Friday, November 13, 2009

PBX and Virtual Employees

My company, http://www.californiabusinessresource.com offers free business advice to budding entrepreneurs. We have lots of articles that we are constantly submitting to our site, and it causes us a lot of work. We like to use Virtual Assistants to do this work.

It didn’t take very long to notice that it would be excellent if we could have some of our V.A.s answer incoming phone calls, as well as make outbound calls to our existing clients. So we started on the search for a Virtual PBX system.
Not too long ago, it was the traditional PBX system used all around the world by businesses big or small. The traditional PBX systems or phone booth exchange systems as they were popularly called had the limitation of providing service to one location and all the employees had to be in one location to access it for attending calls, and checking voicemails. Moreover, they were costly in terms of money and effort. But this all changed with the innovation of VoIP that lead to the creation of new virtual PBX systems. These systems have changed the way businesses communicate and manage their employees. They are based on voice over internet protocol technology or VoIP that uses the internet to send and receive calls.

Some Virtual PBX systems offer all the services just like the traditional PBX systems and many more with greatly reduced cost and effort. Some don’t. You need to research your PBX before spending the time and/or money to test it. For example, most virtual PBX programs are glorified answering machines. They allow the client to call in, push a few buttons to get connected to either you or your message, but they do not allow live transfers once you have accepted the call. My business absolutely requires that my employees can transfer a call to me if they determine that I need to talk to the client.

If you get the right system, these virtual systems have redefined the way work is done. The flurry of benefits include giving a professional feel to the client with auto attendants, presenting a big picture, interaction with the callers while you are on move by diverting calls, and a virtual presence…and all that at very affordable prices! Another very important advantage of virtual PBX systems is the geographical limitlessness.

Many small businesses hire a number of freelancers or remote employees to take care of their various operations so that they can use their tiny budget in the most effective way. Virtual PBX systems allow your business to have employees all over the world and despite of geographical distance, they can be connected through this single phone system as if they are sitting in the next cubicle. Calls can be directed to any phone, may it be landline, mobile phone like iPhone or a software phone on employee’s laptop. There is no need to invest in new phones; old ones can be used making it highly affordable. The facility of conference calling allows you to be in touch with your employees irrespective of their location.

Virtual PBX systems are loaded with many features. Call transferring, call distribution, call prioritization, voice mail, find me follow me call forwarding, fax, auto attendants, all get together to make handing of virtual employees much easier and profitable for your business. Call auto attendants eliminate the need of real receptionists and handle the customers with professional messages and customized menus. Calls are redirected at the appropriate place with find me follow me call forwarding to the appropriate employee even if he or she is actually residing half way down the globe. There are many virtual PBX systems available in the market. OnSIP by junction networks, AccessDirect USA, Halloo, Axon and Grasshopper are among the most popular on the VoIP communication scene. Halloo is a personal favorite of many entrepreneurs because it provides real time transfers and works as a perfect system for call centers. Many will allow you to transfer your existing toll free numbers without any extra charge.

Virtual PBX systems provide a very cost effective way to communicate and to use virtual employees no matter where they are. The productivity enhancing features save your money and time. Virtual PBX systems with timely upgrades and good support system reduce the expenses to a great extent and allow you to concentrate more on your business.

For more information that can assist your business, please go to www.californiabusinessresource.com

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

San Diego Tech Coast Angels 2009 Quick Pitch

From Guest Blogger, John Watson:

Angel investing isn’t just about money. It is also about mentoring, strategic advice,
providing connections to customers and sources of capital. The Tech Coast Angels
(TCA) are helping to fuel the growth of the most innovative companies and
entrepreneurs in southern California. TCA’s 280+ members invest time, expertise and
capital to help companies grow and succeed. Companies benefit from working with a
group of seasoned, well-connected advisors. That’s why TCA is the largest angel
network in the U.S. and the number one source of startup funding in southern California.
TCA has five networks in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, Santa Barbara and the Inland Empire.

An important part of the TCA outreach program to entrepreneurs, company founders
and emerging companies is the annual Quick Pitch event. Entrepreneurs are invited [at
no cost to their companies], to compete in a one hour competition with 15 or more
companies for three prizes before a panel of expert judges, in front of an audience
composed of Venture Capitalists, Bankers, Accountants, Lawyers, CEO’s other
entrepreneurs and TCA members. Prior to the Competition on October 8th each
company worked diligently with the coaches and mentors from TCA – so that they could
professionally present their companies.

From over 150 applications received [12 were Life Science, the remainder were in High-tech, CleanTech and other business sectors]; through screening and interviews a total of 17 emerging high tech (11), and six (6) life science companies were selected to compete, each company received two (2) minutes to Pitch or present their company to the five Judges and the audience of ~300 people. The Judges then had two minutes to adjudicate their individual performance in two areas:

1. Content: Is this a fundable deal; did you want to hear more etc.
2. Style: Did they capture your attention; was it persuasive and informative?

Each company was scored 1-10 by each judge for each category – supportive suggestions were allowed; of the 17 competitors the Overall winner and runner-up were Biotech and Diagnostic companies.

2009 Overall Winner: Roberta A. Gottlieb, President and CEO of Radical Therapeutix, Inc.

Best Content Winner: Mark Bowles, CEO, ecoATM – http://www.remobileinc.com

Best Style Winner: Raj Krishnan, CEO, Biological Dynamics, Inc. - http://biologicaldynamics.com

The Overall Winner (based upon the total points awarded), was immediately entered into the TCA funding process; with no pre-screening requirements. The 2008 Winner obtained their initial funding from TCA via this process. The two “runner-up” categories were immediately eligible to file an application for funding pre-screening.

John Watson is a Tech Coast Angel member. Tech Coast Angels helps fund companies in the High Tech and Bio Tech areas. For more information about Tech Coast Angels, please go to their website at http://www.techcoastangels.com

For more Business Resources go to http://www.californiabusinessresource.com and sign up for the newsletter.