In 2020, business phone services go far beyond having an office PBX installed. Powered by Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) technology, business telephony suites now include a multitude of options, from video conferencing to voicemail-to-email features.With the VoIP market predicted to double to $150 billion globally by 2024, providers are further bolstering their offers with additional communication channels, integrations with other platforms, CRM features, and AI analytics capabilities.Here is an overview of the offers by the top five VoIP-powered business phone services on the market in 2020.1 – Nextiva Recently named the best business phone service by U.S. News, Nextiva is one of the top business phone systems available.The company provides cutting-edge cloud communications services, available on mobile and desktop apps, as well as VoIP phones, or – via adapter – regular desk phones. The offer is replete with headache-saving features like find-me-follow-me, integrations with many business applications, voicemail-to-email, and voicemail-to-text capabilities, and enhanced IVR based on conversational AI.But Nextiva's offer also encompasses a rich set of additional tools. The company's NextOS platform lets you optimize productivity and enhance customer experience through advanced analytics, including predictive analysis, and machine learning features. Cospace, Nextiva's new team collaboration tool, is based on the company's own years of experience with a distributed workforce. The tool is an invaluable aid to many of Nextiva's clients, especially in navigating the corona crisis with suddenly remote teams.Finally, Nextiva also scores big on reliability and customer service. With an uptime of 99.999% ('five-nines'), safeguarded by a large number of distributed data centers, the provider is one you can count on. The company's customer service is outstanding, available 24/7 via email, live chat, and phone. In fact, Nextiva has just been awarded multiple Stevie awards \- for the fifth consecutive year.In terms of pricing, Nextiva's basic tier is available for $19.95 per user and month. Costs for additional lines decreases with the number of users.2 – AircallAircall is a more specialized VoIP service providing complete call center solutions. The platform operates entirely in the cloud, without extra hardware.Setting up a call center takes a few clicks in Aircall's online interface, and admin is similarly straightforward. Call centers can be tailored for various uses, but always with the needs of sales and customer support teams in mind.Covering voice and video calling as well as messaging, Aircall's service is accessible through the company's desktop, mobile, and web applications.Many included services make the lives of call center operators and users easier. A feature-rich, native CRM system is complemented by helpdesk functionalities, tools for sales support, and productivity aids.Another big plus is Aircall's App Marketplace, which offers a rich host of extensions. Apps like Avoma or ExecVision transcribe and analyze business conversations, yielding actionable insights. Other apps allow for designing surveys or sales automation. Furthermore, Aircall natively integrates with HubSpot and Salesforce, and allows further extensions through Zapier.Compared to other providers on this list, Aircall definitely operates in higher price spheres. Their basic plan starts at $30 per user and month, includes only limited functionalities, and requires a minimum of three users. The full range of features is unlocked at $50 per user and month.3 – OnSIPOnSIP offers powerful yet simple VoIP business telephony services. At highly attractive prices.OnSIP provides both mobile and desktop apps enabling voice and video calling, conferencing, and messaging. It also includes features like auto attendants, voicemail-to-email, find-me-anywhere, and ACD queues. Native integrations are available for Slack, Microsoft, Google Analytics, Salesforce and Zendesk, and others. OnSIP's intuitive online admin portal makes it easy to set up and manage.What really makes this service stand out, though, are its flexible pricing options, which even include a free plan.In terms of paid plans, customers can choose between an unlimited per-user plan for a monthly $18.95, or a pay-as-you-go plan for a standard monthly $49.95 per account and 2.9 cents per minute. OnSIP's sayso service is free, enabling website visitors to click-to-call you directly.One aspect of OnSIP's pricing may be an advantage or a drawback depending on your specific needs: an extensive menu of features that can be added individually to plans.While you won't end up paying for features you never use, subscribing to a large number of added features like hold music, call recording, or an enhanced dashboard, can quickly drive up the subscription fee.4 – VonageFlexible and scalable, this platform offers over 50 tools complementing their basic VoIP services. The platform is available on both smartphone and desktop apps, and can boast a five-nines uptime.In terms of features, Vonage offers omnichannel support, for voice and video calling, messaging, live chats, and even social media integrations. Users can hold video conferences with up to 300 participants, have access to Amazon Chime, and can make use of tools like virtual receptionists.Customer support is competent, though only emergency service is available outside weekday (8 a.m. – midnight ET) and weekend (9 a.m. – 9 p.m. ET) hours, which may be inconvenient if you have offices outside the U.S.Vonage's SMB offer starts at a price of $19.99 per user and month, going down to $14.99 for up to 99 users on the Mobile plan, which does not support desk phones. The Premium and Advanced plans begin at $29.99 and $39.99 respectively, with the latter including set-up by the company. For larger businesses and enterprises, custom pricing applies.Vonage offers a broad set of features, high reliability, and high flexibility. It's a particularly good fit for growing businesses, scaling smoothly. For very small businesses, however, you might get more value for your money elsewhere.5 – DialpadFinally, Dialpad is another contender with a truly impressive set of features, with perhaps the strongest focus on AI features out of all the options on this list. Its core business phone service runs on desktop and mobile apps, as well as VoIP-enabled desk phones. Voice, video, email, chat, and text messaging are all included, and so are all the standard VoIP telephony features like queuing and routing. But this is where Dialpad is only getting started. AI plays a large part in the provider's ecosystem. Features powered by AI and machine learning include automated note-taking during calls and real-time sales support. Voicemail and calls are automatically recorded and transcribed, form the basis of Dialpad's extensive analytics capabilities, which yield in-depth insights. Dialpad also shines when it comes to integrations, natively connecting to G Suite, Office 365, Salesforce, HubSpot, UberConference, and Slack. Like Aircall, Dialpad makes other integrations possible by taking advantage of Zapier's services. Customer service is 24/7 via live chat as well as round the clock on phone on weekdays (PST). In terms of pricing, Dialpad's basic tier runs to $20 per user and month. It's limited in its analytics features and restricted to one business location. The full feature set including 24/7 phone support and advanced analytics only becomes available with the $35 per user and month enterprise plan. Dialpad is a solid provider of business telephony with an impressive number of features and integration options. It may, however, not be the ideal fit for small business, as many useful features others include by default are only available in the higher tiers.The Bottom LineWith the broad offer of VoIP business phone service providers, there is a suitable option for virtually any business out there.Whether you gravitate towards specialized services like Aircall, price-competitive options like OnSIP, or providers that can boast all-round excellence like Nextiva, doing research on the perks that each package comes with, and crunching the numbers on plans, will pay off in the end.Because at the end of the day, your choice of a business phone service suite, with all its integrations and tools, will form a strong basis on which to build your business communications strategy. Choose wisely and keep in mind the age-old adage – that communication is key.See more from Benzinga * Nextiva CEO Tomas Gorny On Launching New Team Collaboration Software And Helping Businesses Through COVID-19(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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Stock futures extended gains Wednesday morning as investors set their sights on more major cities’ plans to reopen businesses in the near-term as the coronavirus pandemic eased.
In this article you are going to find out whether hedge funds think CenturyLink, Inc. (NYSE:CTL) is a good investment right now. We like to check what the smart money thinks first before doing extensive research on a given stock. Although there have been several high profile failed hedge fund picks, the consensus picks among […]
The coronavirus pandemic and accompanying financial crisis is putting particular pressure on the finances of student loan borrowers and on Congress to do something about a “broken” system.
What is the worst thing an investor could hear from a market share leader? According to Jefferies’ analyst Owen Bennett, it is probably the need to "understand what consumers want.”And that’s just what Canopy Growth (CGC) has said. According to the analyst, the Canadian cannabis producer’s disappointing FQ4 results indicate “things are worse than thought.”Canopy's Q4 net revenue came in at C$107.9 million, well below the C$128.9 million estimate and down by 13% from the previous quarter. The enormous overall net loss of C$1.3 billion, amounted to C$3.72 per share, far worse that the Street’s expectation of C$0.59 per share. Cue investors running to the exit door and a drop of 20% in the following trading session.Bennett recently upgraded Canopy’s rating from Sell to Hold, based on the reasoning “top line pressures were better understood,” and under the impression cost saving actions were moving the company in the right direction.Pointing out the slim bull case for Canopy rested on “increased focus on cost structure and profit delivery,” the analyst believes the turnaround appears more sluggish than anticipated as evidenced by operating expenses. Instead of improving, these increased by 17% compared to the previous quarter.Additionally, looking ahead, Canopy reduced expectations, describing FY21 as a “transition year,” and taking off the table previous forecasts for when it would achieve positive adjusted EBITDA.Along with the letdown of the report, the tone coming from Canopy’s direction has not impressed Bennett, who said, “While it said it is addressing certain headwinds with a shift into value and more high THC offerings, what really concerned us was commentary around needing to "understand what consumers want", and "servicing different segments". This is just basics and an issue we flagged over 12 months ago when initiating (Canopy having a catch all brand with no segmentation) and is something that in our view should be addressed prior to legalisation, not over a year into it, and especially from a market share leader.”To this end, Bennett reiterated a Hold and has a C$22.00 (US$16) price target on Canopy shares. (To watch Bennett’s track record, click here)Most of Wall Street echoes a neutral point of view, with TipRanks analytics exhibiting Canopy Growth as a Hold. Based on 15 analysts tracked by in the last 3 months, 2 say Buy, 10 suggest Hold, while 3 recommends Sell. Meanwhile the 12-month average price target stands at C$22.44, which aligns with where the stock is currently trading. (See Canopy Growth stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for cannabis stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
OPEC leader Saudi Arabia and non-OPEC Russia have agreed a preliminary deal to extend existing record oil production cuts by one month while raising pressure on countries with poor compliance to deepen their output cuts, OPEC+ sources told Reuters. “Any agreement on extending the cuts is conditional on countries who have not fully complied in May deepening their cuts in upcoming months to offset their overproduction,” one OPEC source said. OPEC+ agreed last month to cut output by a record 9.7 million barrels per day, or about 10% of global output, in May and June to lift prices battered by plunging demand linked to lockdown measures aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus.
(Bloomberg) — Coronavirus has exposed a lack of investment in the big batteries crucial to unlocking solar and wind power.A drop in energy demand caused by the pandemic has left European grids overloaded with green electricity, raising the threat of blackouts and underlining the need for energy storage in a low-carbon energy system.Europe is striving to rid its power grids of carbon emissions by the middle of the century. But what should be an incentive to increase the use of batteries isn’t happening nearly fast enough with installations dropping last year, according to BloombergNEF.“Batteries are extremely critical,” Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, said in an interview. “They are ready for the big time” and should be included in post-virus economic recovery packages, he said.One reason for the drop in battery installations comes down to how power markets are set up, according to Marco van Daele, chief executive officer of Susi Partners AG, a clean energy infrastructure fund. The newness of storage technology and the lack of long-term income streams has put investors off.“An obstacle for much wider investment in the space is the lack of contracted and visible revenue,” he said. Even as the costs of building batteries come down, “the remuneration of that capacity needs to become more visible in order to attract the large-scale investment needed.”For decades, power markets have been designed around demand and ensuring there is enough supply to fulfill peak consumption. Slowly the focus is changing to how to control an oversupply when it’s sunny or windy. And with renewables having priority feeding into the grid, they have more influence over how the system is managed.Read more about how renewables are impacting the grid in BritainThe slide in demand caused by the virus lockdowns has been “like pressing a fast-forward button in power markets to where you have large amounts of generation but not the investment in flexibility,” said Peter Osbaldstone, research director on European power and renewables at Wood Mackenzie Group Ltd.For its part, the EU has proposed a 750 billion-euro ($824 billion) recovery plan to accelerate the transition to clean transport, increase energy savings and boost the production of renewable power.Read more about the Green Deal hereThe European Battery Alliance wants to use the opportunity to accelerate projects that would create 1 million jobs in the sector that could be worth 210 billion euros within the next 2-1/2 years, according to European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic.European carbon emissions are on track for a 17% reduction this year, thanks to a higher proportion of renewables used to meet demand.For battery owners, swings in prices when renewables hit the grid could be a major opportunity. Batteries can charge up when solar and wind generation is plentiful and market rates are low, and then sell power to the grid when prices are higher. With enough capacity on the system, buying and selling from battery operators could ultimately help ease the price swings.The U.K., Ireland, Italy, France and Germany have high potential for growth in the short-term, according to Marek Kubik, market director for U.K. and Ireland at Fluence Energy LLC.Factors such as retiring thermal generation, fast-growing variable renewable generation and a move to electrify sectors like transport and heat all point to a need for flexibility that can be easily supplied by battery-based energy storage, he said.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
(Bloomberg) — A meeting between OPEC and its allies this month was in doubt as Saudi Arabia and Russia drew a hard line over quota cheating by some nations.The two leaders of OPEC+ told other members that talks planned for early June to discuss extending record output cuts may not happen if countries including Iraq and Nigeria don’t make firm promises to implement their supply curbs, said people familiar with the matter.Without any changes to the deal, the group is due to start easing its cuts from July. Oil erased gains in New York, trading at $36.79 a barrel as of 6:10 a.m. local time. Four days after a proposal to bring forward the meeting to this Thursday was first floated, there was still no agreement on the date. And while a plan to extend output cuts by one month was gaining support, delegates said Saudi Arabia and Russia were seeking assurances that all members would comply with the cuts they have promised. For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Top news and what to watch in the markets on Wednesday, June 3, 2020.