It goes without say that companies use a substantial amount of money in telephone expenses monthly. Getting value for money used on a business phone system has become the ultimate goal of every business. In the years gone by, businesses did not have a choice as to the type of business telephone system they could go for since virtually every provider offered the same kind of services. However, this is no longer the case as technology and competition has spurred many such providers to come up with unique and amazing features.

In fact, business phone system service providers are now coming up with great features solely meant to achieve a competitive edge and attract customer's attention. Some of the features that you need to look for on your business phone system include:

• Automatic call distribution

This is a feature that is commonly employed by call centers and is in essence designed to help them keep track of the number of calls made by employees in any given shift as well as the duration of calls. Such a feature is instrumental in helping a given firm improve its effectiveness and efficiency.

• Automatic call forwarding

This is a very unique feature that is instructive or instrumental in forwarding of calls to a number which is external to the firm such as a mobile phone or a home phone.

• Call convergence

Days when you could only make calls using your BPS are long gone. Just like the mobile phone has undergone tremendous changes in its features, the BPS has also undergone a metamorphosis. In fact, there are a number of things you can do with your business phone system. These are: video conferencing, emailing, faxing and sending of instant messages.

• Computer telephone integration (CTI)

This is a very unique and important feature beneficial to companies or firms that need information spontaneously. Firms such as call centers, those in the banking industry will find this feature quite instrumental. This feature can be effectively used to retrieve information about a clients profile quickly and also serves to reduce errors related to dialing of numbers.

• Interactive voice response

As the name implies, this feature is very important in reducing overhead costs for many companies who use the BPS. It allows companies or firms to interact with customers on a 24/7. It basically allows customers to find out information about their billings, report any stolen cards or ask any queries they might be having.

A business that largely depends on the use of telephones for the smooth and efficient running of the firm will without a doubt find the aforementioned features of business phone system of essence. All these features are specifically meant to ensure that firms meet their business objectives and that their customers get satisfied beyond measure. In a nutshell, these features are bound to strengthen your relationship with customers, focus on continuous improvement and ensure that all the needs of your customers are met.