Featured Articles from IP Phones

It's got to be tough to be a flower shop these days. It's the kind of thing that people can commonly live without, and with so many options for buying flowers available online, turning to that local florist for those occasional gifts of sweet-smelling joy and assorted knickknacks can be a losing proposition. Smart florists, therefore, have to look into cutting costs while trying to augment revenue. For Lone Star Bloom, that meant some new moves in Internet protocol (IP) phone technology with help from TieTechnology.

The new addition of IP phone systems to Lone Star Bloom's operations adds a new slate of tools to the florist's toolbox, including high quality voice reproduction, a more rapid integration with the legacy systems that will remain in place following the move, simpler operations, better collaboration within the florist itself and better customer experience for those who deal with the florist. Throw in the fact that these new features can be brought in for reduced costs—depending on how many calls are made per month and to where, so exact values will be different based on each shop's circumstances—and the end result should be a better operation for many shops, including Lone Star Bloom.

Since Voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service depends on an Internet connection rather than a phone, those who enjoy sufficiently fast, sufficiently robust high-speed Internet connections can get access to this array of services with comparatively little difficulty. Taking advantage of reduced latency in the signal means better voice reproduction overall, which improves the florist's ability to take and reproduce orders to the customer's satisfaction. Improved collaboration means an ability to better use mobile workforce operations—great for having in-house delivery staff—and connect to other businesses when that one particular item is needed.

Basically, this is a move in staying competitive. Florists especially must face down an online marketplace where bouquets or anything else can be delivered in a matter of hours or a couple days online, so being able to provide just what the customer wants, right at the point of sale, will be important to long-term business health. With IP phone systems, local florists like Lone Star Bloom can take advantage of some of the connectivity online shops enjoy while providing that immediacy that's important to win over online shops.

It's a safe bet Lone Star Bloom will be happy with its new IP phone setup, as it should help drive new business success. It's not a magic bullet solution, so other points will have to be followed as well, but with IP phones in its corner, Lone Star Bloom may be able to better fight the online competitors that much longer.