Every cloud has a silver lining

Instead of succumbing to all the gloom and doom emanating from the global financial crisis, which by some rather alarmist reports will see 100,000 Australian small and medium businesses (SMBs) go down the gurgler, why not look for the opportunities, suggests D-Link’s Maurice Famularo*.

One of those is the opportunity that digital telephony or voice over IP (VoIP) technology provides to reduce costs and boost the bottom line. VoIP is synonymous with reduced costs via cheap or free phone calls. This works at the consumer level where maintenance costs and productivity benefits are not usually a factor.

It also works for large enterprises which can achieve both call cost savings and productivity improvements with sophisticated internet protocol-private branch exchange (IP-PBX) systems - at a price.

But it doesn’t work for SMBs. VoIP call savings alone don’t justify replacing existing systems if it means losing functionality. And previous IP-PBX systems have been simply too expensive and difficult to set up and maintain.

As a result, VoIP telephones are rapidly replacing conventional analog phone systems in homes and large enterprises, but not in small and medium businesses.

That is all about to change with the next generation of IP telephony systems, based on Microsoft Response Point software, offering improved functionality and ease of use at a substantially lower price point.

These systems, such as D-Link’s VoiceCenter, offer the call cost savings that have made VoIP attractive to consumers, plus the productivity benefits that have also driven its adoption by larger enterprises.

Leveraging investments in IP networks and PCs, they are actually less costly than conventional telephone systems. In Australia, a complete 5-user system will retail for around $3500, with replacement telephone handsets costing around $130.

They are also easier to set up. Any company with basic networking knowledge can customise a telephone solution in a matter of hours. Changes to basic and advanced preferences can be handled by users via an easy-to-use software interface. Phone extensions can follow employees as they move around the premises without rewiring.

And they are more functional. All the usual office telephone features are supported, plus new ones like voice commands, voice dialling and a voice-automated receptionist. Users can reach anyone in their company directory or Microsoft Outlook address book by simply saying their name. They can transfer, put on hold and retrieve calls the same way, or via their telephone keypads. Voicemail to email forwarding is also supported.

What’s more, because they are software based, Microsoft Response Point systems will continue to add functionality over time. A number of further improvements are slated throughout 2009 - such as advanced integration with Microsoft Outlook - enabling further productivity benefits.

D-Link is currently training and accrediting resellers to ensure they have the skills to meet the expected demand from SMBs. Having the right sales and support channel is an important element of any SMB solution because small organisations cannot afford to be reliant on one large vendor for support. They need to have a choice of suppliers that understand their needs and are geared up to handle them.

So while 2009 will not be an easy year for many SMBs, technology advancements will help to cushion the blow and put forward-thinking businesses on an even stronger footing. Every cloud does indeed have a silver lining.

* With a major in Electronic Engineering from the University of Technology, Maurice Famularo has worked in the IT industry for over 20 years. Starting as a pre-sales engineer, Maurice has worked with several major IT companies, including IBM and Unisys, before joining D-Link 11 years ago. As D-Link’s Marketing Director for Australia and New Zealand, Maurice assists with the development of regional strategic planning and provides valuable market information to the global R&D division. He is currently guiding the implementation of environmentally friendly Green Ethernet products into the local market and employing CSR initiatives regionally.