How Voicemail Systems Work
Voicemail is a technology that
extends the power of the phone system. Voicemail
systems connect to and usually integrate with your
office telephone system. This tight integration
usually results in more sophisticated features and
capabilities.
Voicemail Basics
Most premise-based
auto-attendant/voicemail systems are engineered to
connect to a business telephone system (PBX or key
system) as a telephone would. This connection
permits back-and-forth signaling (integration),
letting the voicemail recognize a ringing line and
answer it; access caller-id, dialed number, and other
"call envelope" information; perform call
transfers from its own ports to user extensions or
"off-net" numbers; recognize do-not-disturb
mode on a target extension; perceive ring-no-answer;
retrieve a transferred call from an unanswered phone;
light message-waiting lights on desk telephones, and
perform other functions.
Methods for connection and
integration vary. Many third-party voicemail
system integrate to PBX or KSU analog station ports
(or higher-density T1 equivalents), and use DTMF/MF-type
"inband" signaling - in effect, voicemail
ports emulate black telephones. In the past,
such "analog integrations" had a reputation
for being difficult to make, since the underlying
signaling was noisy, slow, and inherently
unstable. But improved circuitry, better DSP and
application code, better PBX documentation, and years
of experience have improved matters. Today,
making an analog integration is often as easy as
selecting the brand and model of PBX from a drop-down
menu, or plugging in the voicemail and letting it
auto-discover the tone-commands it needs to drive the
switch.
Voicemail Ports
A voice mail system acts as a
corporate receptionist, either tasked with answering
and transferring calls, or delegated to
recording messages from people both inside and outside
a company. Meanwhile, each user is assigned an
individual mailbox but all users share the ports
available on the system.
The number of ports is the single
most important resource in determining how a voicemail
system will perform. Systems are sized according
to the number of ports, or connections, that are
established between the phone system and the voice
mail system. Without an available port for the PBX to
communicate with, it doesn't matter that your
voicemail is loaded with features because callers will
never reach it. Most small offices have two to
four ports, which allows a maximum of two or four
simultaneous calls. Therefore, having more ports
means that more people can simultaneously leave or
retrieve messages. When configured as an
automated attendant, the number of ports will dictate
how many calls can be answered at any given time.
Ports also dictate the cost of a
given system. Prices, like features and
capabilities, will vary. Typically, you can
expect to spend around $1000.00 per port.
How Callers Reach Voicemail
Your callers are directed to your
voicemail system through one of the following:
a) your callers are connected with the automated
attendant upon calling your office.
b) your telephone system is configured to forward
calls to voicemail when the receptionist is busy, or
when the telephones are not answered.
c) your telephone system is configured to forward
calls to voicemail when transferred to a given
extension that is busy or goes unanswered.
d) you transfer callers into voicemail.
After reaching your voicemail
system, callers will be handled differently depending
on your configuration.
Twenty-four (24) hours a day, callers can listen to
pre-recorded information, receive fax documents, be
transferred to you, leave you a message, have you
paged, or interact with your voicemail system in some
other way.
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