your time off as we celebrate the birth of our Saviour!

Larry Nazworth

What happens to your computer when the power goes out? Hopefully, you have a battery backup device known as an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) that keeps your PC in operation for at least a few minutes. There are three basic types of UPSs and not all are adequate for mission critical communications devices.

Standby UPSs are also referred to as an off-line UPS. This type of unit powers the load directly from the AC source and will only go on-line when the incoming power goes below a preset threshold. After the power sags, or fails all together, a battery-powered inverter kicks in to provide clean power to the load. This causes a momentary interruption of power to the load referred to as "transfer time," which can cause problems with sensitive equipment.

Standby units do not provide conditioning to the incoming power and should only be used on non-mission critical equipment. We do not recommend standby units for our advanced telephone systems.

Line-Interactive UPSs are essentially standby UPSs with line conditioning added. The line conditioning allows the UPS to provide a voltage boost to the load without accessing the batteries. This allows continuous line conditioning, lengthens battery life, and helps to eliminate electronic "noise" that can cause minor application errors and loss of data.

This type of UPS is an improvement over the standby models and works well in most environments, but there are a few drawbacks. There is no frequency regulation. Battery reserve time and recharge time may not be adequate for critical loads. Some units may not be suitable for use with generators.

Online UPSs are double-conversion uninterruptible power supplies. These high-end units completely rectify the AC line to DC, and use this DC to charge the batteries and power a DC to AC convertor to power the load. Since power is constantly going through the inverter, there is no transfer time needed to switch to the battery in the event of a voltage sag or outage.

Under normal circumstances the Online UPS is always "online" providing isolation, filtering, regulation and frequency control. This is the top of the line UPS, which also means they cost more. However, they provide much better power and should be considered for mission critical communication equipment such as telephone systems and servers.

Remember that all UPS units require batteries for reserve power. These batteries should be tested annually and replaced when necessary. The best UPS is only as good as the batteries it runs off of.

North Florida Communications is an authorized Minuteman UPS reseller. If you need help sizing an UPS for your equipment, please go to this web page. If I can assist you in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Larry Nazworth

Telephone etiquette doesn't just lead to more pleasant telephone conversations, it can also lead to more business for companies that realize courtesy sells.

Many people form an opinion of a company during the first four to six seconds on the phone with a company representative. In fact, more than 82 percent of business people say the way a phone is answered influences their opinion of a company significantly. That impression could be based on something as simple as a receptionist answering the phone with, "Good morning, North Florida Communications. This is Leslie. How may I help you?

Some specific guidelines can be followed to sharpen telephone skills:

1) Answer the phone promptly. Seems pretty basic, but when you are juggling several pressing tasks it can be tempting to let the phone ring too many times before picking it up.

2) Put your best manner forward. How the phone is answered is even more important than how quickly it's answered. Generally, start with a pleasant opener, such as "Good morning" or Thank you for calling." These few words of greeting "warm" the call. Always use the company's name; this sets a professional tone and wastes less time for everyone if it's a wrong number. State your name, to give the call a personal touch. When appropriate, add a "How can I help you?" offer. There's no need to ask "May I help you?" That's a given. Asking how you can help reinforces the "ready-and-waiting-to-assist" image you want to convey.

3) Be prepared to get and give information. Always have easy access to information callers may want from you. Think about the questions your callers might ask. If the answers aren't in your head, make sure they are written down near the phone. Also keep a staff directory handy so the call can be transferred to another employee at a moment's notice.

4) Make the most of messages. Always keep message forms and pens next to every phone. Everyone should treat message-taking as an opportunity to provide customer service. If you say "May I take a message?" and get "No" for an answer, you have lost the call. Instead, try saying, "Let me have your name and number and I'll see that Ms. Jones gets your message." After taking the caller's number, go the extra mile and ask: 1) the best time to return the call; 2) how the person who'll be getting the message can help the caller; and, 3) whether there is anything you can do to help in the meanwhile.

5) Use "Hold" sparingly. No one likes being put on hold. It is an option that should be used sparingly and with courtesy. Always ask callers for permission to put them on hold and wait for a response. If you must ask someone to wait while you get information, be honest about the amount of time it will take and ask if they would rather get a call back. Consider a Message-On-Hold player for your telephone system to inform callers about your products and services.

6) Say "goodbye" gracefully. It's always best to let the caller bring the conversation to a close. But sometimes you get hooked up with a chatterbox. When this happens, try bringing the caller back to the original point of the conversation to make sure you haven't missed something important before you gently wrap up.

Larry Nazworth

Generally speaking, a Hosted PBX refers to a voice solution where the call control equipment resides in a service providers location, which business customers connect to via voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP).

More plainly, a business customer can choose to pay a service provider to provide all of the necessary equipment to run a telephone system. End users connect to the service via the internet (usually). VoIP phones can be used from the office, at home, or any where there is a reliable internet connection. The end-user does not have to pay a large one-time price for all of the processing equipment, but must pay a never ending monthly charge and generally must purchase all of the phones.

Here are some pros and cons of a Hosted PBX:

One big thing to consider when going with a hosted solution is the company behind the product. You need to be sure that they will be around for the long haul and have the finances to succeed. There have been several cases where service providers have gone out of business, seemingly overnight, leaving there customers stranded. In 2007 SunRocket suddenly closed shop leaving 200,000 customers scrambling to find service.

VoIP has many forms and is here to stay. It can be made to work right and to save your company a lot of money. If you think a hosted solution may be right for your business, contact me and let me help!

Larry Nazworth

As with any business, a medical office can make more profit AND keep patients happy by running more efficiently. At North Florida Communications we have a simple product that can help your clinic run more smoothly. The Clinic-Call system by Tech Works is an easy to use color-coded light system for staff-to-staff communication.

Each Exam Room has a 4-button keypad installed on the outside of the door. Each physician and staff member is assigned a color on the keypad. When a patient is placed in a room, the staff member presses the corresponding button, which lights a corridor light located above the Exam Room door. This light then indicates who needs to see this patient next.

For example, lets say a patient is placed in Exam Room 1 for Dr. Jones, who has been assigned the yellow light. The light begins to flash on the keypad, corridor light, and on a master room status indicator located in his office. Now, lets also assume that patients have been placed in Exam 2 and Exam 3. These lights have a “steady” yellow light on their indicators.

Dr. Jones sees the slowly flashing yellow light and knows that he needs to visit that patient first. Right before he enters the room, Dr. Jones pushes the yellow button again. This changes the slowly flashing yellow light to a fast flash, which allows staff members to know exactly which room the doctor is in.

After an examination, Dr. Jones determines that the patient needs an x-ray, so he presses the blue button, which has been assigned to the X-Ray Tech. The blue light starts to flash, alerting X-Ray. Then Dr. Jones presses the yellow button because he is done with the patient, until the x-ray is completed. This extinguishes the yellow light on Exam 1.

Now Dr. Jones can look down the hallway, or at a master status indicator to see with room he needs to go to next. The Clinic-Call system automatically starts to slowly flash the room indicator for the patient who has been waiting the longest. The cycle continues throughout the day making sure patients are cared for in a timely and orderly manner.

Should a practitioner need staff assistance, he/she can simply press the “red” button, or a help button installed inside the Exam Room. An alert will sound and the room will be indicated by a flashing red light. Help buttons and/or pull cords can be installed in other locations, such as lavatories, for emergency needs.

The simplicity of the Clinic-Call system is one of it’s greatest strengths. The easy to learn system of color coded lights provides the staff with complete information at a glance. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. We have a demo kit that can be brought to your office to show you how easy the system is to operate and how valuable it could be to your clinic.

Larry Nazworth

As many companies in our field do, North Florida Communications provides maintenance contracts for business telephone systems. Many customers wonder if they should have a maintenance contract for their telephone system. Let’s explore that thought.

Simply put, a maintenance contract is an insurance policy on your telephone system. The contract can be written to cover parts, or both parts and labor. You can choose to have 24x7x365 coverage, or 8-5 Monday-Friday coverage, depending on how important the system is to your business, and of course how much you want to pay. Having a maintenance contract allows you to budget for any problems with your system, saving you from any large, unforseen bills for equipment failures.

At North Florida Communications, we’ve added on to the standard maintenance agreement and changed the name to Managed Voice Services. Our plans provide:

1. Parts and Labor, or Labor Only- choose the coverage that is best for you. Includes damage by lightning.

2. Music-On-Hold- seasonally adjusted music

3. One hour/month Remote Programming- remote changes to your telephone and voice-mail system to keep everything up to date.

4. Annual "Tune-Up" visit- check out condition of phone equipment, replace bad cords, etc.

5. Additional On-Site Training- two one-hour on-site training visits at your request. We'll take questions from experienced users and help train new hires.

6. Updated Templates/Designation Strips- we’ll mail you updated phone designation strips for your telephones as needed. Up to two per phone/year.

7. Priority Response- Maximum 4-hour response time for major problems.

8. Inside Wire Coverage- inside telephone wiring is included. Network cabling can be added for an additional cost.

9. Telco Liaison Service- well contact your telephone company on your behalf for service problems and new orders.

10. 10% Discount on Additional Purchases- discount applies to parts and labor.

So, with NFC, you’re not only getting coverage for your equipment, but you’re also getting many more benefits. For most plans we provide a remote maintenance terminal that allows us to remotely program and monitor your telephone system via the internet. This box also provides music/message-on-hold that we adjust to different seasons.

We give you remote programming that frees up one of your staff members, while keeping your phone system up to date. Does your phone have the name of an employee that left two years ago? With our Managed Voice Services, we would take care of that for you at no additional charge.

Do you have employees that have been hired since the phone system was installed, and are not quite sure about all of the different features? With our plan, you get a site visit for training. Need to order a new line, but dread trying to work with the local phone company? Our included Telco Liaison Service would take care of that for you.

Is a maintenance contract right for your organization? Only you can answer that. Please give me a call if I can help.

Larry Nazworth

As is the case of many businesses, we are sometimes faced with the question, “Why is your competitor’s price cheaper?” for which there could be several different answers.

It could just be that one of our competitors needs the work badly and will do it at any cost. Many contractors are hungry for work right now, and this is understandable. Perhaps they’re just trying to keep the doors open and will do whatever it takes to get the business. That’s understandable, and somewhat difficult to compete with. More often, there are other reasons why our products and services may be priced higher.

In our local area, we compete with several topnotch competitors. These companies have been in business for a long time, some even longer than the 19 years we’ve been around. They strive to maintain high standards and sell top-of-the-line equipment and services. We also compete against many others who do not meet high standards and lack some of the following:

Licencing- In the state of Florida, a license is required to pull cable. If you take a close look at the companies that appear in the Yellow Pages under “Network Cabling” or “Telephone Systems,” I would be willing to bet less than half of those are licensed contractors. We’ve invested a lot of time and money to become a licensed Florida Limited Energy Specialty Contractor (License #ES12000686) and a Georgia Low Voltage/Telecom Contractor (License #LVT305390).

We’ve studied the books and paid all of the fees for these licenses so that we can be in compliance with the law. For whatever reason, many of our competitors have not made the investment. Our price will automatically be higher than theirs, because of our investment in licensing and continuing education. Would you hire an unlicensed contractor to build your house? Ask a potential contractor for their state license number.

Insurance- Automotive, Comprehensive, and Workmen’s Comp. are just a few of the policies that must be carried by most legitimate companies. We’ve got them, but what about the guy with the lower price?

If an installer accidentally knocks off the head of a fire sprinkler pipe, and your building is flooded, who will pay? Does he have insurance to cover it? What happens if the installer falls off a ladder? Is he covered by workmen’s comp., or will your insurance company have to pick up the tab? What happens if he falls on one of your employees? Will you be stuck with the medical costs and lost productivity costs? I could go on and on, but I’m sure you get the point. Ask a potential contractor if they have insurance!

Quality of Workmanship- As with any type of contracting business, there are various levels of quality. Few things bother me in this business like the poor quality of work I often see by other companies. Wires hanging from the ceiling, jacks not installed properly, equipment not properly mounted, etc.

It does take more time to do a job properly, we all know that. So, if we’re up against a company that takes no pride in their workmanship, they’ll have less time tied up in a job, and can charge less. Wouldn’t you rather pay a little more and have the job done right the first time?

Quality of Equipment- There are numerous brands of telephone equipment on the market today. There are some good products, and some not-so-good products. We’re very picky about the equipment we sell, how about the other guy? Will it work right next year when the warranty is up? Does the manufacturer have a proven track record? Ask!

Training- Unfortunately, many in our trade don’t have a good grasp on the codes and standards that apply to our profession. (Maybe that’s why they’re not licensed?) We do, and we do our best to abide by those codes and standards, which can cause our price to be higher than someone who doesn’t.

We’re a BICSI shop. BICSI is a professional association supporting the information transport systems (ITS) industry. We pay a premium to be BICSI members so we can benefit from the training they provide. We each spend 1-2 weeks a year getting certifications and continuing education so that we can be sure we’re providing the best service possible.

In addition to BICSI, we have numerous in-house training sessions throughout the year. What about the other guy? Ask what accreditations they have. What type of training do they participate in?

Cleanliness- I found out a long time ago that many office mangers were more impressed with my ability to operate a vacuum cleaner than all of my technical abilities combined. (I’m stretching it just a bit.) One of the things that set us apart from other contractors is that we make an effort to clean up our mess. Sweep, vacuum, wipe, whatever it takes. Of course that takes time, and that extra time could put us above someone else’s price.

In addition to cleaning up after ourselves, we also try to maintain a professional image with our dress code. Now, we may not be the prettiest people that walk through your door, but we do try to look the best we can. Hats and shorts are not allowed (except at construction sites, if applicable) and each installer has a company shirt, and a marked van. How about the cheap guy? Is he coming into your nice office wearing shorts and flip-flops? Is his worn-out station wagon giving your parking lot a bad image?

Company Investment and Longevity- Will the cheaper guy be around next week or next year when you need service? Does he have the proper tools and test equipment to do the job? Do they maintain crash kits for the systems they sell, or will you have to wait for parts if your system is down? All of this cost more money.

North Florida Communications has been in business since 1990. We’re committed to running a company without debt. That has greatly helped us during this bad economy. We’ll be here when you need us!

We invest in the proper tools and test equipment. If we sell you a new telephone system, rest assured we have a backup system on standby, just in case something happens to yours. Of course this all takes extra money. Has the other guy made the same investments?

I hope this gives you something to think about. Please let me know your thoughts. As always, if there is any way I can help you, please don’t hesitate to call.

Larry Nazworth

As we continue to look at ways to save "green," let’s take a moment to look at the business telephone system. Yeah, I know most people don’t get real excited about telephone systems, until they stop working, but I do! Having sold, installed, maintained, and repaired phone systems for the past 22 years, I’ve seen quite a few changes. The past few years have brought some enhancements that can save many businesses some money, while making things more convenient for the customer.

One of the business telephone systems we sell at North Florida Communications is the LG iPECS VoIP system, formally marketed in the USA as the Vodavi Telenium. The iPECS differs somewhat from a tradition telephone system in that it has a fully distributed architecture, which simply means you can have different modules in different buildings on a campus, or in different cities. While the iPECS is a fully blown VoIP phone system, you can also purchase gateways for analog or existing digital phones.

Here’s a few ways to save some green with the iPECS telephone system:

1) SIP Trunking. Many businesses rely heavily on their business telephone system, and consequently have a very large bill each month from the telephone company. SIP Trunking allows you to route some or all of your calls through an Internet Telephony Service Provider (ITSP) via the internet. ITSPs are typically much more economical than your local exchange carrier. However, many LECs and CLECs are getting into the SIP business.

SIP Trunks also provide the ability to have DID numbers, for a very small cost each month. With DIDs, each employee or department can have their own phone number, helping to reduce the need for a receptionist to route calls, as well as speeding customers response time.

DID numbers can also be used to gauge a marketing campaign’s response and effectiveness. You can place one number on your web-site, another number on your newspaper ads, and yet another number on direct-mail pieces. Each time someone calls, your phone system will tell you what number their calling into.

There are many more uses for SIP Trunking, but those will have to wait for another day.

2) Unified Messaging (UM). Since I spend a good amount of time out of the office, I’ve called in thousands of times over the years to check messages. Fortunately, I no longer have to do that. My voice-mail messages are now forwarded to by email. I can access them from home, from my laptop, or any place else there is internet access. Even more convenient is that they’re automatically picked up by my web-enabled cell phone.

UM also allows me to receive faxes via my email account. While faxes are not used nearly as much as in the past, we still get a few. Again, it doesn’t matter where I’m at, the fax will be emailed to me and can be viewed on my cell as well.

3) Multiple Offices Operate as One. One of the features of modern VoIP telephone systems is the ability to tie multiple offices together via the internet, or an existing IP network. So, if you had an office in Gainesville, Florida and one in Ocala, Florida, you could tie both office phone systems together. This would eliminate toll charges for calls between offices, and allow employees in Gainesville to dial out through the Ocala lines and vice-versa.

Additionally, office staff at one location would be able to answer calls coming from the other location. Perhaps you don’t need an operator/receptionist at both locations. You could have one person in Gainesville to answer all calls, and Ocala callers would never know the difference. Don’t need to staff the Gainesville office every day of the week? No problem, the calls can be answered in Ocala. Someone calls Ocala wanting AR, but they’re in Gainesville? Just transfer them!

4) Remote Users. A few years ago a client of ours had a key employee move from Gainesville to Montana. Our client wanted to keep the employee so he had us install a VoIP telephone system and send a phone to Montana. This valued associate worked for our client for several more years taking calls every day from her home in Montana using a normal DSL internet connection. No one ever knew the difference, unless she told them.

A remote VoIP phone can allow employees to work from home, making it more convenient for them AND saving the cost of expensive office space. Working from home also helps the environment by keeping more cars off the road.

Do you travel a lot but still need to connect to your office telephone system? A soft-phone can be installed on your laptop. Just connect to the internet, put on your headset and start talking. You’ll be able to make and receive calls to your coworkers and clients, just like you would use your standard office telephone. The iPECS even has a built in "web-phone" that allows you to connect from any web-browser in the world.

There are other ways that a modern telephone system can help you organization operate more efficiently while increasing customer service and I’m sure we’ll discuss those in the future. The level of services achieved from a telephone system, like all sophisticated business electronics, has as much to do with the installing company as it does the equipment. Please call me if I can help, (352)224-3033.

Larry Nazworth

Want a few more suggestions on cutting your IT power bill? Think about these:

1) Server Virtualization. In most small to medium businesses, servers are only utilized between 5 and 20% of their available computing power. While IT has to be reliable, it is often easy to gain some efficiency, while maintaining reliability and security, by using virtualization.

What is server virtualization? A simple definition is: Virtualization is a method of running multiple independent virtual operating systems on a single physical computer. It is a way of maximizing physical resources to maximize the investment in hardware.

If you’re able to use less servers you’ll save not only the cost of the hardware itself, but also on the power that was used by the extra servers, as well as the cost to cool the computer room. Less servers, less heat, less demand on the air conditioning, less power needed.

2) Check the temperature of your Data Center. In 2008 the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) changed their guidelines for temperature ranges in Data Centers. The maximum allowed temperature actually went up 3.6 degrees from 77°F to 80.6°F.

There is no reason to have your Data Center freezing cold (unless you’re also using it to store meat), but you want to make sure components don’t over heat. Take a look at the 2008 ASHRAE Environmental Guidelines for Datacom Equipment and compare it to the temperature in your equipment room. Perhaps you can bump that thermostat up a little and save some green.

3) Put your office computers to sleep. If possible, consider having everyone power down there PC’s when they go home. If that is not practical, configure each desktop to go in “standby” mode after 15 (or so) minutes of inactivity. Desktop PC’s can use 200 watts or more of power in full operation, but that number can shrink to 3 watts when switched to standby. Don’t forget those monitors.

Larry Nazworth

True costs of IT

When we think about the cost of typical office technology, we often look at just the bottom line, in other words the price tag. We neglect to think about the amount of money that it cost to operate and service the machines.

Small servers usually draw 250+ watts of power. Now, that doesn’t sound like much, especially if you compare it to the hair dryer that you have at home which can draw 1500 watts. But, what would happen if you left that hair dryer on all day? It would quickly produce enough heat to raise the temperature of the room considerably.

How many servers does your business have? How many workstation PC’s, monitors, printers, faxes, scanners, etc . . . They all need power to operate, and they’re often left on 24/7. What does that power consumption look like now? Quite a bit more?

There is more to consider. When figuring the power needed for a data center, or equipment room, we generally add the power required for each component that will be in the space, add room for expansion and then multiply the sum by 2.5. Why, because it usually takes as much power to cool the room as it does to power the devices. In other words, a server that takes 250-watts of power, will require about 250-watts of AC to keep it from burning up. The extra .5 (50%) allows for power loss from UPS’s and associated equipment, and also give a little wiggle room.

Now looking at office technology from the bigger picture, we can see the true cost is much bigger than the price tag. You may purchase a low price piece of equipment that uses a lot more energy than a slightly higher priced unit, but you’ll pay more to operate the machine and the savings will quickly be gone.

So, what are some easy ways to save some green?

1) Look for workstation PC’s that come with the Energy-Star certification.

2) Configure servers to run at peak performance, not under-utilization.

3) Decide if all devices need to be left on 24x7. Does everyone’s PC need to be on all of the time? Can Copiers, scanners, etc. be turned off after hours?

Larry Nazworth