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A Quarterly Newsletter from DSCI Spring 2010
| D. Schumacher Landscaping Finds One More Reason to Love iPBX |
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| "When it came to planning the move to our new building, we were amazed at how easy it was with a hosted system." |
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For landscape construction and maintenance in the northeast, the D. Schumacher Landscaping name has become synonymous with quality. The success of the organization is evident by the company’s recent move to larger, more modern premises. Like any service business, D. Schumacher’s success relies heavily on the reliability of their phone service – not only for contact with customers, but also to stay in touch with crews on site. That kind of communication cannot be put on hold just because the company is moving premises. So, how did D. Schumacher move to their new building without missing a step?
“The story actually begins two years ago when we decided to replace an old premises-based phone system which was giving us some problems,” explains Brian Jacobson, D. Schumacher’s CFO. “We selected DSCI to provide our service with their iPBX Hosted Communications. Not only were we no longer tied to a phone system that we had to maintain, but we gained productivity features which helped us communicate with customers and crews more efficiently. And, when it came to planning the move to our new building, we were amazed at how easy it was with a hosted system.”
What is iPBX?
iPBX Hosted Communications Service not only offers all the advantages of IP telephony, it also saves the cost of purchasing, installing and maintaining a phone system. One managed connection to the DSCI Enterprise Network provides access to voice, Internet, and private WAN services. Since DSCI hosts the system, upgrades are automatically rolled out to customers and the system never becomes obsolete.
Mark Gallagher of MoonRivers MEDIA worked with D. Schumacher on the IT issues related to the new building and the move. He explains, “Moving the phone service couldn’t have been easier. We simply had the 20 users pack up their phones, we moved them to the new building, plugged them in, and they worked. It was literally that easy.”
| iPBX Upgrade Provides Enhanced Functionality to DSCI Customers at No Additional Cost |
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One of the key benefits of the iPBX Hosted Communications Service is that DSCI is committed to updating the underlying Broadsoft platform on a regular basis at no additional cost to the customer. This offers a huge advantage over premises-based phone systems which may require annual maintenance fees. In addition, as premises-based systems get older, they may reach end-of-life and no longer be supported by the manufacturer. With iPBX, customers cannot outgrow the service and new features are made available as they are developed. But, most important, staying current is included in the cost of the service.
Last month DSCI was one of the first Internet Telephony Service Providers (ITSP) in the country to upgrade the Broadsoft platform to release 16. The upgrade was seamless for all the over 10,000 iPBX users. The Release 16 upgrade provides additional functionality mainly to the call center applicaiton. Customers currently using call center were also invited to attend one of two DSCI-presented webinars during which the new functionality was explained and demonstrated.
“This the fifth upgrade to the Broadsoft platform that DSCI has implemented at no additional charge for our clients,” comments Sean M. Dandley, DSCI’s president and CEO. “Our ability to provide a technology service that not only never becomes obsolete, but also offers new functionality as it becomes available at no additional cost is an amazing value proposition.”
| DSCI Now Offers the Bria Softphone for iPBX |
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DSCI’s iPBX Hosted Communications Service now offers customers one more way to work smarter. With the Bria Softphone, the user makes and receives calls using a PC just as if it were a telephone. The Bria makes an excellent choice as a secondary phone, for example for a home office, but also works well as the primary phone for a user. It seamlessly integrates with iPBX services so that functions such as contact directory listings, personal preference settings, and call handling attributes are carried through whether the user is on his desk phone or the Bria. Focused around the address book rather than the dialpad, Bria’s contact-centric interface provides many one-click call management functions.
Using the Bria Softphone offers a number of benefits including:
- When calls are made with the Bria, caller ID shows your office number just as if you were calling from your desk phone.
- When used on the road, you avoid hotel phone charges or charges to your cell phone because your calls go out over a broadband connection.
- Your Bria has access to all the iPBX enterprise and group directories making one-click dialing quick and easy.
- Using the Bria Softphone does not mean you have to sacrifice call quality. Features such as acoustic echo cancellation, automatic gain control, and voice activity detection make for excellent quality.
The Bria softphone requires standard PC hardware support. It works with Windows 2000 SP4, Vista, or XP, needs a minimum Pentium III processing, and requires 512 MB of system memory and 50 MB of disk space. Any Windows-compliant soundcard is supported. A high-speed Internet connection and headset are also necessary.
| Now's the Time to Upgrade Your Old Phones |
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| DSCI and Polycom Team Up to Offer up to $5,000 in Rebates and Credits |
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Replace your old phones with new Polycom phones between now and June 30, 2010, and Polycom and DSCI will provide you with rebates and credits up to $5,000. The rules are pretty simple:
- Purchase the new phones from DSCI and complete necessary paperwork from Polycom.
- Old equipment must be disposed of in a socially responsible manner by either donating to a charitable organization or recycling with a responsible recycler. (This must be documented.)
- All desktop phones in working condition are eligible for this program. The program does not apply to rental equipment or any Polycom models.
- One unit must be traded in for every qualifying new unit purchased for rebate or credit to apply.
- For every unit purchased, Polycom will rebate the amount listed below and DSCI will apply a $25 credit to the new phone purchase. The rebate/credit is limited to a maximum of 50 phones per customer.
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Purchase these eligible products and trade in qualifying products*
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Polycom equipment end user rebate amount
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Per phone credit from DSCI
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Total value
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SoundPoint IP 335
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$25
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$25
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$50
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SoundPoint IP 450
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$50
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$25
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$75
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SoundPoint IP 550
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$50
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$25
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$75
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SoundPoint IP 560
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$75
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$25
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$100
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SoundPoint IP 650
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$75
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$25
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$100
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SoundPoint IP 670
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$75
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$25
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$100
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