Top Vendors for Telephone Equipment

Cutting costs is a great business practice -- until it actually costs you money in the end. That's the principal risk with a small business phone system: Buy too little, and expansion is pricey or just plain impossible.

Spend too much on a small business phone system, and you waste money if your employees don't really use all the cutting-edge features. (They won't.) A small business phone system for companies with more than 10 employees, or those that expect to expand soon, is a matter of budgeting over the medium term and looking for the best fit from a variety of small business phone system technologies.

Covered in this guide:
1. Basic small business phone system with key service unit
2. Moving your small business phone system to full-fledged PBX
3. Hosted or virtual PBX offerings for a small business phone system
4. The Web-based small business phones system

A decent small business phone system for most companies

What you probably expect from a small business phone system is voicemail, a receptionist station, call transfer capabilities and expandability. For those level needs, you'll need what's called a key service unit or KSU small business phone system.
small business phone system page.

When to look at a PBX small business phone system

From 10 users to 40, small business phone system KSU units for are probably rich enough in features. After 40 or when connecting multiple offices, a private branch exchange (PBX) system begins to make more sense as a small business phone system.
PBX small business phone system directory at Business.com.

A middle-ground PBX small business phone system solution

Thanks to the Web, it is now possible to buy much of the usability of a private branch exchange small business phone system over the Web. Rather than invest upfront in hardware, you pay a monthly fee for small business phone system features via the Internet.
virtual PBX service small business phone system.

Consder a Web-based phone system for small business

Got Internet? Then you've got a small business phone system, assuming your office is properly wired for voice and data through the same lines. (Most new buildings are.)
VoIP small business phone systems page at Business.com.

• Prices are dropping like mad, in large part due to competition from Web-based small business phone system technology. However, that doesn't mean a small business phone system via the Web is better. If you can, talk with a colleague who has used a virtual small business phone system for a while.
• There is a market for buying a used small business phone system. Assuming you can take the risks inherent in used equipment, you can slash startup costs by investigating a used small business phone system first.
• Always run costs for a small business phone system out over five years, 10 years better. Your cheap upfront cost on a small business phone system won't be so cheap if your company expands dramatically or you can finance or lease a PBX small business phone system cheaply.