This week, Ancero is showcasing our Utility VoIP cloud communications solutions at the 104th annual New Jersey League of Municipalities (NJLM) Conference at the Atlantic City Convention Center. This is the nation’s largest municipal conference, with 17,000 attendees, more than 725 exhibitors, 1,100 exhibit booths, and 125 educational sessions. In fact, 92 percent of New Jersey’s municipalities are represented at the event.
Ancero is attending the NJLM conference because more than 25 municipalities have chosen Ancero solutions for IT infrastructure and support. More specifically, our Utility VoIP cloud system is very popular with local government agencies.
More than a phone system, Utility VoIP is a connection to the community. Communication is a critical ingredient to solving problems and meeting expectations for both the municipality and its residents. Whether you want to improve public safety, streamline the delivery of government services, or increase operational efficiency, communication is key.
Reliable, effective communication starts with the right infrastructure. However, municipalities can’t afford to keep throwing money at technology. They need simpler management, better cost controls, and an overarching strategy that accounts for planning and preparation, budgeting, implementation, onsite training, and 24/7 support.
Ancero Utility VoIP checks all the boxes. With Utility VoIP, your municipality can replace its old, outdated phone system with a modern, feature-rich unified communications (UC) platform. UC-as-a-Service (UCaaS) seamlessly integrates voice, presence, chat, data, applications, and other communication and collaboration tools into a single, cloud-based solution.
With minimal capital expense and a more predictable opex pricing, Utility VoIP allows you to take advantage of valuable services such as cloud-hosted PBX, Mobile VoIP, SIP trunking, call management, and integrated voice response (IVR). At the same time, centralized hosting in geo-redundant data centers ensures uptime and reliable, consistent communication, which are especially important in the event of an emergency.
Here are four important features of Utility VoIP for municipalities.
1) UC Client
The UC Client is a UC application that combines calling, chat, meetings, voicemail, video, screen sharing, and contacts into a single, easy-to-use interface. Paired with or without a desk phone, the UC Client can be accessed from any location on any desktop computer, laptop, or tablet. Municipality employees can make calls from their computer or mobile device, manage contacts and voice mail while on the go, and hold video meetings from virtually any location.
2) Contact Center and IVR
Traditional contact centers are only capable of fielding phone calls and possibly email inquiries. If they support other channels, those channels are rarely integrated, creating a frustrating user experience. Ancero Utility VoIP provides you with an omni-channel contact center that allows users to contact with your municipality via phone, email, web chat, SMS text, web forms, and mobile apps. Because all channels are integrated, citizens can use the channel of their choice and seamlessly move to different channels without repeating information.
Contact Center includes on omni-channel desktop, which provides call control or pop-up screens based on caller ID, IVR information, or resident data from a customer relationship management (CRM) system. Agents have access to a full interaction history for each user in one interface, regardless of the user’s communication channels, which saves time and money, reduces costs, and improves first-call resolution rates.
3) Mobile VoIP
Nobody wants to have separate numbers for their desk phone and mobile phone. And most people don’t want to give out their mobile phone to strangers. The Utility VoIP mobile app for iOS and Android allows you to use one number for all devices and take calls to your desk phone on your smartphone. It also brings your favorite desk phone features to your smartphone, such as conference calls, extension dialing, phone directory access, voicemail, and virtual attendant.
4) Voice-to-Text
With Utility VoIP, voicemail messages are automatically transcribed and sent to the user via email, SMS text, or the Utility VoIP mobile app. When you’re stuck in meetings or can’t be available at the drop of a hat, you can still review your messages without stepping out to listen.
Beyond features and services, you need to know your municipality’s UC solution is being monitored, managed, and updated. Ancero monitors your system 24/7 to ensure high quality of service is maintained, communication is clear, and downtime is avoided. We partner with municipalities to provide expert implementation, onsite training, and ongoing support, which ensure a seamless transition to your new communications system.
“We weren’t interested in finding the lowest price. We were looking for a partner who could provide the technical and strategic guidance we need for long-term planning and growth. As a full-service provider, we felt confident that Ancero was the right partner to help us address both our data network and voice network.” – Scott Morgan, Township Administrator and Emergency Management Director of Upper Township
Read the full case study here.
To learn how Ancero can help your municipality identify and overcome obstacles to communication, contact us for a free consultation. Be sure to mention the discount for NJLM Members!