Over the next three years, all small businesses in the UK will be losing their business phone lines and phone numbers unless they move to VoIP digital phone systems.  

Openreach have been transitioning phone lines for business and homeowners. And your area may be up for transition very soon.   Small businesses need to be prepared as this may come sooner than you think and there’s never a good time for it. 

So why is Openreach retiring the good old legacy landline?  There are many reasons why:

• The good old landline has had its day as a 100-year-old technology.   
• It has been reliable but nowhere close to a digital phone line.  Did you know that BBC radio stations will only do remote interviews on air with a digital VoIP line only?  That’s because they are so much more reliable than a legacy phone line. 

To run a successful business, focusing on business communication is a must. Thus, every company needs to set up a designated contact number for making a business reachable to all existing clients and potential customers. 

Keeping in account how important a phone is for a business, the first step is to find out what kind of phone would be the best suitable. To think of running a firm using a personal mobile number is absurd. It will look unprofessional and will interfere with the growth plans of the firm. 

As the traditional landlines are getting phased out by 2025 and the UK is going digital, businesses must install a virtual landline phone-VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) for effective and smooth communications. 

And if you can't seem to let go of your traditional landline, here are five reasons that will help you say goodbye. 

• Unreliable

Popularly known for its reliability and security, the PSTN network powers standard telephone lines and cables. For ages, people have used these traditional landlines. Because PSTN networks are to be switched off soon, there is no interest in modernising these networks. Hence, they have become unreliable and hard to maintain. Even setting up a new connection is not possible because the national stop sell of the PSTN landlines has already begun.  

Call diversion is one of the major issues of using traditional landlines. With these landlines, the call diverting feature does not perform dependably and the charges are massive. While being on the go, if accidentally you miss a call that was diverted from the landline then, calling back from a mobile number looks unprofessional. 

On the other hand, VoIP phone systems are the most reliable phone system currently available in the market. The cloud-based system is automatically updated regularly, is easy to set up and maintain and allows the user to save £££ while delivering the best of communication at any location. 

• Doesn’t encourage multitasking

A traditional landline restricts the user to calls only and with every new feature added, the price goes up. The latest VoIP technology gives the user the option to use as many features as they like. VoIP plans are not pricey at all. At surprisingly affordable tariffs, users get to use features like call forwarding, call recording, voicemail to email, setting business and holiday hours and much more. 

• Expensive

The traditional landlines are known to burn a hole in the pocket. From installation, hardware to plans, everything is pricey. Investing in a phone line should be a preference but spending tons of money on a phone line is not an investment. 

Contrarily VoIP does not require any hardware or installation and thus, is a lot more inexpensive than the traditional landlines. 

• Not Futuristic

Not letting go of traditional landlines is not the sensible thing to do because of the shutdown of PSTN networks that are planned by 2025. The current users might lose their number if they don't switch. Switching to internet-based services is the only option people have and it should be taken immediately. The move to digital is futuristic and will encourage growth and productivity. 

• Bound to a desk

When you use a traditional landline, you have to stick to a desk to use it. It does not offer any mobility. Whereas, a VoIP phone system can be accessed through any smartphone/ laptop/ tablet/ desktop. The pandemic has changed things. You just need a laptop and an internet connection to transform your career. A VoIP phone system promotes flexibility and boosts productivity. 

Verdict

There is no doubt about the fact that VoIP has become the current favourite among business owners. Moreover, the points stated above prove that a traditional phone is only a liability for businesses. 

Create a professional presence and strike the perfect harmony with your customers using a cloud phone that's available anywhere with 50+ features to enhance your small business communications. To see how a bOnline phone can benefit your business, contact us now!