Your choice of phone system for your office or other business premises needs to be carefully considered, as your business could suffer in the long term if the system you install is not capable of meeting your needs. A good business telephone system is sufficiently flexible and capable of adapting as your company grows, and you may also wish to make use of advanced tools and features included with higher end systems.

Even small businesses such as home based companies can benefit from dedicated business phone lines, rather than relying on their building's existing residential line. This can be especially the case if you will be making a large number of calls, which could end up costing you significantly more with a home phone tariff than with a package that's been tailor made for your business. A business phone line will also usually be tax deductible, and there can be psychological benefits to separating your business and home phone lines too.

If you employ a small number of people, you may feel that a single phone line is sufficient for sending and receiving calls during a normal business day, though you could soon realise the limitations this places on your company and the potential lost business as your phone line is engaged for long periods. Keyless phone systems offer up to four connections for small businesses premises, which can be ideal for ensuring everyone in your company has access to their own phone line and unique caller ID.

For larger businesses, more connections will usually be required, and it's a good idea not to place limits on the maximum number of phone lines available in case your company grows beyond expectations in the future, as it could prove expensive to replace the entire system. Larger capacity PBX (private branch exchange) telephone systems also offer access to sophisticated tools such as hold music and auto-attendants, which can improve convenience and boost your company's professional image, as well as avoiding the expense of hiring a dedicated receptionist.

Another feature of business phone systems that can improve your professional image is freephone 0800 numbers, which have been demonstrated to boost the number of enquiries made to businesses, similar to a free PO Box address. If you are keen to obscure the location of your business, or to give the impression of a prestigious London address, 0800 numbers also allow you to avoid including a regional number in your contact details.

Jesse Wallace writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.