VoIP system challenges and solutions for a tutoring program with 4 locations and 20 employees.
Academic Coaching Program IT Challenge
The tutoring program is focused on using practical application to help children achieve national and state goals for reading, math, and fine arts.
The nonprofit organization is using a Voice over IP system to keep in touch with members, and faciliate communications between the organizations’ employees. The phone system is the life line that needs to be operational at all times.
The biggest issues they struggle with are as follows:
Antiquated version of VoIP
The organization is using an old, unsupported version of Asterisk VoIP that is hosted on-premise and doesn't receive updates
Slow emergency support
Current VoIP provider is difficult to reach and causes a lot of downtime in case of issues
Complex management
The VoIP system is not very user-friendly, and making even simple changes requires the help of support
Few features
The current out-of-date VoIP system lacks in important features, such as call queues, voice attendant, and more
The Solution
The academic nonprofit organization reached out to us due to our specialization in 3CX VoIP telephony, our focus on nonprofits, fast response times and affordable rates. They needed urgent help as their whole VoIP system was down and they couldn’t wait for a slow response from their current provider. Our team started by immediately analyzing their VoIP issues and planning for a better, more reliable solution.
We put together a plan that would provide the nonprofit with a reliable VoIP system with a simple interface and management, and simplify troubleshooting for excellent uptime.
VoIP carrier migration
We migrated the organization from their current carrier to 3CX VoIP -- an award-winning and feature-rich VoIP system. 3CX does not tie the customer to any particular VoIP carrier, phone, or host. With 3CX, the customer stays in control of their system and data.
We advised the client to port their existing phone numbers to FlowRoute; a 3CX preferred VoIP provider with an easily manageable web interface and excellent prices -- no contracts or cancellation fees. They receive all basic SIP features such as instant phone number purchasing (DID's), enhanced 911, T.38 analog fax, caller ID, and much more.
VoIP cloud migration
PRO's certified 3CX consultants set up a clear path to start migrating the system from on-premise to the cloud. This would give the organization the advantage of a year of free hosting and eliminate the potential problems when hosted on-premise at the client office.
This change allows us to troubleshoot issues easily and provide backup and disaster recovery options that were previously unattainable.
VoIP system configuration and setup
While the phone numbers were being ported, we worked with the nonprofit to prepare their setup: configured extensions, provisioned phones, created inbound/outbound rules, created ring groups, and defined call flows for each one of the four companies that the client was operating through the PBX (Private Branch eXchange).
When it was time to finish porting and the phone numbers hit the Flowroute servers, everything was ready on the 3CX server, and calls started to flow in and out seamlessly.
The Results
Increased stability & reliability
Thanks to the VoIP system being hosted in the Cloud, onsite hardware maintenance and troubleshooting through the local network is not necessary, aiding in fast troubleshooting and higher uptimes
Lower costs
Since FlowRoute charges for only used minutes and has fixed phone number charges, the nonprofit organization is saving over 50% on SIP fees compared to the previous provider
Easier management
With 3CX software's convenient, user-friendly interface, making changes to the organization's VoIP workflow is now the matter of seconds
More features
3CX offers many features that the nonprofit is now using to simplify their work, including simple call routing, free video conferencing, built-in chat, text message functionality, integration with Microsoft 365, and more
