How do you find the service provider with the best Hosted VoIP reseller programs? Not all programs are created equally, with numerous different poorly constructed services claiming to be hosted VoIP reseller programs. There are several key fundamentals that are vital to the success of a hosted Voice over IP reseller program. Lacking these fundamentals will result in worsened end user customer retention and ultimately lower profit margins.
The cost of building out a service provider VoIP network is extreme, so most companies cannot reasonably afford to do so. In additional building and managing a voice network is a different business model in itself. Hosted VoIP reseller programs satisfy the dual needs of profitability and relative ease of operation. Let the service provider run the back end infrastructure while the reselling company’s time is free to conduct proper marketing operations on the front end. As well, the reseller does not need to go through the costly and complicated process of designing and building the infrastructure required to support Voice over IP functions.
The service provider that handles the infrastructure benefits from specializing in the back end aspects, while the reselling company is able to focus its efforts on marketing and customer service. As well, the end user customers receive feature rich functionality, so everyone benefits from these arrangements. However, the reselling company needs to be assured that the back end infrastructure is highly available to keep the end user customers satisfied. The following is what resellers should look for in a service provider.
Fully Hosted PBX
A private branch exchange or PBX switchboard is an important feature for most any business. If there are more than a handful of phone lines needed for a business’s operations, they often have to rely on either a complicated network they have to build themselves or keep their phone system small. For a growing company with a small communications budget, this can be crippling. With a fully hosted PBX swtich board to offer, hosted VoIP reseller programs can offer customers a tremendous amount of flexibility.
SIP Trunking
With session initiation protocol or SIP trunking available, making and receiving calls through the network is exceptionally simple. When a reseller can offer its customers simple calling options regardless of the customer’s existing phone system setup, they can charge accordingly for this convenience and reap solid profit margins.
Automated Private Label Billing
The ability to customize billing is a small detail that bears mentioning because of its power. When a company invests heavily into its marketing, its billing needs to reflect the unique brand it has created. Without this branding, the product of hosted VoIP reseller programs can appear to be nothing more than a commodity. As well, this billing needs to be automated because of the complexity often associated with billing customers. Greater ease of use equals higher profit margins.
Integrated Tax Solution and Tax Services
The VoIP industry has historically dodged the topic of taxes. Using a provider that has the ability to calculate and provide detailed reports of the associated telecom taxes is imperative in this business. Choosing a provider that can also file the taxes for you can be a game changer for you and your business.
Line Provisioning and Porting
The more direct inward dialing (DID) numbers a customer has access to, the better. Sometimes an advertising campaign can be built around the phone number alone. The provisional number a customer chooses should also be portable when possible, so it can follow either the company or an individual. Having the same phone number for an extended period of time presents a stable and long-lasting image to end users, and facilitates more easy communication with particular individuals.
Partner Resources
Knowledge is power. As such, having access to both solutions to common problems and ample information about features available in a service, are a pair of definite bonuses to any hosted VoIP reseller programs that make use of these features. In the case of troubleshooting and best practices information, these resources can be vital pieces of information that can win and retain customers.
Ongoing Training and Support
Education on how to use system resources, how to make necessary changes for improved operation and maintain important functions is crucial. When employees are properly trained in how the system works, the entire operation can run smoothly. When this training is absent, employees are going to have far less direction to work with. When this training and information is readily available and easy for the reselling company to access, it will both ensure better customer relations and allow for more effective handling of issues. The better employees know how to do their jobs, the better they will do so.
There are several features that any kind of UCaaS reselling program needs to have if it is going to be successful. There must be crucial features such as hosted PBX and SIP trunking. As well, there must be the necessary training and documentation that is necessary to properly run a UCaaS reselling company, and keep employees doing their jobs effectively. When all of these factors exist in tandem with one another, the reselling company is able to market its wares effectively without the tremendous expense of establishing its own network infrastructure.