Some borders are still closed, whilst the necessity to self isolate when arriving in or returning from another country means that far fewer people will be making trips unless necessary. That’s without even considering a more general reluctance to travel due to fears of catching the virus or getting stranded overseas.

Conference Calls

Without the ability to meet up face to face so easily, people are turning to alternative means of communication to keep in touch. Whilst video meeting apps like Zoom and Microsoft Teams have their place, sometimes a conference call is the best way to keep in touch.

The Callagenix call conference public service uses an 03 number. This number range is the non-geographical version of regular 01 and 02 numbers and can reliably be called from abroad just like them. This makes it a good choice, even for calls where people will be dialling in from other countries.

Larger organisations may even decide to set up their own private conference lines and choose to connect a mix of UK and international phone numbers to it. This means that callers in overseas offices could join the conference using a number local to them. The private service also offers greater security and more options, such as the ability to use a PIN to control access, and the possibility of recording calls to be shared or reviewed later on.

VoIP

If you do business abroad then you may find that just picking up the phone and talking to people is the best way to stay connected.

Callagenix offers great rates on international calls, whilst users of our popular VoIPinclusive service get calls to over 100 international destinations included at no extra charge. This usually covers calls to both landlines and mobiles.

As long as the call isn’t made to a premium number or is longer than 30 minutes, then it’s covered in the fixed monthly fee. This is charged per user and also covers all UK calls, line rental, broadband, equipment, numbers and services. 

It’s a great deal for businesses of all sizes that want to save money and ensure their monthly phone bill is predictable.

International Phone Numbers

If you have customers overseas that need to call you on a regular basis, the best option is often to set up one or more virtual international phone numbers for each country you operate in.

Callagenix offers an extensive range of international numbers, and not just the popular destinations. 

Depending on the country, we can provide you with toll-free, regional, national and premium rate numbers for each area you cover. The rules and requirements for setting up a virtual number can vary greatly by country, but our experts keep up to date with current guidelines and are happy to advise on what’s available and the best way to proceed. Some numbers are available pretty much off the shelf, whilst others need some time and extra paperwork to set up.

Once you have set up your international numbers you can handle calls made to them in any way you want. For example, this could be a simple call divert onto an existing number either in the host country or in the UK, or else a much more complex system such as a follow the sun set up, which diverts calls to different call centres across the world as regional offices open and close. You can even set up rules to automate how the calls are handled based on parameters you specify.

Discover More

The best way to get started is to call us and talk us through what you need. We’ll use our knowledge and experience to advise on the best options for you, and help you build the perfect solution for your needs.

For some businesses, particularly those which had instigated home working as a means of remaining open over the last few months, the solution may well be to continue to encourage employees to work from their homes as far as possible. It’s a proposal which might gain favour with the workforce.

Certainly a survey released towards the beginning of May revealed that 57% of those working from home would be happy to continue to do so for at least a further month, whilst 60% acknowledged that they would like to undertake more work from home in the future than they had previously.  Moreover 84% of those surveyed said it was important or very important for employers to offer a homeworking option.

The success or otherwise of homeworking will of course depend on a number of factors. These include the nature of the work to be undertaken, good communication links, and whether employees are able to set up a secure and safe working space. It’s one thing to crisis manage, perhaps using an ironing board or a bed as a workstation, quite another to contemplate such working conditions over the long-term. Nevertheless, the ability of businesses to actively manage their communication links, perhaps by diverting calls to home phones or running regular teleconferences has certainly helped to maintain workflow in difficult circumstances.

Whether home or office working, it is important not to let the need for creating physically safe working environments outweigh other aspects of business security. For example, as some measures start to ease, now is the time for companies and their employees not to let their guard down when it comes to telephone security. That call that arrived from a number that you thought you recognised, that request just to check a piece of information, that answerphone message asking for instant action: all could be from scammers looking for a way into the organisation.

So whilst the work required to create physically safe spaces for employees may be taking up much of your time, it could well pay to take some time out to work on telephone security. Look at practical areas such as ensuring that dial in passwords are not set to a default 123 or that calls to premium numbers or overseas are restricted. But also look at providing refresher training to your people on safe telephone techniques such as how to recognise phishing calls, the importance of checking before divulging information, and why giving your full attention to a call is key to ensuring that you don’t accidentally break security protocols.

We are just taking the first cautious steps out of lockdown. Making sure that safety is at the heart of what we do now could contribute not only to taking those first steps securely but also to delivering an ongoing culture of safety which will stand businesses in good stead as they rebuild for future success.      

Either way, with Callagenix it’s easy to set up your phone system to automatically record all calls, either inbound or outbound.

Of course, if you need to record your calls then you also need to be able to store them securely and access them if and when required. We make it easy for you to do that, and we can store your recordings for as long as required. You can also use our system to download all recordings and call data files to your own servers via FTP if you prefer.

Using our MARR service (MARR stands for Message Archive Recording & Retrieval), you can quickly find individual call recordings if you need to. Data on each recording is stored in a file, which includes information like call duration, numbers called, etc. All recordings are also time and date stamped.

You can store your recordings with Callagenix for as long as you need to. Our charges are based on the amount of data you’re storing and we bill you monthly for the space you are using. You can set the length of time you’d like to store your recordings for, with one month being the minimum period.

At the end of your storage period all recordings are automatically deleted. Of course, you can increase or decrease the time period as required. However, please note, if you decrease the time period, all recordings older than the new limit at the time will be automatically deleted and cannot be retrieved later.

It’s also worth noting here that our call recording solutions are add-on services that can only be used with existing Callagenix services, such as the Virtual Switchboard or Group Divert service, for example. You can read more about the services it can be used with here.

Why record your calls?

So, what are the benefits of recording your calls in the first place?

Well, firstly it’s not always a matter of choice. Sometimes organisations are required to record and store all their calls for a specified time. If this applies to your organisation then our call recording solutions are the ideal fit. All your calls will be automatically recorded and stored for as long as you need in accordance with all legal requirements.

Another common reason for recording calls is for training purposes. Ongoing training and support can be provided to front line staff who spend the day talking with customers. Managers can check to see they are sticking to the scripts provided, and also provide guidance and extra training to help employees improve their results. It’s a great way to get accurate, personalised feedback and training.

Another advantage of recording calls is that it’s easy to find and refer back to calls should there ever be a dispute with customers about what was said. Without a recording it’s one person’s word against another and there’s no way to know for sure what was agreed. With the recording a quick listen back will irrefutably prove what was said one way or another. It’s a good way to protect both parties and ensure the relationship is open and built on trust.

Another way that call recording can prove useful is to monitor what prospects and customers are asking when they call you. By paying attention to their questions and concerns smart organisations can address them in their marketing materials or in an FAQ page online, thus reducing the volume of calls and giving people the information they need to make a decision during the sales process. This could prove a valuable way to increase sales. It could even lead to new ideas for products or services.

To find out more about our call recording solutions it’s best to contact us so we can discuss your requirements and advise on the best options for you.

As a telecoms company, our range of services help keep people in touch with each other, which is more important than ever when we’re all having to isolate and physically distance ourselves from other people.

Over the past few weeks we’ve noticed a number of churches and faith groups have approached us to help them stay connected as a group.

We’ve been happy to assist them in keeping the communication channels open.

We’ve found two of our services in particular have been helpful for them, so we’ve decided to share them here:

Information Line

The first is our Information Line service. This allows the church to record regular messages to their members, which the congregation can access by calling a dedicated phone number. We’ve found it being used to share both uplifting messages of hope, wisdom and religious teachings, as well as more mundane housekeeping type information.

This is a great way to share a “thought of the day” type message to keep people’s spirits up. A couple of churches have even told us they’ve recorded full sermons to share with their members.

The Information Line is ideal because it can be called by multiple people simultaneously and everyone can listen to the message. There’s no engaged tone or waiting in a queue.

Conference Calls

The other service faith groups are finding useful is our conference call service.

We offer both public and private options, where callers can dial in to a group discussion. Again we’ve found this being used for both everyday and more spiritual matters.

Conference calls are a great way for a committee to talk and organise tasks to be done, such as a rota for checking up on vulnerable members of the community, or to arrange food deliveries etc.

We’ve also heard how some groups are using regular conference calls to meet up and explore a faith based topic or get guidance and advice from the group.

We think it’s a great use of our services and we’re proud to be able to help connect people.

0300 Numbers and More

On a more practical level, we like to help by offering all charities a generous discount off our regular rate so they can invest the savings directly into their work.

Many charities choose to switch their whole phone system to us, taking advantage of our cloud based services to create the perfect phone system for their requirements, and usually saving a lot of money in the process.

We are also able to offer them an 0300 number to use. This range is reserved solely for use by charities and other registered not-for-profit organisations, giving them extra credibility. It’s also good value for callers as it’s charged at the same rate as calls to regular 01 and 02 numbers, plus it’s also covered in any inclusive minutes deals offered by landline and mobile providers.

To find out more about Callagenix can help your charity or faith group, please contact us today and we’ll be happy to help and get you set up.

The UK position is being replicated to a greater or lesser extent across the world as countries take account of their own COVID-19 circumstances. Nevertheless, although individual countries may be relaxing restrictions, uncertainties surrounding the progress of the disease have made the subject of international travel somewhat more complex. So whilst some governments are negotiating to enable unrestricted travel with one or more countries, at the same time they may be looking to impose quarantine on travellers from other destinations.

These uncertainties and restrictions could hinder those businesses which are looking towards international trade. Those who may in the past have simply got on a plane to negotiate directly with potential suppliers or customers might have to rethink their engagement model, at least in the short term. That is perhaps where having a telephone system which is geared up to international trade could help to make a difference.

One thing that the lockdown has taught us is the way in which we can still have meaningful conversations across a telephone or internet link. Conference calls can be a viable alternative to face-to-face meetings, particularly as they save in both travel time and cost. And as conference calls can be scheduled easily and quickly, having regular meetings could in fact help to build even closer ties than are possible with an occasional flying visit.

Businesses looking towards international trade may also wish to offer telephone numbers which are more likely to attract overseas callers. With a range of international numbers to choose from, the business can advertise an international presence without the need for an international office. For example, those wishing to attract clients in Paris could opt for a Paris regional telephone number, whilst those looking to attract customers across Germany might instead opt for an international national number. Freephone numbers are also available, again helping businesses to attract potential customers who may appreciate the chance to pick up the telephone without facing call charges.

Whatever the style of number chosen, calls can be seamlessly redirected to an office in the UK or elsewhere. Calls into a central office could even be preannounced or directed to a specified team based on the originating country or region; helping those businesses with multinational trade to ensure that callers are answered by an appropriate language specialist or product team.

Given the need for individual countries to relax and tighten restrictions as required to protect their populations, rebuilding robust trading links may take some time. Nevertheless, reaching out globally is an important factor in building recovery; particularly as we should not forget the importance of forging new links following Brexit. International numbers and conference calls can play their part here in helping to attract new custom and strengthen existing relationships.

It’s a crowded marketplace, and on the surface it seems like everyone is offering the same thing. However, in practice that isn’t the case and there’s a huge variance in both the size and quality of the operators within the industry.

Obviously, we think Callagenix is likely to be the best choice for you, so we thought we’d put together a list of reasons why you should pick us:

1. We’ve been around a long time

Callagenix was founded in 1999 and has been serving clients of all sizes across many varied industries ever since. The telecoms market was a very different place back then, with fewer established companies. 

Suffice to say, we’ve seen a lot of other companies come and go. We’ve also seen a lot of companies trying to be the cheapest, which never seems to end well. Cutting costs often seems to lead to cutting corners, which isn’t good for the company or their clients.

If you want a stable phone system supplier that focuses more on quality and value for money than just being cheap, then you’re in the right place.

2. Callagenix is SS7 Registered

As a professional and responsible telecoms provider, Callagenix has an SS7 licence from Ofcom, which means we operate to the highest standards and our systems are required to have an “uptime” greater than 99.999%.

To achieve this, our systems are located in secure data environments that are manned and monitored 24/7 365 days a year. We also have a team of Callagenix engineers on call 24/7/365, ready to respond to any system alerts and fix any issues before they affect our service.

We are also a registered Premium Rate network provider with the regulator, PSA (Phone-paid Services Authority).

3. We own our hardware and software

Unlike some other telecoms companies we own all our own hardware and have developed our own software solutions. Many other telecoms companies, especially those operating at the budget end of the market, just sell someone else’s services, usually in return for a commission.

We prefer to remain fully in control of our hardware and software. That way, if a client has a question or a problem we can sort it out directly ourselves. We don’t have to push an enquiry through someone else’s bureaucracy and wait for someone else to fix it. 

4. Wide range of uk and international numbers

We offer a wide range of both UK and international phone numbers, so whatever you need it’s highly likely we can supply it. Again, the budget end of the market can only usually supply a limited range, especially when it comes to international numbers.

This is particularly important when it comes to international phone numbers. The rules and regulations for obtaining virtual phone numbers can vary greatly from country to country, and are often changing. We keep up to date with any changes and can advise on what’s required.

We’re also well placed to help you choose which number ranges are best for your circumstances.

5. Wide range of services

No matter how you want to deal with your calls, we can help. 

Our range of call handling services are designed to work together seamlessly. You can think of them as building blocks you can use to create your ideal phone system.

What’s more, it’s easy to change them online through your online control panel, so you can quickly adapt as your needs change. This makes our hosted services ideal if you want to scale up quickly, or have seasonal spikes in demand etc.

It’s usually best to contact us and explain what you need from your phone system, then we can advise on the right mix of services for you.

6. All-inclusive VoIP

Our business-grade VoIP service is another great reason to choose Callagenix. With crystal clear call quality, access to the full range of Callagenix numbers and services, and a significant reduction in your monthly bill, it’s the perfect choice.

Our popular VoIPinclusive service includes everything you need for one fixed monthly fee, keeping your costs low and predictable. We include all your numbers, services, hardware (VoIP handsets), line rental, and calls to UK landlines and mobiles, as well as calls to over 100 international destinations.

Contact us today to discover if it’s the right option for you (note - some exclusions apply to prevent abuse, such as calls to premium rate numbers etc. We’re happy to tell you these up front - there are no hidden charges)

7. Great support

Of course, we also offer great support to all our clients. It’s how we’ve stayed in business so long and why so many of our clients come through referrals.

One of the reasons we’re so popular is that you can always reach someone who can answer your question. We don’t have layers of bureaucracy and never ending call trees that lead nowhere - our knowledgeable team are available and able to help with any queries, usually there and then over the phone.

So, there we go. If you have any questions about our services and how we can help we’d love to hear them - please get in touch today.

Of course, things aren’t going to get back to normally overnight, and there’s always the chance of a second spike in infections, leading to another period of lockdown.

However, it’s worth preparing for more businesses to start re-opening, in some form or another.

With that in mind, here’s how Callagenix services can help during this transition period:

Keep your colleagues informed

As well as keeping your website updated and sending out emails, you can also set up an information line for your staff, suppliers, and customers.

You just need to set up a dedicated virtual number for people to call, then add a recorded message to it informing people of what the current situation is.

The information line can handle hundreds of concurrent calls, so callers won’t get an engaged tone when they call in for news. It can also be protected by a PIN if you need to share confidential information.

You can use this in conjunction with our bulk SMS service to let people know when you’ve updated the message so they know when to call in to hear what’s changed.

Stay in touch wherever you work

Due to social distancing and the expected desire of people not to return to the office full time, there’s likely to be a period where people work both from the office and at home. 

A simple way to keep everyone connected is to use our VoIP service to connect home-based users to your main office phone network. 

Remote workers can use a VoIP handset or an app on their computer or mobile to receive company calls wherever they are, in exactly the same way as if they were sitting at their desk. It’s easy to control which extension is being used either by our app, through your online control panel, or by setting automatic rules with the time of day service.

VoIP to VoIP calls are also free, so internal calls can be made from anywhere without racking up a large bill.

There are many advantages to switching to our business-grade VoIP system, and you can even choose to upgrade to our simple VoIPinclusive package to get just about everything included for a fixed monthly fee.

Be flexible and be ready to scale up

As well as being location independent, cloud-based phone systems are incredibly flexible, scalable, and great value for money.

Over the coming weeks there’s every chance you’ll need to adopt a flexible approach.

With a cloud based system it’s easy to manage your numbers, services and extensions through your online control panel. It’s simple to change how calls are handled by updating everything online.

For example, you can add more users to your group divert services (hunt groups) as more people return to work and your incoming call volume increases. You could create different call groups for multiple shifts, built around staggered start times. You could then set automated rules using the Time of Day service to route calls to the appropriate call group at that time.

Hosted phone systems are very flexible, so you can make changes daily if you need to. We’re always happy to help and advise on the best combination of our services to use. We’ve helped businesses of all types and sizes build the perfect phone system for their unique needs, so we’re well placed to help you find your ideal solution.

For more information, or to get started, contact us today.

Measures such as mixing home working with a staggered attendance in the office are likely to put additional pressure on working schedules which have already been disrupted by the lockdown. But for now they may be the only solution, particularly in businesses which prior to the pandemic had already moved towards extensive hot desking or work in confined office spaces.

Providing each hot-desk employee with their own headset, keyboard and mouse might go some way towards reducing the risk of cross contamination. However, in an ideal world the entire workstation including desk, chair and screen surround would also need to be sanitised between users; a process which may place an extra burden on businesses which may already be having to consider matters of additional cleanliness across the office space including shared kitchens and rest rooms.

Nevertheless, if staggered office attendance is to become the new normal then businesses may wish to review their communication channels with a view to ensuring that they are flexible and scalable enough to meet the requirements of the business. For example, hunt groups which transfer calls around departments may need to be reprogrammed on a regular basis throughout the day as employees arrive and depart. After all, there is little point in maintaining hygienic workstations if employees regularly have to dash across the office in order to answer a ringing phone at an unattended desk.

One answer may be to opt for group divert with automated call distribution login facilities. This enables supervisors or individuals to log individual extensions into and out of designated hunt groups. It’s a process which call centre managers may already use as a means of controlling which employees are live on the call handling system; but it is also one which may help businesses to ensure that phones will only ring if employees are at their desk.

Another option for smaller businesses may be to opt for straight divert. This enables businesses to divert calls to a designated landline or mobile number. For those who are spending part of their time in the office and part working from home, switching calls to mobile or home landline as required may help to ensure connectivity; an essential element of a return to full business working. Callers can even be pre-announced; an added benefit whether you are trying to keep the line free for an expected call or just like to be able to greet callers by name.

Even before COVID-19 hit there was a general move away from a rigid 9-5 and towards a more flexible working pattern. Embracing a flexible connectivity mix which enables individuals to work from home, the office or any other space will help organisations not only to manage a phased return to work but also to develop a new working pattern for tomorrow’s businesses.

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol, basically meaning voice calls made over the internet. It has come a long way since the early days, when early technologies such as Skype suffered from slow internet speeds.

These days we’re all used to having fast broadband connections, which can easily handle voice and video calls with no lag or drop outs. The technology is proven and highly reliable.

A lot of businesses still haven’t made the full switch to VoIP systems though, no doubt because they are used to running things the way they always have done, with a number of phone lines connecting an in-house pbx unit to the outside world.

However, there are clear advantages to switching to a VoIP based system for all your business communications. Let’s take a look at some of them now.

Value for Money

Let’s deal with one of the most important ones first - VoIP systems usually cost a lot less than traditional phone systems.

For a start there is no expensive pbx hardware to buy, maintain and ultimately replace. Rather than having a physical pbx unit on your premises (leaving you vulnerable to losing your phone system to flood, fire, or other disaster) VoIP systems are based in the cloud, operating around a virtual switchboard. Not needing to pay out for this hardware can save businesses a hefty sum over time.

As long as you have a decent broadband connection at your premises you should also be able to save a fair amount on line rental. Rather than renting multiple phone lines each month, it’s possible to replace them with a much smaller number of dedicated broadband lines to handle your calls. How many you need will depend on your broadband speed and the number of people using it to make calls, but it’s not uncommon for smaller businesses to replace multiple lines with a single connection.

Then there’s the cost of the calls too. Calls within the VoIP network are free, whilst calls made to both UK and international numbers are usually much cheaper than the same calls made through traditional systems and the big suppliers. The savings each month can be significant.

All in all, in pretty much every case, you will save a noticeable amount of money by switching to VoIP from a legacy system.

One option we offer at Callagenix is an all-inclusive VoIP package called VoIPinclusive, where we include everything you need for a fixed monthly fee. It’s a popular option that allows businesses to control their costs and make the monthly bill predictable.

Flexibility

VoIP systems are cloud-based, which means they are very flexible. You’re not dependent on a physical location and you don’t need to call out an engineer to make changes to your pbx settings.

Everything is managed through an online control panel, where you can add new phone numbers (we offer a wide range of UK numbers and international numbers), new extensions, and new services to handle your calls.

Although straightforward to use, our system lets you combine our range of services to create the phone system you really need. It’s easy to handle calls to different numbers or extensions in different ways, so you can adapt to the changing requirements in your business.

As the VoIP system is location independent, it’s easy to add people to it no matter where they are based. This means you can easily combine different office locations under a single phone system, and connect home-based workers without a problem.

Scalability

Another advantage of VoIP systems is that they are very scalable - you’re not going to be limited by the shortcomings of a physical pbx.

It’s a simple matter to add new users and extensions to a VoIP system. It’s also simple to adjust the way you handle calls if you need to. This means that if you grow quickly, or you have seasonal spikes in enquiries, you can accommodate them easily with VoIP. Just create your new extensions and add them to the call groups etc. so they can answer the calls you need them to.

It’s also easy to shut down extensions or handle calls in a different way once call volume has returned to a more normal level. Whatever you need, VoIP can handle it with no issues or hassle.

As you can see, switching to a VoIP system makes a lot of sense. You end up with a more flexible and robust phone system for less money than you were paying before. It’s also easy to manage yourself via an online dashboard, so you can adjust your set up as often as you need to.

To find out more about how VoIP can help your business, please get in touch today.

However, if you’re running a business or other organisation and actively want people to call you and enquire about your product or service, then it’s actually quite straightforward.

Regional Phone Numbers

One option is to simply choose a standard 01 or 02 regional phone number. People know them and are happy to call them. If you only operate locally then a regional number can immediately signal to people that you are nearby and so available to help them. 

Of course, if you cover a wider area there is nothing to stop you choosing additional virtual numbers for other areas so you can use a local number in each one. That way you still get the benefits of appearing local, even if your head office is a little further afield.

03 Numbers

An alternative to 01 and 02 numbers is the 03 number range. This is the non-geographical alternative to them - it costs exactly the same to call, but is a national number instead of a regional one. Like 01 and 02 numbers, calls to 03 numbers are also covered in any inclusive call packages offered by mobile and landline providers.

There are actually two 03 number ranges - 0300 numbers and 0333 numbers.

0300 numbers are set aside exclusively for registered charities and other not-for-profit organisations. They can add a degree of credibility and proof that your organisation is genuine, so organisations in this category should consider using them.

0333 numbers are open for anyone to use and are typically chosen by businesses who want to present a low-cost national number for their customers to call. By choosing a national number, rather than just a regional number, businesses can signal they are open to business across the UK, and even imply they are bigger than they really are.

0800 Freephone Numbers

If you want to actively encourage people to call you, then choosing an 0800 or 0808 freephone number is the way to go.

By paying for the entire cost of the call, you can make it risk free for people to contact you. Although the price difference is minimal, especially when people have inclusive minutes deals through their provider, the expected increase in call volume is proof these numbers work to generate extra calls. 

Psychologically, people prefer things to be free, so if you’re offering a freephone number and your competitor isn’t, then all other things being equal you should expect more calls. There’s also an element of positioning about using an 0800 number - in order to offer free calls your business must be doing well, and is therefore a good choice to contact and work with.

The above options are almost always the right choice if you want people to call you. They are familiar, don’t cost the customer a lot, if anything, to call, and can signal that you’re a solid, reliable option.

International Phone Numbers

At Callagenix we also offer a full range of international phone numbers. If you do business overseas you can choose a regional number in the countries you operate in, or alternatively you could opt for a freephone number.

If you operate in many European countries then a Universal International Freephone Number may be the best option - you keep the same number across all countries and only the freephone access code varies across borders. Incidentally, we can also supply national and premium rate numbers overseas, should you require them.

If you need any further advice on choosing and setting up your virtual numbers please contact us today. We will also advise on which of our hosted phone services you should use to best handle your calls - whether that’s a simple call divert to your existing phone number, or a fully featured phone system built around a virtual switchboard, created to suit your exact requirements.