Moving offices can be just as time-consuming and frustrating as moving houses, but with more technical elements that you need to worry about. There’s generally an extensive to-do list and often right at the bottom sits the nagging question of what’s going to happen to the phones?
If you’re still using a traditional phone system with physical landlines, it’s a fair thing to be concerned about. However, if you’re using Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), it’s not as stressful. Since the technology uses the Internet to make calls, not copper wiring, it might actually be the easiest part of your whole move.
So, let’s take a look at what to expect when moving day approaches for a business using VoIP.
Not Much Changes, And That’s Rather The Point
VoIP doesn’t really “live” on your premises at all, if you think about it. It’s in the cloud. All of it – your phone numbers, call menus, voicemail, the works. It’s all tied directly to your account, not the building that you sit in. Unlike a physical landline, it has no ties at all to a building.
Copper systems meant that your number was physically wired to your address. If you happened to move, you’d find yourself at the mercy of engineers and line installations, with a fair bit of crossed fingers.
But with VoIP, as far as your system is concerned, the office move barely registers as an event. If you pleased, you could relocate to the other side of the country and your setup would still stay the same.
What Exactly Stays The Same?
Quite a bit, actually. When you move, you get to keep:
Phone numbers: They all travel with you and clients ringing your main line won’t ever notice a thing. Fortunately, you won’t need to reprint your business cards or update every listing that exists on the Internet.
Extensions and call routing: The systems that you set up stay exactly as they are.
Voicemail and greetings: Your messages and recorded greetings are all safe. There’s no need to re-record anything.
Team apps: Your employees may take their calls through a softphone app installed on their laptop or phone. Nothing changes here either, they can just log in at the new premises like they did at the old one.
Here’s What You Do Need
Since VoIP needs an Internet connection to work, your call quality relies heavily on a stable connection. If you get that right from the start, you’ll be good to go. If not, your office will find itself dealing with dropped calls and frustrated clients.
Before a single monitor gets moved, take the time to get the broadband sorted out at the new location and, crucially, tested.
If you can, opt for business-grade. A standard connection may work for a couple of people but if you have a busy team with multiple members, you’ll need something stronger.
Secondly, check that you’ve got the bandwidth. A single call on its own doesn’t require much but when most of the office is on calls throughout the day, it adds up very quickly. Test that your connection can handle everyone talking at peak times.
Moving The Actual Handsets
If your team uses physical desk phones, the process is almost, well, anti-climatic. Simply unplug them, box them safely and plug them back into the network at the new office. They’ll reconnect themselves, no engineer or rewiring needed. And one more thing ticked off the to-do list.
And if there’s no desk phones because your team is fully app-based, it’s even easier. There’s nothing to carry over at all, the “phone system” is the software that the team already has on their respective devices.
A Moving Day Checklist
It’s always handy to jot everything down that you need to do (who doesn’t love a good to-do list?) so here is a quick, shortened version of what to do before moving day arrives.
- Advise your VoIP provider of your new address and moving date.
- Get the broadband installed and tested well ahead of time to avoid interruptions once you’ve moved.
- If you can, have IT check the router, firewall and any call-quality settings.
- Make a few test calls before the team starts.
- Keep your old connection live during the changeover so there’s no gap where calls can’t be placed during that period.
Moving offices are stressful at the best of times, especially with unexpected hurdles and challenges that usually pop up along the way. Fortunately, moving your VoIP system with you should be one of the easier parts of the process. And if you find yourself stuck, give your VoIP service provider a ring who will be able to guide you along the way.
