The way you communicate with your employees and the way employees interact with one another is called business communication.
Most businesses get overwhelmed with planning their marketing strategies and sales production, but they often forget about the most important thing in a company — communication.
Having unified communications (UC) in place not only improves your professional relationships but also increases profit to your business.
Think of it this way: when each department is cooperating, customer service is delivered in a better, more efficient manner.
We all know that customer service isn’t just about addressing your client’s needs, it also has to do with sales and marketing. And having effective communication internally means that you’ll have healthy business communication externally.
Are you wondering how to establish a good UC strategy for your business? Here are some simple steps that you can follow.
1. Choose the Right Channels for Your UC
Just like choosing the right platform for your social media marketing, you should select the right channels for your business communication.
Internal communications can be done through SMS texts, instant messages, and video or audio calls. You also need a platform where you can track all your employees’ tasks, and when necessary, make these tasks visible to other employees.
Examples of some channels that you can use to unify your business communications are Gmail, WhatsApp, and Zoom. These apps provide all the basic processes — texting, emailing, and video conferencing. To track and update tasks, you may use Asana, Trello, or Slack. The goal here is to keep everyone on the same page and make important information accessible. Ensure everyone is kept in on the loop and that all your employees are comfortable using the platforms you’ve chosen.
2. Determine Your Employees’ Key Tasks
Employees need to know their role in your company, that’s how they’ll meet your expectations, visions, and goals. It also sets healthy boundaries between managers and subordinates.
When your team members know what’s expected from them, they have success indicators and focus on their responsibilities. Simply put, they will know what they’re doing.
Not providing a clear job description may confuse everyone and can negatively impact your business. Sure, some people can act as a one-man show. However, this isn’t possible in big companies.
Working on multiple tasks at a time can make you less productive. So, set clear objectives, define each person’s role, and let everyone know what they need to accomplish.
3. Use a Cloud-Based Phone System
Let’s say you’ve already chosen some platforms to improve your business communications. But what about having a system that lets you perform all your tasks with ease and flexibility?
Using a cloud-based phone system like Ultatel for your business provides hassle-free communication and increased productivity.
These phone systems are most helpful for companies that have employees working outside the office. They allow users to answer calls and reply to emails on any device — mobile, laptop, or softphone.
Just keep your lines open and make sure you have a good internet connection, this allows your calls to be routed easily. In short, if your goal is to get mobility, scalability and flexibility in your company, you should invest in a cloud phone system.
4. Take Time to Learn and Train Your Employees
You may have all the right platforms and devices in place, but not providing adequate training might ruin your UC strategy.
When implementing a UC platform, set training and familiarizing periods. For example, your employees may be used to using traditional phones and they might need time to learn about using cloud technologies.
New technologies provide convenience and upskilled efficiency but a lack of orientation may slow down the whole business operation. Make sure your employees are equipped with the right knowledge and training so you can maximize all your assets.
5. Create a UC Strategy that Fits Your Business
Again, this is all about finding the right tool for your business. Before you implement a UC strategy, study your company workflow. What’s your daily operation like? What feedback do you need from your employees?
If you’re already using some communication tools, ask for feedback from your employees regarding their functioning. Let them suggest possible platforms or devices that can be beneficial for your business.
The goal here is to know which platforms are most useful for your business, and how they can be great investments towards success.
You also need to empower your employees so they can remain productive and happy with their work.
6. Test Your Communication Channels
After evaluating your business processes and establishing a UC strategy, you need to test your methods.
It’s not necessary to include all departments during the testing period. You can observe at least 2 departments for around 1-2 weeks and get feedback from selected team members.
Make sure that during the testing period, your employees have maximized all your communication methods. After all, it’s about knowing what works and what doesn’t. When you’re done with the observation period, you can present the final UC strategy to the entire members of your organization.
7. Let Everyone Interact and Establish a Clear Process
Having unified communication methods would be useless if you don’t give everyone a voice in your company.
Team leaders shouldn’t be the only ones making decisions, involve the entire workforce in the decision-making process. Whether you are launching a new product, promoting an existing one, or setting new company rules, everyone should be allowed to contribute ideas.
Powerful channels only serve as a support for your business communication, but the real communication starts within your circle. If you don’t value your employees’ ideas and opinions, how can you see their full potential?
8. Always Have Room for Improvement
Nothing starts off perfectly. Your unified communications strategy may undergo a series of tests and retests, this is a regular process that will ensure improvement.
Remember, technology is always changing. If you want to succeed and stay relevant, you must adapt to changes. Adaptability opens up opportunities for new ideas and leads the organization to new horizons.
Summary & Takeaways
Not all businesses have established communication strategies. If you’re one of the companies that haven’t thought about UC yet, it’s a great idea to start now.
Excellent customer service comes from good internal communication. If you want your business to succeed and you want to promote a healthy internal working environment, you should unify your business communications.
Just follow the steps above to guide you and your team towards seamless and effective communication.
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