Does Your Phone System Remind You of Two Cans on a String?

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In the past, small and medium sized businesses (SMB) have struggled with the costs of their telephone systems. Oftentimes, organizations choose to go with inexpensive solutions that have typically only offered dial-tone (voice telephony) and voice mail.  But with the proliferation of cloud technology, the cost of voice solutions has come down dramatically. Though cloud solutions have improved their security posture, we find that many SMB organizations still feel more comfortable having their solutions on premise.

All the Features You Need
Thankfully, CDW Canada can work with you to determine which solution works best based on your organizational requirements. One solution worth considering is Cisco’s Business Edition 4000, which allows you to get the best of both worlds – an on premise appliance to connect your phones to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and an easy to use management interface that can decrease your IT support cost.

Cisco has recently launched the Business Edition 4000 which incorporates many of the core features that SMB’s require, including:

  • Support for up to 200 devices
  • Reliable VoIP telephony and voicemail including:
    • Call park
    • Speed-dials
    • Intercom
    • Call hold/transfer
    • Call forward
    • Hunt groups
    • 3-way conferencing
    • Music on hold
    • Single number reach
    • Auto attendant
    • 120 hours of voicemail
    • Voicemail to email
    • Group voice mailboxes
  • Support for analog only devices and integrations, including:
    • BRI, PRI, FXO and FXS connections
  • Support for SIP trunks
  • Simple to use cloud based management portal
  • Support for the latest 7800 and 8800 Cisco IP Phones

In addition to all of the features above, the Business Edition 4000 solution also supports the ability to seamlessly add Cisco Spark and WebEx functionality to provide team messaging, video calling, online meeting, web conferencing and interactive white boarding.

Keep your Technology Secure
To address security concerns that customers may have, Cisco has incorporated multiple layers of security including:

  • All admin logins are secured with two-factor authentication
  • Multi-tenant architecture for the cloud management interface ensures customer data is segregated
  • Data is encrypted with AES-256 while at-rest
  • A secure VPN between the on premise appliance and the cloud management interface

Build the Solution
CDW Canada will help your business build the right-sized solution for your organization. The Business Edition 4000 comprises the following components:

  • The Business Edition 4000 appliance

  • Cisco 7800 & 8800 Series Phones

  • Subscription cost including options for 1, 3 or 5 year prepaid term-based licensing plans
  • Support contracts including options for same or next business day replacement of defective hardware

Get it Done, Fast
With all of these features you may think that the time to implement Business Edition 4000 would be weeks or months, however with Business Edition 4000 a typical deployment can be completed in one day. Getting started is an easy five step process:

  1. Contact your CDW Account Manager to determine if Cisco’s Business Edition 4000 is right for your environment
  2. We will determine what optional modules are required to connect to the public switched telephone network
  3. We will determine what type of licensing model is the best-fit including options for 1,3 or 5 year prepaid term-based licensing plans
  4. We will preconfigure the Business Edition 4000 appliance prior to installation at the business location
  5. We will install the Business Edition 4000 in under one day, at the end of the day you will be making calls utilizing your new telephony system

Adopt the Solution
While the solution is intuitive and easy to use, if you are concerned that your users may need help getting started, we can add optional services including training and user adoption. These services ensure that your users understand how all of the features work.  Our training and adoption services can include quick reference guides, user manuals, onsite user support and training.

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Mathew is an Inside Solutions Architect at CDW Canada focusing on Unified Communications and Collaboration covering multiple key vendors in the space. Mathew is a firm believer in requirements driven design and relies on a multitude of technology providers to architect solutions.
With over 15 years of experience, Mathew has provided consulting services to some of the largest public and private sector organization in Canada.