Unified communications are a great way to really take advantage of the power of communication tools and make them work harder for you. Unified communications are inexpensive, so even SMEs can make use of unified communications to ensure their communications are as effective as possible. Here are five ways that unified communications can give you a competitive advantage.
#1. Make Your Business More Human-Based
When you look through the strategies used by successful businesses, you’ll find that the main thing they focus on is people. The focus of unified communications is making your business more people-centric with more connected communications to allow for better business processes.
Research shows that good communication leads to increases in productivity by as much as 25%!
#2. Stop the Use of Unapproved Information Technology
Many employees search through the internet for unapproved apps and tech because they don’t have the tools necessary to complete their jobs to the best of their ability.
By giving employees user-friendly resources and IT tools for completing work and keeping in touch, there’s no need for them to seek alternative and sketchy options. Not only does this make the lives of employees easier, but it cuts down on a lot of security risks because they will have been inspected by the IT department of the company. This also prevents compatibility issues that often arise as a result of ‘Shadow IT.’
#3. Keep Things More Easily Connected
As I’m sure you’ve heard, the cloud has changed and continues to change how business is done. Cloud-based unified communication tools connect and work with each other and are remotely accessible which allows people to stay connected from wherever they may be. This is especially useful as more and more employees are working remotely or flexibly throughout the working week, and are trying to complete the same tasks without the benefits of the company’s IT.
#4. Make Communications More Flexible
A unified communications solution provides businesses with the ability to help their members of staff to keep in contact with each other at all levels. What’s more, when unified communications include phone systems, it adds an extra level of flexibility. Some people prefer traditional phone calls whereas others might prefer emails, so unified communications tools provide employees with the ability to use their preferred method of communication.
Factors such as instant messaging, file and screen sharing, video conferencing, and a whole range of other collaborative options are available with cloud-unified communications, too.
#5. Improve Your Customer Experience
Whilst unified communications have many internal benefits, it also has an impact on customers. No matter what kind of business you are a part of, unified communication can be used to improve the satisfaction of your customers.
In general, the easier it is for customers to reach out for support or to contact a member of staff, the happier they will be. Click here to find out more about how you can use unified communications to improve your customer experience.
As you can see, there are many meaningful benefits to using unified communications in your business, especially in the ever-increasingly digital and virtual world. With these things in mind and unified communications by your side, you can develop a competitive advantage in your industry.