Fast service - all day, every day
Having a Flextel number can help to support you when you most need it, especially when working unusual hours or responding to time-critical emergencies. Just a few of our clients include...
- 24-hour automated systems (e.g. alarms)
- Disaster and recovery planners
- Health care professionals
Benefits
Callers can dial a single Flextel Number at any time, confident that the call will be answered by a support person. Calls are typically routed to the daytime office/work location and then to the person on call at night, via their home or mobile number.
This method of call routing is extremely efficient and far outweighs the current alternatives, which fail to enable smooth functioning of the 24-hour support service.
Standard procedure |
Using Flextel Numbers |
| Lists of different contact numbers which are inconvenient for the caller or disruptive to listed personnel not on call. | Just one Flextel Number is needed, which is routed directly to the person on call. |
| Call diversion can become very expensive and you are not in control of your costs. | Call diversion on some numbers is free of charge. |
| You need to be "on site" to change ordinary diversion. | You can divert a Flextel Number from any location. |
Why?
A Flextel Number is the time efficient way to control out-of-hours calls and easily handover cover between shift workers.
We can help people or companies working with automatic alarm systems, where computers or other 24-hour monitoring equipment need to make calls to a central call centre.
Benefits
Since some Flextel Numbers are entirely free to use, there can be little or no financial impact by upgrading to these numbers for greater security. It all depends on your choice.Example:
Supermarkets have alarms on their freezers to indicate incorrect temperature, this is centrally monitored, so there could be hundreds or thousands of units setup to dial this central call centre. If the telephone number of that call centre had to be changed, every single freezer unit would have to be reprogrammed to dial the new number, taking engineers many days or weeks.
Any alarm or security system that relies on dialling a call centre leaves itself open to this risk. However, if a Flextel Number is used, it would only take a few minutes to reroute the Flextel Number to the new central call centre number.
Why?
If the telephone number of the central call centre changes (or if there is a line fault and calls need to route to a backup site), then it is easier to reroute a single Flextel Number than it is to reprogram all your equipment at each location.
We help people or companies who are responsible for "emergency planning" and manage a Disaster Recovery Programme. Some of these include...
- IT/Telecoms Managers
- Local and Central Government Emergency Planners
- Corporate Strategists
- Emergency Services
- Life Critical services
- Security Services
- Law Enforcement
Benefits
The telecom capability can be instantly restored under your organisation's secure control, rather than being subject to the time for physical repairs to be undertaken.
Example:
There has been an incident local to a strategic centre, where the facility has been evacuated or the phone lines are down.
There are no calls being answered or received as a result.
Using Flextel, calls can be rapidly rerouted to a new location where personnel are available, thus overcoming any bottlenecks or damaged networks.
How does it work?
Incoming phone calls are instantly redirected to a new location, anywhere in the UK:
Single numbers can be redirected using any tone phone or mobile, or even by anyone with PIN authority sending an SMS Text Message to Flextel's SMS gateway dedicated for this purpose.
More advanced multi-number rerouting can be effected via secure internet access using best practice encryption methods protected by a password of your choice up to 40 characters long.
Why?
Rapid restoration of telecoms is a major priority in any crisis situation where telephone links have been disrupted. It is vital they are restored with the minimum delay.
We can help NHS Trust managers, Practice managers, Administrators for GP, Dentist and Veterinary surgeries, and other healthcare managers
Benefits
Cost Saving: You can avoid costly diversion charges by choosing the right service.
Flexibility: You can divert at any time, to any place or number.
No future number changes: Your number need never change again.
How does it work?
A single Flextel Number would be used as the main surgery contact number, where patients can call this number day or night. The number would be directed to the main surgery during opening hours, whilst at night it would be diverted to either the doctor on call, medical co-operative or specialist messaging service. When surgery opening hours recommence, the number would simply be re-routed back to the surgery phone line. So now you can choose to receive calls wherever you are!
How Flextel Numbers can improve surgery efficiency:
- Connect your Flextel Number...
- Route it to the surgery's phone line...
- After surgery divert it to the doctor on call, medical co-operative or messaging service...
- Then re-divert it back to the surgery's phone line in the morning.
Flextel Numbers always work in parallel with your original surgery phone lines and on-call mobile numbers, so you can introduce them gradually without disruption to your service.
How to advertise your new number
- Advertise locally in the surgery: A notice in the Waiting Room will alert many people, small printed handouts given out by the receptionist when checking-in would help as a reminder.
- Advertise via the original surgery number: The answerphone on the old number can be used for a limited period and kept active for out-of-hours calls.
- Advertise via the phone book: Flextel provides a free directory-listing service, where your new number can be seen in BT's White pages, Yellow pages and Thomson Local directories.
Why?
Flextel's solution to call diversion has been adopted successfully by many surgeries and is considered important in the current climate of patient care and support.
A Flextel Number is an effective means of controlling out-of-hours calls by providing a flexible call diversion service. This service allows greater control over incoming calls by enabling you to divert them to any location easily and speedily. Outgoing calls are unaffected by the service and you can use other cost saving features here.
The previously used alternative of an answering machine for out-of-hours calls is considered obsolete by modern practices, due to the inconvenience to the patients at a time when they need an available doctor for support. Our inbuilt voicemail and fax features support efficient and flexible operation.
More than four million Britons have abandoned the workplace in favour of working from home. Research, released in June 2015, shows a surge of 800,000 people becoming home workers over the past decade. Analysis of Government figures reveals that the total number regularly working from home is now at 4.2 million – up from 3.4m in 2005.
This surge in home working is being fuelled by the right to request Flexible Working, as well as technological advances making it easy for people to work remotely, according to the Institute for Employment Studies.
According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, employers need to adapt to the changing nature of work and this starts with recognising that working life can exist outside of the four walls of an office environment.
The demand for Flexible Working can help to significantly reduce overheads. As a business owner you probably welcome this aspect of home or remote working, but you still want your business presented in a professional and consistently branded manner.
- How can Flextel help you deal with the complex communications issues created by employees using a mix of office, mobile and home phones?
- How can we help you keep control of your business communications channel, so you can present a professional business image?
Read on...
For traditional office-based businesses a move to, even partial, Home Working obviously saves on the direct costs of office space and all the associated overheads of heating, lighting, parking spaces etc. Home workers themselves save on travel time and travel costs.
Other, less obvious, benefits are continued staff availability in adverse weather conditions and lower levels of sick leave and absenteeism.
Businesses also become more resilient in terms of disaster recovery by the impact of theft, fire or flood. Even in the face of terrorist attacks such as the Canary Wharf Bombing in 1996, the Twin towers bombings in 2001, due to the spatial diversity introduced by Home Working.
However, one of the key challenges is to ensure that staff continue to make and receive calls via the published business numbers. These calls should also be logged for performance monitoring and recorded for training, quality and audit/compliance purposes.
The Flextel system provides a low cost, high quality solution by providing Flexible phone numbers with a range of powerful, built-in features that are controlled by management, but given to Flexible Workers to use. This means that calls made or received on personal mobile or home phones use the main business number or a dedicated direct-dial number allocated to each specific employee or agent.
Home life can be protected from disruption from out-of-hours business calls by using our simple, but powerful, Diary feature. Out-of-hours calls can be scheduled to our integrated Voicemail facility or even routed worldwide to available staff in different time zones.
Costs and Control
The cost of all business calls is billed directly to the company and not to the personal phone bill. There is no need to claim for call costs or to have to administer separating personal and business calls. Any phone or mobile can be used as its bill is unaffected.The service, developed over twenty years of careful design, is unique in the UK. As well as all the usual powerful features, Flextel's system also provides a two tier control system. Level 1 is used by staff to control where they wish to make and receive calls, using a simple numeric PIN. Level 2 gives Management override access via a dedicated account and password.
By providing home workers with dedicated Flexible numbers, they control where they need to make and receive calls. If the home worker leaves or becomes unavailable you can simply change the PIN and redirect all business calls to another home worker or group of home workers. So your business services are uninterrupted and protected from theft.
Number Choice
You can choose from various types of numbers depending on your specific market needs e.g. 0800 Freephone numbers, Local numbers, 03 numbers for lower call cost nationwide use and 084 numbers, where the service can cost you nothing to operate. Regardless of which number type you select they all come packed with the same set of powerful features, many free of charge.
"As a mobile surf business we are on the go constantly and our 0844 Flextel number fits perfectly with the way our business operates. It means we can be on the move and answer customers from anywhere. Flextel is ideal for any business requiring a unique number for ease of use and flexibility." -- Thurso Surf School
We help those who need to be 'in two places at once' or are hard to track down (usually requires calling several numbers) because they're always on the move. Our clients include...
- Travelling Salespeople
- Road Warriors
- Armed Services
- Temporary Contractors
- Building Site Labourers
- Locksmiths
- Mobile Valeting
- Taxi firms
- Personal trainers / sports coaches
- University Students
Benefits
The area of business you work in requires frequent travelling and/or relocation, yet you do not wish to burden your contacts by frequently updating them with new phone numbers. The ideal solution is to have a single permanent number that can be routed to the new number each time you relocate. The Flextel service delivers this through a single Flexible Telephone number.
By using a Flextel Number, you only ever need a single point of contact. Flextel Numbers enable seamless transfer of your communication systems and eradicate the possibility of missing important calls from clients and/or business contacts.
Examples:
Executive Motors representatives travel great distance, often spending nights in hotels before returning to central office the next day. All personnel are provided with a Flextel Number, which they simply move with them. This helps Executive Motors by ensuring that they keep in contact with their employees through just one number.
Smith's Contractors work on complex building projects, spending long periods on site and so use site cabins for offices. Once their office phone lines are connected at a new site, they can simply route their Flextel Number to the temporary office phone and therefore stay in contact with both past and future clients by the redirection of all calls to the site office line.
Why?
All Flextel Numbers are also completely free of monthly services charges, so there are absolutely no bills to worry about as you move from location to location. Some are completely free to own and operate.
We help organisations with elected members or posts/positions that frequently change.
Benefits
When people contact an organisation, they usually want to correspond with
a particular role within the organisation rather than with a specific individual. For example, a prospective member would want
to contact the membership secretary, or if a member has an article for the organisations
newsletter he would want to contact the editor.
After most elections there is usually
some change, but by using Flextel Numbers there is no need to update contacts with new numbers for each position, as a unique phone number can be assigned to each role within the group in order to cover future personnel changes.
For example, when the membership secretary retires, people will immediately speak to the new membership secretary when calling the same Flextel Number. Having one Flextel Number per position can save the club
money, as all Flextel Numbers are completely free to own and some are even free to use.
Flextel Numbers can also be obtained in a memorable block of consecutive numbers so that stationery and publications can look more organised:
- President:
As well as for long term strategic benefits, Flextel's services can also be used for temporary changes, such as if a member is ill or unavailable.
Example:
The Chairperson of a Third World debt relief charity is away on holiday and is unable to deal with calls at that time. With a Flextel Number arrangement in the committee, enquirers can still call the Chairperson's number but be instantly redirected to the Vice-Chairperson who is available to deal with their call.
This approach will make the charity appear more organised than others and may affect the number of donations they receive, as usually the absent member's telephone is left to ring, or is answered by a machine indicating when the member will return.
The alternative would be to send out notifications to all interested parties (members, other organisations, press etc.) informing them of the new contact phone number. This is expensive and unprofessional, since retired members may frequently be interrupted with enquiries and have to provide the enquirer with the phone number of the replacing individual. In light of this, it seems that Flextel provides the ideal solution to gain more smooth functioning for all types of organisations.
Why?
A Flextel Number is a phone number that can be linked to a position or title, not just an individual, for the lifetime of a club or association. The personnel may change, but the contact phone number will remain the same.
- Change of phone line service - e.g. a single line to multiple line PABX, or analogue to digital ISDN.
- Minor Office relocation - even when moving just down the road, your ordinary number can change.
- Expansion of capacity - e.g. telesales lines need expansion yet there are no spare lines left on that number.
Call Statistics
Businesses need to be able to plan and budget, so being able to analyse your incoming call data helps you to do this. With Call Statistics you can control overheads, allocate resources and plan future expansion. This feature is available on all 01, 02, 03, 08 and 070 numbers and provides you with the following information:| All | How many calls are made to each of your Flextel Numbers? Measure the effect your advertising campaigns have on your business. |
| Busy | How many callers get the busy tone? More phone lines might be needed. |
| Unanswered | How many calls are being missed? More operators might be needed. |
| Answered | How many calls do your operators receive? If you know how many calls your operators can handle in an hour, then you can assess your staffing levels. |
| Ringing | How long, on average, does it take to answer calls? This may indicate a need for staff training. |
| Conversation | Is the average conversation too long? Valuable resources may be being stretched which could indicate a need to upgrade your brochure ware. |
Call Statistics are accessed using the 'Statistics' link when logged into your Account. You can view call data in either monthly or daily format for the last 3 months and also see daily data up to the previous day.
With traditional call diversion (or call forwarding) services, your contacts pay for their call to your number, but you then have to pay the cost of a further call from your number to your phone or mobile. With Flextel it's completely different. When you use the right Flextel Number to manage your incoming calls, the caller pays the full cost of the call but this time you do not pay for redirection, even to mobile phones.
By using Intelligent Network technology, call redirection happens at a very early stage in the call, so for some Flextel Numbers there is no charge incurred when undergoing call diversion.
Flextel lets you block nuisance calls in a number of ways. The most powerful method for specific callers is to use the Call Blocker feature.
The Call Blocker service gives you free unlimited blocking of nuisance and sales calls. As well as costing you nothing, there are no restrictions on how many numbers you can block.
You can even choose between blocking specific numbers and blocking a whole number range, such as all 0845 or 090 numbers, giving you the freedom to answer genuine calls without worrying about repeat cold-callers again.
Just logon to your account, and click Call Blocker. Now type in the number you want to block and add a label to remind you about the caller. Then press the BLOCK button. You can also apply blocking to just one number or for 'All Numbers' contained in your account. Next time blocked callers dial they hear a message informing them that you are not available.
Alternatively, if you enable the "mid-call blocking" feature on this page, then you can just dial
during any call to block it instantly. The mid-call blocker is not only quick, it also lets you block callers who withhold their number!
Auto-Attendant is a really effective way of deterring unwanted sales calls. It stops all the Automatic diallers and Robot sales calls; because they can't press the menu options, and they will automatically drop the call before being connected through to you.
Unlike the Call Blocker service, this method will stop callers who suppress their Caller-ID number or who are calling for the first time.
Your recorded message, announcing who you are, will also alert any callers if they have the wrong number or have mis-dialled and will reduce the number of cold calls you receive.
0871 numbers are the ideal tool to grow your Flextel Rewards and get the upper hand on unwanted calls. Because the all of your callers should be calling from businesses, there's no need to inform them of the call costs - this is only a legal requirement when an 0871 number is dialled by consumers, not businesses.
However, no-one wants to be on the phone constantly when they could be doing other things. One solution is to use our switchboard system, where an automated system greets cold callers on your behalf. It then waits for your extension number to be dialled, before ringing your phone, letting your FlexPoints grow while you sleep.
There can be network issues, which mis-route calls.
A recent example:
Callers in the Norwich area dialling 0800 numbers were being mis-routed to an 0870 number causing an extreme nuisance to the number owner and much annoyance and frustration for callers. Callers couldn't understand why they couldn't get to the right company. The 0870 number owner was infuriated trying to repeatedly explain that they hadn't mis-dialled but there was a problem in their area, which was causing these nuisance calls.
Solution:
- Auto-Attendant was activated on the 0870 number.
- The Auto-Attendant recorded message advised callers to 0800 numbers, from the Norwich area, to press Option 1.
- A dedicated Voicemail number was set-up on Option 1. This gave a recorded message for Norwich callers.
We can help anyone who doesn't want to give out their personal phone number, but still needs to be contacted at home or on their mobile on certain occasions.
Benefits
You can still take important calls, without having to reveal your personal phone numbers. You can always dispose of any unwanted numbers and get another for free.
Example
An important call is due from an overseas customer, but they do not start work until after your office hours finish.By using a Flextel Number as your work contact number, the call can be received at home but will not reveal the underlying landline/mobile number.
This means that there is no risk of out-of-hours calls becoming frequent interruptions in the future, as the number can be diverted to your office line or voicemail service at night.
There are many more applications, such as charity work involving vulnerable people and child protection. Some people even use them for web and phone based dating services, this helps them protect their long-term privacy if things don't work out.
Privacy & Personal Security
Although 070 Numbers have always had an important role in protection of mobile numbers and home location, 08xx numbers, once primarily for business use, are now increasingly being used by consumers to safeguard both their home phone numbers and hence location. This can help reduce the risk of identity theft and unsolicited home phone calls.Why?
A Flextel Number is a phone number that can be routed when you want and where you want. For some numbers, you can do this completely free of charge. When you no longer need it, just discard it and get a new low cost number.
Our Free Switchboard now comes with Call Queuing. With powerful call progress, distribution and management features, it handles excess calls with ease!
Our Switchboard (Auto-Attendant) and Call Queuing features are completely free to use with 03, 0844, 0845, 0870 and 0871 phone numbers. Call Queuing costs just 1p/minute when using 01 or 02 local numbers, but Auto-Attendant is free. 0800 Freephone costs just 3p/minute extra to pay the cost for a Free call to your business. There is no monthly fee or long term contract.
The Queue feature is a dynamic call distribution system that allows your callers to enter a queue, hear where they are in the queue and how long they have to wait to have their calls answered. Your callers are delivered to a set of designated "extensions" using a distribution strategy of your choice...
Extensions can be traditional landline phone, mobiles or even SIP Phones, using Flextel's low cost, high quality VoIP service. Extensions can be located anywhere in the world. The queue can be controlled by our integrated diary service and calls can be recorded.
Flextel lets you combine multiple features, such as Auto-Attendant, Hunt Group, Call-Blast or Diary Rerouting.
It's easy to build flexible tailored solutions, designed to suit your needs.
If you have any questions why not contact us and we can talk through all your options.
Every Flextel number comes with a wide range of powerful features, most are free to use. By combining Auto Attendant, Call Queuing, VoIP services, Call Blasting and Voicemail you can create a powerful cloud based Switchboard tailored to suit your business needs. No complex hardware to maintain, no software to update and no more power-outage panics.
What's more, by choosing the right number, you could decide to operate your switchboard completely free of charge.
- If you want to pay for all calls, then simply choose Freephone 0800 number.
- If you want you caller to pay, then choose 0844 or 0845 numbers.
- If you want to earn revenue from the service you provide, then your best choice is 0870 or 0871 numbers.
- If you want to share the cost then choose a local area 01 or 02 numbers or select an elegant UK-wide Corporate 03 number.
- If you're a Charity or a Government body (e.g. a local or regional council or agency) you might like to consider a special 030 number (your organisation will need to prove its standing to obtain one).
Local Business Image
To present a local image, shop for 01 and 02 numbers (we have every part of the UK covered).National Business Image
Use 03 for low cost national access for your callers. 0800 for free calls to your Switchboard.Want the "London Look"?
Just shop for our elegant London City numbers.Smart Attractive and Cherished Numbers
Some very attractive numbers can cost up to £1000. The choice is yours. It's all about you and the needs of your business image.Free Switchboard?
To make a Switchboard that is free to operate, that doesn't cost too much to call, we recommend you choose a Free 0845 number. We charge your callers just 7p/minute. Their mobile or phone provider charge them an access fee in addition.
Configuring your number is really easy...
- Just set your number to the Auto attendant mode.
- Record your extensions selection menu.
- Program each extension to point to the right number for each department. These can be a ordinary landline, mobile, SIP phone using our VoIP service.
- Decide if you want the caller to be able to leave a message, if no one answers.
Advanced Ideas
You can also set each extension to point to other Flextel numbers that can use any of these features. e.g. set one to Auto Attendant to extend the menu to another level!
To make a better switchboard, make each extension another Flextel Number and set it to Queue Mode each queue can ring several extensions, in sequence or simultaneously using various powerful call strategies.
So the possibilities are endless only limited by your imagination and ingenuity.Unsure? Contact us for advice.
1. Test Phase
Set up and test your new Hosted Switchboard on new numbers. Ideally use the same number range as you are using for your current system e.g. 01, 02 or 0870 etc. This will make the switch-over phase easier.2. Assessment Phase
Now you can take your time to test and assess all the benefits of the new system e.g. Call recording, Call Statistics, Call Notification. etc. You can familiarise yourself with its benefits and learn how to control this powerful, but simple service, without risk or significant cost.3. Switch-over Phase
If you are completely happy, you simply apply to Flextel to transfer your existing PABX numbers to your new Switchboard. This takes a few days, but occurs at an agreed time, so there is no break in your business services.4. Tidy-up Phase
Now you're free to sell or recycle all your old PABX and wired telephone equipment, saving power and recovering valuable office space. You can then cancel any PABX maintenance and/or rental contracts. Now you enjoy all the business benefits of 21st century worry-free flexible technology. You'll also save money!Benefits
Flextel provides a wide selection of memorable numbers. Some cost absolutely nothing to operate, others are cheaper for your callers to call, as they can be included in their phone or mobile price plan bundle. You can choose the range that is best suited to your business application.
Many of our customers have found Flextel Numbers to be an investment for the future, since they can be sold as a business asset.
For TV and Radio advertising, high call volume is not a problem for Flextel Numbers. You can easily connect to a major call centre at the peak of your campaign, then save costs by directing calls back to your normal sales team once the inquiry volume has subsided to manageable levels.
Examples of uses for high-profile Flextel Numbers:
- National Adverts
- 0330 3210 CAR (for a local-based company who needs a national presence)
- 08008 321 CAR (for a car dealer firm who want to maximise sales calls)
- TV & Radio Advertising can use very memorable numbers
- 020717 54321 (London style)
- 087131 54321 (National presence with minimal call overhead)
- 087131 LUCKY (Prize lines etc)
- Operation Support
- 0844 664 HELP (PC Manufacture's help desk)
- 08719 747 999 (Alarm company's emergency support)
How can Flextel Numbers be best used in publicity campaigns?
- National points of presence for regional companies;
- Powerful numbers for campaign responses;
- Memorable numbers for TV or Radio advertising campaigns;
- Temporary numbers for Special Events, such as Exhibitions.
Find your brand or personal image in and connect it in minutes...
We provide several ranges of numbers, from which your personal choice can be selected. Some cost absolutely nothing to operate, others are cheaper for your callers to call, as they may be included in their phone or mobile price plan bundle.
Many of our customers have found Flextel's cherished numbers to be an investment for the future since they can be sold as a valuable item.
Personal Image Enhancement Ideas
- 0844 772 BOSS
- 0844 5005 007
- 0844 66 44 BMW
- 087 087 4 ANDY
Ideas for Personalised Number applications
- Unique and personalised gifts?
- Powerful, elegant or temporary numbers for concert responses?
- Memorable number for TV or Radio advertising campaigns?
- Temporary numbers for special events e.g. prize promotion?
- National points of presence for artists, music bands and celebs?
We can help individuals or companies who want to create the appearance of having a 'main' UK office or headquarters but prefer to run their business from several places - such as at home, in hotels while on the move, in various different offices and even abroad.
Benefits
- Travel more freely without being restricted to a particular telephone number.
- Take your Flextel Number with you.
- Divert calls to other personnel or associates who can take calls for you when you are in an important meeting.
Using a Flextel Number will also ensure that callers will not know the size of your business as well as where it is located, meaning that regional businesses can have greater national presence.
Example:
Your virtual address is in London but you normally receive calls in Glasgow. Today, you want your associate in Manchester to answer your business calls. By rerouting your Flextel number to them, they can easily manage your calls without your callers being aware of the location change.
Why?
You may use a virtual office/mailing address in one part of the country and receive incoming calls in another, or you may not want callers to know your geographical location when you answer incoming calls.
Many Flextel numbers are completely free to use, so won't affect your long-term business budget. Even start-up businesses will find Flextel Numbers to be an investment for the future, since they can be sold as an asset.
Fast service - all day, every day
Having a Flextel number can help to support you when you most need it, especially when working unusual hours or responding to time-critical emergencies. Just a few of our clients include...
- 24-hour automated systems (e.g. alarms)
- Disaster and recovery planners
- Health care professionals
Benefits
Callers can dial a single Flextel Number at any time, confident that the call will be answered by a support person. Calls are typically routed to the daytime office/work location and then to the person on call at night, via their home or mobile number.
This method of call routing is extremely efficient and far outweighs the current alternatives, which fail to enable smooth functioning of the 24-hour support service.
Standard procedure |
Using Flextel Numbers |
| Lists of different contact numbers which are inconvenient for the caller or disruptive to listed personnel not on call. | Just one Flextel Number is needed, which is routed directly to the person on call. |
| Call diversion can become very expensive and you are not in control of your costs. | Call diversion on some numbers is free of charge. |
| You need to be "on site" to change ordinary diversion. | You can divert a Flextel Number from any location. |
Why?
A Flextel Number is the time efficient way to control out-of-hours calls and easily handover cover between shift workers.
We can help people or companies working with automatic alarm systems, where computers or other 24-hour monitoring equipment need to make calls to a central call centre.
Benefits
Since some Flextel Numbers are entirely free to use, there can be little or no financial impact by upgrading to these numbers for greater security. It all depends on your choice.Example:
Supermarkets have alarms on their freezers to indicate incorrect temperature, this is centrally monitored, so there could be hundreds or thousands of units setup to dial this central call centre. If the telephone number of that call centre had to be changed, every single freezer unit would have to be reprogrammed to dial the new number, taking engineers many days or weeks.
Any alarm or security system that relies on dialling a call centre leaves itself open to this risk. However, if a Flextel Number is used, it would only take a few minutes to reroute the Flextel Number to the new central call centre number.
Why?
If the telephone number of the central call centre changes (or if there is a line fault and calls need to route to a backup site), then it is easier to reroute a single Flextel Number than it is to reprogram all your equipment at each location.
We help people or companies who are responsible for "emergency planning" and manage a Disaster Recovery Programme. Some of these include...
- IT/Telecoms Managers
- Local and Central Government Emergency Planners
- Corporate Strategists
- Emergency Services
- Life Critical services
- Security Services
- Law Enforcement
Benefits
The telecom capability can be instantly restored under your organisation's secure control, rather than being subject to the time for physical repairs to be undertaken.
Example:
There has been an incident local to a strategic centre, where the facility has been evacuated or the phone lines are down.
There are no calls being answered or received as a result.
Using Flextel, calls can be rapidly rerouted to a new location where personnel are available, thus overcoming any bottlenecks or damaged networks.
How does it work?
Incoming phone calls are instantly redirected to a new location, anywhere in the UK:
Single numbers can be redirected using any tone phone or mobile, or even by anyone with PIN authority sending an SMS Text Message to Flextel's SMS gateway dedicated for this purpose.
More advanced multi-number rerouting can be effected via secure internet access using best practice encryption methods protected by a password of your choice up to 40 characters long.
Why?
Rapid restoration of telecoms is a major priority in any crisis situation where telephone links have been disrupted. It is vital they are restored with the minimum delay.
We can help NHS Trust managers, Practice managers, Administrators for GP, Dentist and Veterinary surgeries, and other healthcare managers
Benefits
Cost Saving: You can avoid costly diversion charges by choosing the right service.
Flexibility: You can divert at any time, to any place or number.
No future number changes: Your number need never change again.
How does it work?
A single Flextel Number would be used as the main surgery contact number, where patients can call this number day or night. The number would be directed to the main surgery during opening hours, whilst at night it would be diverted to either the doctor on call, medical co-operative or specialist messaging service. When surgery opening hours recommence, the number would simply be re-routed back to the surgery phone line. So now you can choose to receive calls wherever you are!
How Flextel Numbers can improve surgery efficiency:
- Connect your Flextel Number...
- Route it to the surgery's phone line...
- After surgery divert it to the doctor on call, medical co-operative or messaging service...
- Then re-divert it back to the surgery's phone line in the morning.
Flextel Numbers always work in parallel with your original surgery phone lines and on-call mobile numbers, so you can introduce them gradually without disruption to your service.
How to advertise your new number
- Advertise locally in the surgery: A notice in the Waiting Room will alert many people, small printed handouts given out by the receptionist when checking-in would help as a reminder.
- Advertise via the original surgery number: The answerphone on the old number can be used for a limited period and kept active for out-of-hours calls.
- Advertise via the phone book: Flextel provides a free directory-listing service, where your new number can be seen in BT's White pages, Yellow pages and Thomson Local directories.
Why?
Flextel's solution to call diversion has been adopted successfully by many surgeries and is considered important in the current climate of patient care and support.
A Flextel Number is an effective means of controlling out-of-hours calls by providing a flexible call diversion service. This service allows greater control over incoming calls by enabling you to divert them to any location easily and speedily. Outgoing calls are unaffected by the service and you can use other cost saving features here.
The previously used alternative of an answering machine for out-of-hours calls is considered obsolete by modern practices, due to the inconvenience to the patients at a time when they need an available doctor for support. Our inbuilt voicemail and fax features support efficient and flexible operation.
