Michael Johnson

Are you still using Microsoft Word the old-fashioned way? Upgrade your skills from amateur to awesome today!

From the time a business is established, the goal is growth and revenue. In the professional world, revenue and growth are hand-in-hand, but rare is the opportunity to accomplish growth or generate revenue quickly as a one-person operation.

Expansion and growth of a business is a positive sign – a sign that relationships are solid and operations are successful. For any of these circumstances, some form of communication takes place. Parties talk, form agreements, and put those agreements in writing — often as contracts — and these are then shared, so all parties have copies for their records.

Collaboration is defined as the action of working with someone toward a shared goal – and it’s also the current office buzzword. When multiple individuals collaborate on a project and produce documentation of this project, the document is shared like the previously mentioned contract.

Agreements and contracts have been around for more than a century – much longer, in fact. No longer do clusters of secretaries sit outside a row of executive offices, busily deciphering shorthand as their hands zoom over the click-clack of typewriter keys, transcribing letters or meeting minutes. The typewriter was replaced decades ago by the electronic word processor, and communication has migrated from postal mail service to email and even text messages among colleagues and casual professional relationships. Why? Because these types of communication are faster and enable progress to be made more quickly. The underlying theme here is that communication is key in any situation involving multiple people.

We sense a pattern.

What if each of those executives in that row of offices had their own copy of the same contract and each made notes in the margins for changes? The administrative assistant responsible for consolidating those notes into one cohesive document faced quite the task. The difference today is that typing in a word processor like Microsoft Word is a basic requirement of administrative roles, with speed and accuracy being a key element in a job description.

Microsoft Word isn’t just for secretaries! These days, users range from first graders to grandparents, and everyone in between. It’s the go-to application for college students when writing term papers, and the starting point for novelists and authors. The Word Document is the most widely-recognized document type and the most commonly-used document format. It’s this last part that makes sharing documents with other users so easy.

An office staple since the late 1980’s, Microsoft has evolved from the early days of Microsoft Works into a sophisticated word processing tool, with a vast array of collaborative features – many hidden to the naked eye. Everyone that has ever used a computer in some way is familiar with the basic idea of typing words into a document on a screen, but did you know that Microsoft Word allows multiple users to conveniently collaborate inside one shared document? What’s more, users can highlight text with comments, and all users that make edits can have these changes tracked for discussion.

How to track changes made by all users within a document in Microsoft Word:

• The Track Changes feature can be found in Tools, Track Changes, Highlight Changes
  • This feature can also be found in the Ribbon menu in Review, Tracking, and toggle Track Changes to “On”.
  • Multiple users inside the same document can toggle this feature on and make changes, while their edits are notated in the right margin for each user to see and either “accept” or “reject”.
  • Ideally, the ability to “accept” or “reject” offers a chance to discuss more significant changes that may impact an important document

Microsoft Word is no longer just a word processor – it’s a sophisticated software application that has a multitude of uses, only one of which is creating basic documents. Considering the many built-in templates for resumes, flyers, brochures, fax cover sheets, and letterheads, Microsoft Word is also an economical option for small businesses, nonprofits, and other groups or individuals to use for a variety of professional purposes.

Beyond Bullets and Bold Typeface

Most users know the basics, like how to underline or italicize words or select different fonts. Then there is everyone’s favorite feature – undo, the magical arrow which pretends like the last action you just took, which you deemed a mistake, never even happened!

• So simple? You can select text by inserting your mouse at the start of the text, clicking, and then dragging your mouse to the end of the text and letting go of the click button, or you can use your keys and arrow cursors with the “shift” key much the same way.

However, do you know some of the more intermediate features? Below are some of these features, followed by the menu location where you can find each that you’d like to try.

• Columns: Format, Columns (select the number of columns to insert)
  • You can create columns of text that flow from one into the next for a clean appearance, and a unique look.
• Charts: Insert, Charts (select the type of chart you’d like to insert)
  • Professional documents that include charts to present data offer a visual enhancement and have a polished look
  • This feature will require the use of a data table to convert into a chart, and once you select the chart style you’d like to insert, you’ll be prompted to include the data at the next step.
• Highlighted text: Ribbon, Home
  • Note that this feature will require the user to select affected text before toggling this feature on, or you will need to toggle this feature on and then type the text you wish to be highlighted, and then toggle off once you have completed typing this specific text.
  • When you begin a new document in Microsoft Word, if you don’t see a toolbar at the top of the document where you’d normally toggle the option to make your text bold or change the font style or size, you can choose “View” from the main navigation menu and make sure the checkmark is next to “Ribbon”. If it’s not, click on “Ribbon” and this menu will toggle on. You’ll then see the icon with the highlighter on it, and you can click this to select which color options you have to highlight selected text.
• Subscripting and superscripting text: Ribbon, Home
  • This feature will require the same process as the highlighted text toggle actions.
  • Just next to the highlight icon are the icons showing “X₂” and “X²” where you can choose to subscript or superscript selected text.
  • You can also find this feature in: Format, Font, and check the appropriate boxes
• Bulleted or numbered list: Ribbon, Home
  • Once you are ready to insert a bulleted or numbered list, toggle the icon with the bullets or the “1-, 2-, 3-“ and begin typing, hitting enter (or return) after each listed line item
  • There is a drop-down triangle to the right of each of these where users can change the style and layout of the list
  • You can also find this feature in: Format, Bullets, and Numbering, and select the option that resembles the style you’d like to choose for your document
• Spell check and grammar check: Tools, Spelling, and Grammar
  • This tool for checking user spelling and grammar is adaptive in that the user can add frequently-used words like last names or company names and the Spellchecker will “learn” the name and not prompt the user to “ignore” the word each time Microsoft Words thinks the user has entered a misspelled word.
  • This feature can be toggled to automatically remain on (or off) throughout typing:
    • Tools, Spelling and Grammar, Spelling and Grammar, Options, and then toggle the types of words you’d like to be recognized or ignored each time you use Microsoft Word.
  • Cut, copy and paste text
    • This is another fan favorite of the application, but did you know you can make entire paragraphs disappear and reappear at another location? This way you don’t have to remember to go back to the first instance and delete once you’ve copied and pasted the word, phrase, or paragraph.

Advanced features 

• Insert hyperlinks: Insert, Hyperlink
  • This feature is incredibly helpful if you need to embed a website hyperlink, or if you need to refer a reader to “fine print” text, like legal disclaimers, which would otherwise take up a lot of space within a document but doesn’t need to be included.
  • Users will need to select the text that will contain the hyperlink, and this text will turn blue and be underlined as a visual cue for the reader
• Convert to PDF: File, Save As
  • You can convert a document to a PDF file by choosing File, Save As, and at the bottom of the dialogue box that opened will be a drop-down menu that identifies “File Format”, and scroll down until you see “PDF”. “Save” has likely changed to “Export” at this point, but you’ll choose the location where you want the file to save.
• Password protection: open, modify, or format/edit: Tools, Protect Document
  • You can create a document and save the file with password protection. Passwords can be required just to open, to modify, or to format/edit the document. This is a nice feature if the document contains financial information, confidential details, or you just want to safeguard your file against being intercepted by the wrong viewer.

Once you’ve mastered these intermediate and advanced features within Microsoft Word, you can then move on to create mail merges, print addresses or return addresses on envelopes, create address labels, create macros for snippets of text you use on a regular basis, and much more!

Advanced built-in functions may have escaped your knowledge as “hidden” before today, but now you can be a master of Microsoft Word.

Although the latest version of Windows 10 isn’t a “game changer” you should appreciate some of its newer options and enhancements like the new Start Menu, OneDrive, Action Center, Cortana and ability for it to adjust its interface according to the device you use. Read on to get up to speed with Windows 10.

Before we begin, it’s important to note a few things: Be sure to sign in with your Microsoft ID when you first set up Windows 10. This way you can sync settings across all your devices.

You’ll also see a change in terminology from Windows 8. All applications are now referred to as Windows apps as opposed to Metro, Modern or Windows Store apps. However, the term Universal app is still used to designate the ability to use an application across all your devices (desktop, tablet or smartphone).

Let’s Start with the Start Menu: Windows retired the cumbersome Charms Bar and brought back the much-loved Start Menu. The Start Menu is where you go to operate everything in Windows 10. You remember how to do this, right? Go to the lower left of your screen to bring up the Start Menu. You’ll see that it’s now separated into sections. Plus, it’s more customizable than ever before – change from partial view to full view, customize the color, pin and unpin tiles and more.

Put your cursor over the top edge of the Start Menu and drag it up or down to enlarge or reduce it. You can also click “Resize” and select the options for Small, Medium or Large. Rename a group by clicking it and keying in the name you prefer. You can also do this with your unnamed groups. Try combining groups, dragging one to another, or creating a new group by dragging a tile to a blank area.

If you want to remove a tile, select “Unpin from Start,” and the tile will disappear. To expand the start menu from three to four columns, go to Settings>Personalization>Start, click “Show more Tiles” and set this to “On”.

The Settings page offers you other options to personalize your Start Menu. Here are a few more popular ones:

• “Pin to Start” to move an app from the “Most Used” list to the Start Menu.
• “Open File Location” to open File Explorer.
• “Run as an Administrator” to run an application as an admin.
• “Run as a Different User” to change the current user.

As you can see, there are many ways to customize the Start Menu.

All Apps: With this option, you can view all the applications that you use the most. When you “right click” on it, Windows 10 brings up the files you’ve recently opened. Go to the top left of your screen to open the three horizontal lines (the “hamburger” menu). Here you’ll see all the Windows apps in alphabetical order. Some may appear as a folder with a down arrow showing that there are a number of options for this particular app. Simply click on what you want to use. To uninstall an app, open the Start Menu, go to Settings>System, select the app, and click the “Uninstall” button that pops up. Note: Some Windows apps like Weather and Mail can’t be uninstalled.

Account: Go to this set of stacked icons at the bottom left of your screen. Here you can access your user account to sign in and out of Windows, change your account settings or lock your computer.

File Explorer, Settings, Power: At the bottom left of your screen you’ll find File Explorer, the file-browsing app previously referred to as Windows Explorer. Here you’ll also find the Windows Settings app with your System, Devices, Network & Internet, Personalization, Accounts, Time & Language, Ease of Access, Privacy, and Update & Security settings. Located here as well is the Power app where you can shut down, restart or put your computer to sleep.

Life at a Glance, Play and Explore, Unnamed and Live Apps: The tiles for your Windows desktop applications are grouped into these categories. As you install new apps, they will go into the unnamed group. If you use the Enterprise Edition of Windows 10, your IT professional may have configured other groupings that appear on the right side of the Start Menu. Live apps are the ones where you’ll find real-time data like Mail, Weather, and News. Live tiles contain Windows apps but not desktop applications. Go to “Turn live tile off” if you want to stop real-time information from streaming into the tile. If it’s already off, you can choose “Turn live tile on”.

OneDrive: Windows 10 automatically comes with OneDrive cloud storage. The setup is easy, and you should definitely take advantage of it. If you’re using the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, OneDrive Files On-Demand allows you to access your OneDrive files from all your devices.

Windows Apps: Previously, Windows apps could only be run from the Start Menu and not from the desktop. You could use multiple Windows apps in separate windows on your desktop along with your desktop applications, but this was very limiting. Now you can minimize, close or resize your Windows apps just like you do with your desktop applications, and you can more easily access all the features in your Windows apps. On the bottom or left of the app are icons you can choose from, and you can customize these to your liking. For example, you’ll probably want to customize your Mail app to add accounts, select a type of mail account, combine mail from different accounts into one inbox, and much more.

Using a Tablet or 2-in-1: A new feature called Continuum detects the type of device you’re using and automatically adjusts the interface to suit it. For example, if you’re using a tablet with an attached keyboard, Continuum uses the desktop interface. When you disconnect the keyboard, it will ask you if you want to use Tablet Mode. Just click “yes” or click “Remember my response and don’t ask again” and Continuum will automatically switch to the right interface.

The Tablet mode in Windows 10 utilizes the touch and swipe gestures you’re familiar with. In the Start screen containing your apps, you’ll see six icons – three at the top and three at the bottom. The three at the bottom contains your user account, the Settings App, and the Power Icon. If you want, use the hamburger menu at the top to turn the screen black so the six icons contain text tables. Below this, you can tap the “Pinned Tiles” icon to fill your screen with tiles (the default interface). Or tap the “All Apps” to get a full-screen view of your Windows apps and desktop applications to quickly view and scroll to the ones you want. Interestingly, you will now need to scroll vertically rather than horizontally as you did before, but this is a minor inconvenience.

The Action Center: The Action Center displays notifications such as new emails, maintenance and security reminders, and news settings. You can launch it in one of three ways:

• Swiping from the right,
• Clicking the icon in the taskbar, or
• Selecting the Windows key + A.

The notifications will appear on the lower right and disappear on their own. You can adjust how many notifications are visible at once by going to the Action Center for any app. Three is the default Microsoft sets.

Many people find them useful, but if they bother or distract you, simply turn them off. Tap the notification and it will take you to the Task Manager where you can turn it off. (They will still be in the Action Center if you want to refer to them later.) You may want to keep the security and maintenance notifications on, so you remember to take necessary actions. Visit the Action Center – it’s pretty self-explanatory.

My People: This was introduced in the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. With My People you can you pin your preferred contacts in the Windows taskbar, and quickly communicate with them without opening another application. To get going, click the My People button on the right side of the taskbar, and a Get Started button will pop up. Click this and the people you contact the most will appear. Pin them to the taskbar, or to add others, click “Find and Pin Contacts”. You can also scroll through communications and see all the messages you’ve exchanged, even your Skype video chats and instant messages.

The Edge Browser: Internet Explorer has been replaced as the default with the Edge Browser. Why? Because it’s considerably faster, safer, cleaner-looking and easier to use. In “Reading View”, everything you don’t need is stripped off the page, including advertisements, sidebars, and other distractions. You can use the annotation tool (it looks like a pencil and paper) and note anything you want to share. Simply select how you want to share it and follow the instructions – the Edge Browser will handle the rest. Even better, when using the Edge Browser, Cortana can pop up and alert you with details you’re looking for.

Speaking of Cortana: Cortana is a digital assistant that can search and help you find whatever you need on the Internet or on your computer. It’s set to turn on automatically when you start Windows 10. When you need help, type your question in the box to the lower left of your screen next to the Start button and Cortana will get to work for you. If you want to use Cortana’s voice assistant, go to your Settings menu to “Talk to Cortana” and in the section marked “Hey Cortana” turn the switch to “On”. After you do this, just say “Hey Cortana” and ask your question. You can use Cortana to browse, find files in your PC, and to locate various apps and settings.

Remember – technology works at its best when you know how to use it. The more you know about Windows 10, the better it’ll serve you on a daily basis. Be sure to put these 12 tips into practice the next time you start up your PC.

Psst… Social Media Isn’t Just For Slacking Off At Work Anymore – Yammer Is The Best Social Media Platform For Your Business!

Microsoft’s business social media platform – Yammer – has everything you need to boost productivity at your place of business.

In September of 2008, Microsoft developed the social networking service known as Yammer. Designed to boost connections between businesses and enterprises, Yammer comes with many features and benefits that will prove invaluable to business-owners, employees, and other involved parties. Yammer is moreover easily integrated within Office 365 and ultimately, this product has an excellent track record of boosting workplace success.

One of the best benefits of Yammer is the ease of connecting with others. In order to get started with the program, the users will need an email address which coincides with the company’s network. Clients and other people who contribute to the business will likely need access to an external network, which can be created by the business owner.

Just about every entrepreneur aspires to grow his or her own business and Yammer helps to make this possible. The program allows company employees to communicate with one another, keep track of ongoing assignments/tasks, and exchange thoughts and ideas, regardless of geographical location. However, the ability to communicate with ease and effectiveness is not the only pragmatic upside to using Yammer.

In addition to simplifying communication, business owners will discover that Yammer provides insight into what each colleague is working on in addition to their areas of expertise. In a day and age where awareness and collaborations are often imperative for workplace success, Yammer’s ability to keep all company members on the same page will greatly benefit the business as a whole, thus ensuring maximum productivity.

Communication and keeping all workers on the same page are great priorities for any company. However, businesses that use Yammer will find that it’s an advantageous element to have in the marketplace. Many competing businesses either may not be aware of Yammer or may be unsure how to use it. These companies may therefore rely on sending mass emails to employees or scheduling conference room meetings, as opposed to using Yammer, where the content can be reviewed anytime and matters will not be complicated by a worker who misses a meeting for whatever reason. Ultimately, Yammer is a professional asset that saves time, capital, and trouble for business owners and the people who work for them.

Businesses and companies that use Yammer will moreover find that the program incentivizes and encourages their workers, which can make all the difference in the world. Many studies and successful people have affirmed that one’s work environment and atmosphere greatly impact their levels of professional excellence. Yammer’s ‘praise’ program congratulates workers when they do well. While some people may view this as wholly insignificant, at best, it can make a considerable difference for a staffer who has experienced a long, grueling, trying day. Nine times out of ten, when employees thrive, the business thrives, as a whole.

Not only does Yammer incentivize current employees, but the program also makes the training process for staff considerably easier and less expensive. Many businesses struggle with bringing new people on board and teaching them everything there is to learn and know about the company. However, with Yammer, new staffers are able to quickly communicate with a network of colleagues and learn the ins and outs of the business. Employees who feel comfortable and at ease in their place of business are markedly more likely to perform at higher levels and stay with the company.

The marketplace is an inherently competitive environment. Businesses with the best tools, operations, and employees are notably more likely to grow and succeed than their less advanced counterparts. Yammer provides a viable opportunity for companies to communicate more effectively, network with colleagues, incentivize staffers, and simplify the process of bringing new employees on board. Are you ready to take your company to the next level?

Warning! Running Windows XP Software Expose You To These 5 Serious Threats

We’ve all done it before – you find a program that you love, and you use it every day until it’s so old it stops getting support from the developer – in the case of Windows XP, that could be extremely dangerous for you and your business.

SanDisk reported in 2015 that roughly 25% of organizations were still using old versions Windows and didn’t plan on migrating until the software’s end-of-life. Windows XP was first introduced in 2001, and since then it has been one of the most popular operating systems with millions of users even two years after the end-of-life.

However, just how dangerous is it to just keep using the same program? It can’t be that bad, can it? In reality, it is incredibly dangerous. Here are the facts you need to know if you plan to keep using geriatric versions of Windows software:

No More Updates Or Patches… You Are On Your Own

One of the main issues with old software is that it isn’t issued new updates and patches. Once software becomes all but extinct, it no longer gets the same protection. Microsoft cannot possibly create patches and updates for all the software and programs it has ever released, so they instead focus on just their most recent software. If you are using an old version, this means that you are leaving your computer vulnerable to the latest security threats.

Doesn’t Play Well With Others

A second danger that comes with failing to update is software incompatibility. New applications cannot be made to accommodate all software that has ever been released, as they are optimized for only the most recent of operating systems. If you are still using Windows XP, then you are limiting your computer’s compatibility with other legacy software, which in turn limits what you can get out of your programs, and out of your network as a whole.

Security Threats

If you are a business that stores essential data, such as sensitive customer information, or payroll accounts, then you could run the risk of not complying with the law. Entrusting your business’ confidential information to a legacy application means you aren’t securing or protecting your data. In other words, you are leaving the doors unlocked and open; you might as well load the info on a flash drive to give directly to the hackers. If you are hacked, you would have to contact Microsoft to get a patch, and then you will have to fork over a large amount of cash. A customer support agreement with Microsoft can run a business $200-$600 per server. Keep in mind that the cost for a custom support agreement goes up each year.

Ransomware And Windows XP

Ransomware is a type of malware that prevents or limits users from accessing their system or files until a ransom is paid to the hackers. The cost of global ransomware incidents is estimated at $325 million for the year of 2015. By the end of 2017, this number had already multiplied to $5 billion. By the year of 2020, it could easily quadruple to $12 billion.

A good example of the dangers that come with Windows XP is the recent “WannaCry” ransomware that swept the UK’s National Health Service (NHS). The NHS had to shut down services throughout their hospitals and clinics due to this ransomware attack. It was reported at 90% of their NHS used at least one device that was still operating on Windows XP. Due to their computers being encrypted by the ransomware, the hospitals were forced to turn away patients while they fixed the problem. Keep in mind that this is software that has not been supported since 2014. As of January 2017, the number of Windows XP users dropped to 0.9% of the market, which seems relatively small and non-threatening – however, 0.9% of 2.17 billion is still 19.5 million.

Costs Out Of Pocket And Out Of Luck

Beyond risking your security and reputation of your company you are also forcing yourself to pay higher operating costs. Using old software has a much higher price for maintenance and bug-fixing. For example, if you needed a patch from Microsoft for Legacy Windows XP, you would end up paying more than you would to just update and replace the program.

Snail’s Pace Performance

Lastly, you will be suffering from inadequate performance and unreliability. Programs built in 2003 and before cannot keep up with the technology of 2018. This means that while Windows XP was cutting edge when it first came out, now it cannot keep up with the internet speed, or with the pace of faster servers. We all hate waiting for a program to open, or watching the spinning wheel while your computer tries to catch up – while you wait, your work continues to pile up. Imagine what this costs your company in downtime alone.

With so many issues, it’s hard to see why so many people have continued to use Windows XP. Years after the last update was offered from Windows, huge companies still cling to the operating system’s remains. The reliability and comfort of the operating system proved to be a fault in their own. Imagine if we lost 75% of our water utilities in the US, due to a preventable hack. Not only would be out of the water, but all the sensitive information that the utility companies hold would be left defenseless.

Continuing to use software that is out of date is like leaving your home unlocked, your doors open, and all your valuables on display and unsecured. Hackers don’t have to keep up with the latest software to make good money when businesses are making these kinds of mistakes. If you stay with Windows XP, you will be paying more for security vulnerabilities and poor performance – don’t let this happen to your company. The cost of the updated software will pay for itself by saving you the money you’d pay for the patch from Microsoft and in damages.

Get untangled from your landline, and let VoIP boost your business’ efficiency, reliability, and quality.

A recent study revealed that 94% of business’ marketing budgets are spent trying to get consumers to call. If businesses are paying so much of their advertising and marketing budget on a communications system, shouldn’t it be reliable and efficient?

This need for a more reliable form of communication is forcing many businesses to make the transition from the landline to the VoIP. However, this transition can be a scary process. How are you supposed to make this transition while running your business? A lapse in phone service means a loss of communication with your customers, which could mean a loss of profit.

Why Move To VoIP?

The move to VoIP offers your business improvements in efficiency, reliability, and quality, all at an affordable cost. Landline phones are becoming obsolete – by choosing to remain with a landline system, your business may become obsolete as well.

Efficiency

VoIP provides your business improved efficiency by limiting issues that come from having to replace or fix phones, as well as complicated management of adding and or removing employees. On traditional landline phone systems, you would have to wait lengthy periods of time for a phone to be replaced, or for a roll truck to fix issues. All this time spent waiting for a fix costs you money.

With a VoIP system, you don’t have to deal with these issues, which means less downtime. VoIP also improves your business’ efficiency by providing you with numerous options for routing and answering calls, without the expensive on-premises technology and staff.

Reliability

VoIP provides your business improved reliability by delivering a clear, seamless quality of phone service. This service can run on multiple internet connections, and can even extend to your smartphone. VoIP can work reliably through anything that mother nature may throw at you from hurricanes to snowstorms. Additionally, if you lose your business due to a fire, your VoIP phone service will still work. This is one of the main reasons why there are now over 288 million VoIP users.

Quality

VoIP provides your business improved quality through clarity of your calls. These calls come with a digital readout display, and the option to work without a headset. For those that still wish to use a headset, they can receive their calls through the use of a “softphone”, which is software that allows users to make telephone calls through the internet on their computers.

Affordability

VoIP saves your business 40-80% compared to the cost of traditional landline phone service. Landlines now cost more than VoIP phone systems both in the initial setup, as well as in ongoing contracts. For example, landlines for five employees cost an average of $563/month, while VoIP services for the same amount of users costs only an average of $27.95/month.

Years ago, VoIP systems would cost $10-$50/month, after the cost of the headset (which usually cost $200 each). It’s easy to see how quickly this can add up. Today, VoIP comes at affordable rates as low as $0. Phones will be set up ahead of time, that way there is no lapse in your communication with your clients. This saves your business money by limiting the loss of contact, during this time of transition. Secondly, there is a “Proof of Concept” (POC), which allows you to have your phones in place, and try them out before deciding whether they’re right for your business.

Preparing For The Move

So how do you transition from traditional landline phones to VoIP, while at the same time shortening the loss of communication? Preparing for the move means you need to gather pertinent information such as how many employees you have, what your cabling needs are, what your current infrastructure is, and what are the nonnegotiable-features that you need from the new phone system.

Step By Step

You begin by evaluating your cost analysis. Fully understanding the budget upfront and ongoing ensures that you will be able to get the most out of this new program, without being oversold. After looking at the move from a financial standpoint, you are ready for your live demo. This provides you and your employees a chance not only to see all of the VoIP system’s features but also to try them out, in a risk-free environment. Once you decide on which features you need, you are ready to decide which service provider best fits your company’s needs. For 2017, the top three VoIP service providers were Ring Central, Vonage Business, and 8×8 Global Communications.

Once you have selected a plan and a service provider, you want to ensure that you have no network issues that could limit or infringe on the successful integration of your new VoIP system. From these network tests, you should make any adjustments or upgrades that you feel are necessary to ensure the best result for your business. Lastly, you will complete your trial period, or your Proof of Concept period, that allows you to see first-hand how the service works and if it meets your business needs. If so, then you move on to finalize the agreement, and select a “Go Live Date”.

After your VoIP system is up and running, employees should be trained to use all the features that they provide. Some of these features include having a virtual receptionist, voicemail-to-email, automatic call forwarding, and three-digit dialing. Training and ongoing support are a crucial part of developing and maintaining your successful relationship with your VoIP.

Moving to VoIP does not have to be a cumbersome and time-consuming challenge. It could mean a more efficient, reliable, and qualitative business. With the new VoIP service, you would be able to rid yourself of the hassles of maintenance agreements, capital expenditure, truck rolls, and lengthy wait periods that traditional landline phones come with. Lastly, you will have access to excellent customer care support 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year. Don’t let your phone system hold your business back from its full potential any longer. Disentangle yourself from your landlines’ limitations and see what the freedom provided by a VoIP system can do for your company.