Exertis and Poly have recently launched Exertis Voice, which offers the best of UC, SaaS and deep analytics to provide a digital solution that can help make the transition from analogue to digital seamless.
With the public switched telephone network (PSTN) switch-off and stop-sell approaching quickly, businesses need to switch to digital communications to avoid the possibility of interruption to their operations.
However, many are unaware of this impending change. “Through recent surveys it’s estimated that roughly 45% of UK businesses are unaware of the PSTN switch off at the end of 2025 or know what it means,” says Steve Jobburns, UC&C manager at Exertis Voice. “It’s also stated that 62% of UK businesses are still using landlines. It’s a frightening amount, it should be something that’s advertised more to the public on the likes of billboards or even on the sides of buses but unfortunately it’s not. This education needs to come from our reseller community within the channel providing guidance to businesses that have not made the leap.”
This should be part of the conversation resellers are having with customers, Steve adds. “If the conversation hasn’t already taken place it needs to happen ASAP. Explanations of the significant changes and impact it can have on a business needs to be discussed. Managed migration plans need to be put in place to ensure a smooth transition of services.”
To assist with this, Exertis has teamed up with Poly to launch Exertis Voice, which can make the transition from analogue to digital seamless for customers, while helping them differentiate themselves as a trusted partner during this time of change.
Bringing the best together
“Exertis Voice is a multi-tenanted hosted voice platform that brings together the best of unified communications, Software as a Service (SaaS) and deep analytics to power businesses of any size,” says Steve. “It provides customers with a reliable, future-proof UC&C cloud-based solution giving them the ability to be more agile, flexible and productive in the modern workplace.”
Steve adds that Exertis Voice has been built with four main components in mind that they believe are most important to end users: PBX functionality, mobile PBX, analytics and reporting and collaboration.
“All areas of the product are simple to use from provisioning and deployment all the way down to the end user experience,” he adds. “The platform uses one single portal for all provisioning, control, analytics, reporting and recordings that can be white labelled – not only for resellers, but also for the end customer. In a world where businesses are using different collaboration products we offer aggregated presence across multiple platforms, so, whether you’re in a Exertis Voice call, Teams meeting, Slack huddle or out of office that information can be shared across the business keeping everyone updated.
“With the advancements of the hybrid workplace, key data plays a big role with the way businesses are run. This is where our cost-effective analytics solution can be the perfect tool to monitor call handling, productivity and staff wellbeing using advanced AI technology. To make it even easier for our resellers, we offer managed services ranging from site surveys, product deployment, end user training plus a 24/7/365 support team that’s readily available when needed.”
The product is scalable for customers from one to 1,000 plus users. “UC products and cloud services need to be 100% flexible, giving resellers and their end users the ability to be agile and scale when required with a click of a button,” Steve explains.
“We don’t want to tie our resellers into long-term contracts, so we only offer month-to-month rolling licences. Our solution is modular so it allows resellers to cater for their customers exactly how they need it to be without having to sell them bundles with add-ons that might not be needed – therefore keeping the costs to a minimum as well as giving them a smart solution.”
Poly perfect
Exertis has partnered with Poly for Exertis Voice, and Steve says that, as a global brand and market leader, Poly was a perfect choice to compliment Exertis Voice in terms of end points and accessories. “Poly offer a comprehensive set of ‘best in class’ devices such as headsets, desk, dect and conference phones to cater for any businesses needs and are all fully accredited with the Exertis Voice platform,” he says. “The provisioning and deployment of the devices are set up to be plug and play so it couldn’t be easier for our resellers and their end customers.
“We’ve got a great partner relationship with the team from Poly built on reliability, trust and innovation – not just with them as a business but with their products and devices. They were a natural choice for us to partner with for Exertis Voice.”
Reseller opportunities
Exertis Voice brings “huge” opportunities to resellers, Steve adds. “The opportunities are not just for telecoms resellers, but for all IT and technology resellers in the channel,” he says. “We are now starting to see UCaaS or UC&C moving towards more of a SaaS model, unlike the days of traditional PBX systems; our UC/SaaS solution is easy to deploy, manage and maintain for any technology reseller as well as their end customer.
“Businesses of all sizes are looking for more strategic, long-term, cost-effective, smarter solutions to enable them in the hybrid work arena. Exertis Voice ticks all the boxes. It’s an ideal innovative, future-proof solution that can be used as a single line voice replacement all the way up to an enterprise organisation. We can also offer advanced features and functionality that’s normally out of the price range for your average SMB making it a very disruptive product in the market.
“Throw into the mix the PSTN switch off and more importantly the PSTN stop sell being enforced in September this year, there’s still millions of lines out there that need to transition over to IP, in fact it’s estimated that they’ll be just over 14 million cloud-based communication users in the UK by the end of 2025 that’s roughly six million new users up for grabs.
“Overall, Exertis Voice can become a steady reoccurring revenue stream for any business when done successfully.”
Big deals
Following on from the launch event, and in conjunction with Poly, Exertis has announced some deals for its partners, Steve adds. “Firstly, any new partner signing up for Exertis Voice will receive a free phone system for their business, this includes softphones with video and collaboration, analytics and reporting as well as unlimited call recordings and free storage for life!” he says.
“Secondly, we’re offering a super bundle package that’s nearly half the price of the wholesale costs. Finally, ‘when we get a deal… you get a deal’ – customers can buy a Poly handset from us and get up to 36 months’ worth of user licences free of charge for every device purchased.”
Now, Exertis Voice is looking to capitalise on the successful launch event and is continuing with advertising, marketing campaigns and recruitment. “Look out for further roadshows and events,” he says.
