Phone Management Solutions

Phone service can be a huge expense for a small business. Not only do you have to pay for the service itself, but you have to keep it covered by a live person as much as possible.

One solution that has worked extremely well for me is Onebox.com. The company offers both toll-free and, in most areas, local telephone numbers. When a call comes in, Onebox attempts to forward it to all the "Find Me Follow Me" phone numbers you specify. If you're not available, the caller can then leave a voice mail message. You can receive all your voice mails and faxes via one number. Faxes are sent to the email address you specify as PDF attachments. For voice mails, you can choose to be notified by email and/or phone when one arrives. You can use standard voice mail greetings, or record your own greeting. You can also choose to ask callers to state their name before their call is forwarded to you, if you wish. You can also choose whether you want the caller's number to be displayed on your phone, or your Onebox number. I chose the latter, because my calls are forwarded to my personal cell phone number. That way, I can easily recognize when a business call comes in. I entered the number in my phone's contacts, and selected a special ring tone for it.

I've only discovered two drawbacks to this service: You can't send faxes with it, and in some areas local numbers aren't available. Prices start at $9.95 per month, which is much more affordable than regular business phone service. I'm not receiving any compensation for this endorsement. To learn more, visit www.OneBox.com.