We are the Champions..We are Agnostic!

Most days this is less a blog and more an assessment or statement about the IP Community. Today, it is a blog or web log or what happened to me lately. Yesterday I received the following call:

"Hi, is this David Byrd?" the caller asked.

With a little hesitation, after all the caller had not identified himself, I answered "Yes, good afternoon."

"Hey I read somewhere that Broadvox interoperated with more PBXs than any other service provider. Is that true?"

Answering quickly, I said "Yes".

"Good then which IP PBX do you recommend?"

Uh oh..."We don't recommend a PBX platform, IAD or router. We make sure that whatever platform you select will work with our services. It is important for us to remain agnostic with regard to the OEMs themselves."

Now there was silence. I waited to see where the conversation was going but I had a pretty good idea. This was not the first time I have had a call like this. It is difficult with all of the IP PBX makes and models to choose what will be best for a given business. I could hear the breathing go deeper and prepared for the next question.

"Then how do I decide?" he pleaded.

Realistically, asking a business owner to develop a matrix containing all the appropriate criteria and proper weighting borders on the ridiculous. And, yes, I was assuming it was a small business. In general, enterprises never ask for advice, unless they are paying for it and medium size companies have the resources to conduct the research and evaluation. Therefore, the answer lies in a subject we hit upon a few blogs ago. This prospect needs a relationship with a trusted VAR. While we do understand the ins and outs of Panasonic, Sutus, Avaya, Microsoft, AudioCodes, Asterisk and many others (please forgive me if you were not mentioned), we perform the proper evaluation of equipment for a given business. A VAR/Dealer is best suited to that cause.

My answer then is, "Let me put you in touch with one of our VAR Partner Program members in your area. Meet with them and let them work with you to determine the best platform for your company. When that is concluded, we will be glad to develop a SIP Trunking pattern that will serve your company well."

I hope you all agree that is a good way to move the process forward. If not, let me know your thoughts.

See you on Friday.