Frequently Asked Questions

About Solgari

What does Solgari do?

Solgari provides Cloud Integrated Communication Services including Hosted PBX, Conferencing, Predictive Dialling, Contact Centre, IVR, VoIP and SIP Trunking to businesses all around the world. Solgari provides services to small and enterprise level companies to meet their telephony needs, typically replacing existing in house telephony software and hardware such as PBX. Uniquely this is a true global cloud service which can meet customer requirements anywhere in the world. Our ability to integrate our services with email, CRM, mobile and Social Media provides real growth opportunities to our customers by allowing their employees operate more efficiently.

What can Solgari do for our business?

Our customer proposition is simple: we enable our customers to increase revenues, reduce costs and transform their businesses.

Is Solgari long established?

We have a 3 year track record in Cloud Communication Services. Our management team has a long track record of success in telephony software, having established and managed a number of companies in this space. We also hold a number of worldwide patents in the fields of telephony and biometrics. We set up Solgari in recognition that the cloud proposition is dramatically changing the telephony landscape for the better.

Where are you located?

Solgari EMEA HQ is located in Dublin, Ireland.

How many employees do you have?

We have 30 employees covering sales, support, technical innovation & management and are currently hiring! Solgari Careers

How many customers do you have?

We currently have over 150 corporate customers in 9 countries worldwide. The sizes vary from 20 up to 2,000 user businesses.

Why should I trust Solgari?

Through our vision of what Cloud Communications can do for businesses, we recognised the requirement to provide a global offering built on a military grade platform. We have had a major advantage over other vendors in our space in that we have been able to build our business as a truly scalable and global offering as opposed to reinventing an existing legacy telephony business.  Spearheaded by our CTO, we have achieved this in conjunction with key partners including Verizon who provide the global hosting of our services platform. Our SLA of 99.99% uptime for both services and voice telephony is built around a dual operating ‘hot hot’ platform strategy that provides resilience and fail over no matter what circumstances transpire.

Where are your data centres?

Our Cloud Communications Services platform is hosted within a number ISO 20017 rated data centres in Ireland and other locations worldwide. These data centres are part of Verizon’s global network and this enables Solgari to connect our own licensed carrier environment directly into the cloud.

Cloud Communication Services

What is exactly is a cloud communication service and is it really relevant to our business?

Just think about your telephony requirements – it starts with making and receiving calls, how incoming calls are routed through your business and can be highly customized and complicated in larger companies with multiple offices and call centers. Typically, companies are using a combination of fixed line & mobile carriers, internal telephony software & hardware to meet these needs.

Cloud Communication services such as Hosted PBX and Contact Centre applications address all these requirements with a subscription based service delivered via the internet, By replacing an on-premise telephony solution with a cloud based solution your business should be able to cut costs and access the latest in telephony service applications.  And in Solgari’s case, the applications go far beyond just telephony by allowing your business bring together all your IT systems such as CRM, email, Social Media with Solgari’s platform.  So yes, the benefits cloud communication services can deliver should make them relevant to your business.

What is the difference between Solgari’s Tier 1 VoIP service and applications like Skype and Google Voice?

They are all much the same as each other. The reason being, they use a ring and spoke method to deliver the bandwidth (i.e. they are using your bandwidth even for other peoples calls whilst you are on) and also use low bit-rate codec’s so they can fit as many calls into the available pipe as possible. When you rely on bandwidth you have no control over (like your own, even for other calls) you get drop-out, jitter and ‘pop’s’ and when you use low bit-rates you get a reduction in fidelity which causes lack of recognition of the caller (something humans don’t like)  and lack of high and low-band frequencies make it sound like you are in an echo chamber at one end and talking through a pillow at the other.

It doesn’t matter which of these ‘free’ services you use they will all have these characteristics. No one can sustain providing something for free. That is, no one is that philanthropic.

Will switching to a cloud communication service definitely save me money?

In most cases you will generate significant cost savings from replacing on premise phone systems and call centre set ups with a cloud based service. In simple terms you replace capital investment and ongoing maintenance and support costs with a monthly subscription model. In addition you are very likely to significantly cut mobile and long distance call charges too through using Voice over IP (‘VoIP’) which is an integral part of our cloud services.  

We have seen situations where it did not make sense for the customer to switch to a cloud solution based on the amount already invested in their telephony platform and with particular customer profiles. It’s a simple evaluation exercise and we recommend it is completed by also taking into account the productivity gains. Customers that use multiple services from Solgari are typically focused on revenue generation having already decided the cost savings are clear cut.

Is voice quality an issue with a cloud based service?

It is with consumer focused VoIP vendors which don’t provide tier 1 voice quality. The two key drivers of voice quality are the available data connection and how simultaneous calls are handled. In Solgari’s case we help our prospective customer perform Quality of Service (‘QOS’) tests on their data connection to ensure they have sufficient broadband capacity to use our services. Crucially, our VoIP service is tier 1 quality whereby we will only allow one simultaneous call per 64kb of broadband capacity. This will be prioritized over all other internet applications the business is using and ensures that call quality is crystal clear. Provided the data connection is sufficient and set up correctly, Solgari’s VoIP service provides a ‘measure of sound’ performance that is excellent. Solgari ensures there is never a single point of failure that could impact our customer’s voice service. Our carrier grade Intel chassis is hosted in Verizon call centers in multiple locations with dual operating systems to ensure failover. We are a regulated telecoms provider and as result our voice traffic is routed through the worldwide Points of Presence of a number of global carriers ensuring we can deliver call traffic anywhere.

Can you tell me more about VoIP?

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol and it allows you to place telephone calls over a data network like the Internet. It operates by converting your voice signal from your telephone into a digital signal that can then be transmitted over the Internet. The digital signal is then converted at the other end back to a voice signal that the other party can hear. VoIP allows you to use your network connection to make and receive calls, in exactly the same way you use your current phones.

If I am in Australia and your data centers are in Dublin and the US, won’t that affect my voice quality? What about latency?

Neither latency nor voice quality is an issue for Solgari. The data centres host our telephony services such as Hosted PBX and Contact Centre while our voice traffic is delivered via our global Points of Presence. Our solution is based on soft switch architecture which allows us to offer our solution anywhere in the world.

As well as a sufficient data connection is there anything else my business needs to use Solgari’s services?

You will require SIP enabled IP phones or softphones to use Solgari’s services. It is also possible to connect a phone directly to a VoIP telephone adaptor (ATA). Most of our corporate customers use a combination of desktop IP phones and softphones.

Typically you will want to retain your existing phone numbers so you would need to authorize us to port those numbers to Solgari so they can be deployed  on our platform.

Does the number porting process take long and is it complicated?

It depends on your location and existing carrier but typically it should never take more than 1 month and in some cases it can be days. For example if you are currently using Verizon, it would be a short process as they are one of our key global partners. Once you give us the authority to port your numbers, we take care of the entire process. We also ensure the handover from your existing carrier to Solgari has no impact on your voice communications.

If I am using Solgari and my internet connection goes down, does that mean I won’t have a phone system?

There are no circumstances where you will not have use of your phone system if you are using Solgari. If you have multiple locations using the Solgari platform and your data connection goes down in one location, all calls can be routed to any of your other locations. Even if you have one location you can have all calls routed to cell phones or anywhere you want. Remember your telephony solution is in the cloud so you can choose where your calls go. And for outbound calls the same applies, you can use your cell phone to use Solgari, you can move your extensions to another office. There are multiple solutions that companies can choose in advance as a disaster recovery position.

What happens if our power goes out?

Again, all calls can be made from and diverted to alternative locations. Employees can move their virtual extensions to a new location and in the meantime all calls can be routed in and out of cell phones or whatever set up you decide on. In this situation your on premise telephony system is of absolutely no use, it’s gone with the power, but our cloud communication service will operate as per normal.

I have multiple locations and some are overseas. Can we dial between these locations?

Yes of course. And the calls between your offices and employees are all free too.

Solgari Services, Features & Benefits

What I have read so far is interesting. Can you provide more detail on your services?

We provide a number of different service modules starting with our Hosted PBX offering. One of the advantages of using Solgari services is that businesses can adopt our service modules to meet their requirements and add more services when required. Here’s a summary of our different services:

Hosted PBX: Available globally and provides an enterprise class phone system to all our customers, key features include Auto Attendant, Hunt Groups, Time Based Routing Voicemail, Call Recording, Call Screening, Voicemail to Email, Personal Virtual Assistant, Call Redirection, Solgari Mobility, Hot Desking, Encryption, Instant Messaging, Management Reporting & Training.

Conferencing: Used by any business, features include Unlimited Conference Lines, Automatic Ring Back, Call Recording, Dedicated Local Dial-In Numbers, Moderator Floor Control

Contact Centre: Typically used by enterprise customers with large sales and support centres, replacing existing on premise solutions, features include Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) and Agent Groups. Also integrates with CRM & Social Media to boost productivity

Predictive Dialing: Another module used in Contact Centre situations, features include Multi-number Dialing, Campaign Scheduling, Campaign Call Backs, Agent Scripting, Native Support for At Home Agents, Call Monitoring and Recording, Reporting

Interactive Voice Response (‘IVR’): Specific IVR solutions are designed to meet specific customer requests, features include Speech Recognition, Multiple Self Service Applications

Fax to Email: Used by all companies allowing faxes to be sent and received via email

Solgari Connect: Provides integration of key features such as Click to Dial, Caller ID Look Up, Call Recording with CRM platforms including Bullhorn, Salesforce.com, Microsoft Dynamics as well as Custom Integration Consulting for all situations

Solgari Engage: Provides the ability to wrap additional services around the core service modules such as Email & Social Media Integration, SMS & MMS digital marketing, Instant Messaging, and X14

I can see your service offering is extensive, could you provide me with some examples of how I can improve my business by using some of these services?

Of course, let’s look at examples of both productivity gains and cost cutting.

Increase Company Revenues - Faster and More Efficient

Solgari enables our customers to increase revenues by dealing with customers faster and more efficiently through service features such as the following:

• Solgari Connect - integrate key features of our Hosted PBX service within  your CRM platform and accelerate your agents ability to make and receive calls
• Hot Desking - allows teams to move desks, locations, and offices bringing their virtual extensions with them
• Record & Archive Calls – record all incoming and outgoing calls covering training, legal & compliance requirements and dispute resolution
• Conference Calling – for internal and external calls, all recording, automated call initiation and extensive moderator functionality
• Training - barge into calls, listen and whisper for team training sessions
• Call Reporting - enable meta minute billing of customer calls, measure employee performance.

Lower Company Telecommunication Costs

Typically, customers achieve cost savings in the following areas:

Opex vs Capex

• Replacing an on premise phone system - by replacing a PBX box with Solgari's monthly subscription service, the business removes depreciation/lease costs, maintenance & line rental costs
• One Cloud Phone System vs Multiple Phone Systems – In the case where a company has multiple offices, the business is replacing many on premise phone systems with one centrally managed system
• IP Phones – the cost of IP or soft phones must be taken into account as an additional cost item if choosing a Cloud Communication services

Office Call Costs & Line Rental, Cell Phone Costs

• Through a combination of using Solgari wholesale call rates for outbound office calls and reducing line rental costs, our customers are able to achieve on average 50% costs savings
• Roaming & International – typically costs can be dramatically reduced if all employees with mobile devices use their Solgari personal virtual assistant or their mobile app to make outbound calls, particularly when travelling overseas.

Other Factors

• Replacing other 3rd party applications - services such as conferencing & call recording are included within Solgari services , therefore removing the need for 3rd party services

Could you give me examples of companies using Solgari services?

Contact Centres

• Typically used by enterprises for their sales and support teams, we currently have public sector utilities using Contact Centre to address incoming support calls

Enterprises

• We have a number of PLC and large private companies with multi-site and geographic telephony requirements using Solgari as a single central telephony solution as opposed to one in each site; calls are free between locations, sales and support teams across different regions are integrated

Small and Medium Size Businesses

• Solgari’s smaller customers use the Hosted PBX service, they are driven by lower costs and the ability to project a highly professional manner when dealing with customer calls through our Auto Attendant service, moving calls seamlessly to the correct staff, between users and offices, the use of voicemail to email, virtual extensions to ensure a call is never missed

What about the concept of Unified Communications, does Solgari address this?

Yes. Unified Communications is about breaking down the barriers between the various communications tools your business uses and making them all work together allowing your employees become more efficient. This includes your office and mobile phones, email, Instant Messaging, Social Media and other collaboration tools such as Lync. Solgari can unify all these tools by providing a virtual extension which follows you no matter if you are at your desk, using your computer in a hotel or just have your cell phone with you. All incoming and outgoing calls, including those through your cell phone, are completed through the Solgari platform. Your cell phone is enabled to use Solgari by downloading our mobile application or simply calling your Personal Virtual Assistant which can route or make calls for you. In addition, Solgari integrates with email allowing all voicemails or call information to be delivered to your email account while it also allows Social Media messages to be delivered to your desk phone as required.

Customer Support

I noticed you said that all maintenance and support costs are removed if we switch to Solgari’s cloud services. Can you explain that?

Yes, you typically pay for maintenance and support with an on premise solution contract but with our cloud based services, support is included as part of your monthly subscription fees. Once you pay the fees we take care of everything. This does not include implementation where there may be a cost if you want us to set up all your company specific requirements. The alternative is that you do it yourself.

Understood, could you then explain to me more about how support works?

Ok, support is available on a 24/7 basis once you have signed up to use the services. We provide all of the following as part of our customer support to ensure the services run seamlessly:

• Service implementation support plans. This could be very simply to help a customer set up a Hosted PBX application or could go into professional services for more complicated bespoke customer requirements such as Contact Centres and CRM Integrations. This is a charge for this support.
• On-demand telephone support delivered to company administrators to meet any critical customer requirements as defined in our Service Level Agreement
• Email support  for non-critical customer requirements to be answered as per our Service Level Agreement

Do I need an IT person to administer our phone system?

No, administration is done through the central Solgari control panel and is about business requirements rather than technical. Therefore anyone can be a company administrator. All underlying technical requirements are taken care of by Solgari. During the service set up, your company will need internal or external IT support to configure the IP phones and your network. This is not complicated. All other aspects of service set up are taken care of by either you or Solgari as you choose.  

Sales Enquiries

How much does it cost? Can I get a quote?

We charge a set-up fee and then there is a per user per month subscription fee depending on the services you require. You can add additional services to this as you wish. VoIP minutes are charged separately. The set-up fee is required because we never allow more than 80% capacity across our platform to be utilized and simply scale up with each new customer that comes on board.  All you need to do is fill in a request a quote page on our website or simply contact sales@solgari.com and we’d be delighted to help you out.

Do you provide a trial?

Yes, we allow customers test call quality but we do not provide open ended trials. Typically, customers are aware of how to compare our services versus their existing on premise telephony solution and focus on ensuring they are happy with call quality.

How long does it take to start using Solgari once we place an order?

Typically our services can be set up inside 30 days for small businesses while Enterprise deployments take longer depending on the specific requirements. Once you commit to using the services we will work very closely with you to get you set up by providing a dedicated project manager. As long as you focus on getting the IP phones set up done and give us the authority to port your existing numbers, we will be able to take care of everything else.

What does the set-up fee include?

The set-up fee covers the provisioning of your business on the Solgari platform. It does not include IP Phone set up which you will need to do yourself nor does it include any bespoke on site professional service type engagements which some of our enterprise customers require. We provide a separate service to cover these needs.

What about training?

Solgari provides web based training to company administrators and users as well as user manuals and a help centre. Each customer has a dedicated support resource to address any issues.

Technical Questions

What CODEC’s does Solgari support?

• G.711A
• G.711U
• G.722
• G.726
• G.729A
• GSM 6.10

Can you tell me more Solgari’s security protocols?

Solgari voice traffic is completely encrypted using TLS (Transport Layer Security) and SRTP (Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol) to ensure the highest level of security for our customers. Any call recordings made on the Hosted PBX platform are encrypted too.