6 Tips on How to Choose the Best Business Phone Provider for Your Company

What to consider and prioritize

There are plenty of phone companies trying to get your attention, and they all seem to think they’re the best business phone provider out there. One of them might be right for your business, but which one?

The following tips can help you determine which one is the right partner for your business.

Tips for finding the best business phone provider

Choose the type of phone you want

The first step in finding the best business phone company for you is to decide between the three main categories of business phones: landlines, mobile phones or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phones.

Landlines are traditional phones that you plug into the wall. You can expect foundational features such as voicemail, call holding and call blocking to be included in the price. Plus, because they rely on long-established infrastructure, landlines tend to have consistently strong connections and reliable service. On the other hand, traditional phones can’t communicate with the rest of your systems. That means some features, such as integration with third-party apps, are off the table.

Mobile phones require each user to have their own phone and plan, which can drive up costs. To compensate, they provide features that landlines don’t, chief among them the freedom to call from anywhere with a wireless signal. They can also use cell data and WiFi to communicate with other devices and call internationally.

Finally, VoIP plans use internet signals such as WiFi to transmit your voice. That means you can call from a phone, a computer, a tablet—you name it. When you do, the VoIP service can automatically pull data from the call and plug it into other tools, such as a customer relationship management (CRM) suite.

VoIP services often charge by the user, making it simple to scale alongside headcount. Their main downside is that internet signals aren’t as reliable as wired phone signals. That can lead to poor call quality.

Prioritize key features

Your business can likely do without some of the bells and whistles offered by some business phone providers. At the same time, there may be some nonstandard features that are particularly important for your workflows.

Before you start comparing providers, make a list of the features your business can’t live without. Then make another of features that would be nice to have, but aren’t vital, and then a third of features you can safely ignore. Here are some examples of things to consider:

• Automated attendant

• Auto-dialing

• Call recording

• Call forwarding

• Conference calling

• Directory assistance

• Toll-free phone numbers

• Video chat

• Voicemail and automatic transcription
  

The best business phone companies will provide a mixture of must-have and nice-to-have features without throwing in unnecessary add-ons to pad their offerings. 

Consider scalability needs

Before you buy a phone system, consider how many members of your team will need a line. Intra-office communications could perhaps go through other channels such as Slack, email or video calls. Client-facing employees, meanwhile, can benefit from the professional appearance a business phone provides. Sales and customer support teams are a good place to start.

Some providers charge by the user or cap the number of lines they offer at certain price points. If you’re not at that cap yet, consider how quickly your business is growing. It may be worthwhile to invest in a plan you can grow into to maintain continuity of business down the line. The best business phone providers make it easy to add new users as your business scales.

Look for valuable integrations

Business calls don’t happen in a vacuum. They’re often part of a larger sales operation with complex informational needs. The more closely your phone line integrates with your customer relationship management (CRM) technology, the easier it becomes to meet those needs.

With CRM integrations, you can automatically add contacts, leads, opportunities and accounts from the CRM directly to your outbound dialing list. Conversely, when you receive an inbound call from a customer, you can quickly pull up the relevant CRM data. That lets you better respond to that specific customer’s needs.

Be aware of compliance requirements

If you’re in the healthcare field, for example, protected health information (PHI) can pop up in the most unexpected places, and your phone system is a hotspot for surprise appearances. Although calls themselves are exempt from HIPAA’s confidentiality rules, they’re just one part of the web. Call recordings, voicemails and any resulting transcripts are all likely to hold sensitive data. After all, you can’t control what a patient says on the phone. That doesn’t change your obligation to safeguard their PHI.

If you’re using a VoIP provider, look for one that encrypts your data both in transit and in storage. That positions you well to keep call data secure.

Read relevant case studies and reviews

Every business is unique, but many face similar challenges. Once you’ve narrowed the list of the best business phone providers down to a few options, consider looking over the case studies published on their websites. It’s likely that at least a few companies in their client list had similar needs to your own. If they’re happy with their provider, there’s a good chance you will be, too.

Case studies and testimonials are ultimately sales materials. Providers are incentivized to highlight their success stories and downplay their missteps. Reading customer reviews can temper that bias and provide an unvarnished view of the customer experience. Taken together, these resources can reveal a lot about whether a provider is right for you.

Get connected with Walmart Business+

A great phone line service can help you better meet your customers’ needs. So can Walmart Business, where you’ll find landlines, smartphones and VoIP phones—plus plenty of other useful supplies—at everyday low prices. Plus, with a Walmart Business+ membership, you’ll get it all shipped free with no minimum spend required.¹ Start saving today!

¹Excludes most Marketplace items, freight & certain location surcharges.