Hosted Telephony for your Business

Our cloud phone system and fully hosted platform has a full range of features to improve you and your customer’s telephony experience.

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Switch to a Cloud Phone System

‘Metis’ is our VoIP management portal. It provides you with all the features and functions needed to perfect your business’s communications including:

  • Call recording
  • Phone provisioning
  • Time of day routing
  • IVR solutions
  • Call queues
  • Inbound/outbound management
  • Number provisioning
  • Reporting
  • Conferencing services
  • Voicemail to email
  • Record your own messages
  • Call pickup groups
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Metis Screenshot

Plug 'n' Play

Packnet Provisioning means your new phone arrives preconfigured. All you have to do is plug it in.

All hardware is shipped using next-day delivery and arrives ready to make calls. You can use our VoIP management portal ‘Metis’ to manage all aspect of your phone system.

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VOIP Hardware

PLug & Play Diagram

Phone Number Search

Looking for a new phone number? Search our number ranges here.

Or transfer your existing number to Packnet

Call Cost Calculator

Search for the Country/Region you want to call

*Rates may change at any time

Hosted Telephony

call_groups

Time of day routing

Route calls to a Work or Out of Office dial plan based on the current time. You can create rules for your work hours, holidays and any other occasion using time, day of the week, day of the month and month.

Inbound/outbound call management

Incoming call management

Create powerful dial plans using our step by step dial plan creator. All features come with no extra cost and include audio file playback, IVR menu options, call queuing, voicemail, cross-dial plan diverts, whispers, line identifiers and more.

Telephone

Call queuing

You can create as many queues as you like. Configure them with a ringing strategy, an SLA target and a Redial After time. Additional options include custom period announcements and their frequency and whether members can take multiple calls. Queue members can pause/unpause from Metis, their phones and from the switchboard.

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Hosted call recording

You can toggle call recording on and off for your numbers, select whether to record just inbound, outbound or both directions and set a retention period of up to 6 years for your call recording storage. You can download call recording files just a few minutes after your call has completed. We also offer storage integration with Amazon S3 storage buckets.

Fraud prevention

Fraud prevention

Our fraud prevention and detection systems constantly analyse traffic to ensure you are protected.

Flexibility

Auto-attendant

Configure up to 9 auto-attendant options for no extra cost. You can record the messages for your auto-attendant straight from your IP phone, or upload your own custom recordings to Metis. You can use a whisper or line identifier to inform call handlers which option callers select.

Call routing

Number provisioning

Metis allows for the provisioning of UK geographic and non-geographic numbers. These numbers can be allocated as any of the following: Inbound or Outbound numbers, fax to email or conference numbers. Metis allows for the immediate provisioning of the number which can be delivered to a configured IP handset within minutes.

Customer base

Extension provisioning

You can add, update and remove users at any time via Metis. Add new extensions to generate authentication details for your IP phone, or add your Snom or Yealink MAC address into our provisioning platform for easy, no touch configuration options.

Email

Voicemail to email

All voicemail boxes are configured with an email recipient, where any voicemails are converted into an email attachement and mailed to the recipient instantly, along with a timestamp, caller information and the duration of the voicemail message.

Call pickup groups

Call pickup

Pick up a call from a ringing handset within your organisation. You can enable this via Metis at no extra cost and upon request we can create individual Pickup Groups for your business' departments.

Network savvy

Busy lamp field

See a visual representation of your colleague's phone status using your IP phone. The feature is enabled via Metis at no extra cost and tells you whether your colleague is either on the phone, off the phone or if their phone is ringing.

Record your own message

Record your own messages

Set up a short code in Metis that when dialed from your IP phone, prompts you to record a message. Once you're finished, the message is immediately uploaded to your Metis account and ready to use in dial plans.

Intelligent call routing

Outgoing call management

Create outgoing groups for your business' departments and manage the number used for Caller ID presentation, whether to hide the caller ID and whether international dialing is allowed.

hardware_failure

Call blocking

You can easily block nuisance numbers using Metis' call blocking feature. You can block a single number or a range of numbers from contacting you and you can block numbers from being called by specific outgoing groups too.

Diagnostics

Your account

Manage all aspects of your account from Metis. Contact details, users, voicemails, numbers, invoices, everything.

Service charge management

Services

A complete, up to date service charge sheet is available for all customers in Metis. You can always be sure of what you'll pay before adding a new service to your account.

features and hardware

Phone provisioning

Our own Snom and Yealink provisioning and device management platform is integrated into Metis. You can add your MAC addresses and assign them to an extension. Customise your IP phone by selecting from dozens of different phone settings, or create a settings template that's applied automatically to a specific phone model.

Diagnostics

Diagnostics

You can check the current registration status of all your extensions using our Diagnostics page.

Chat

Live chat

Live chat is enabled by default for our customers and can be used for any questions you might have about Metis or for general enquiries too.

call_recording

Phone

You can always reach us by telephone on 0161 660 2350 or 7878 from any handset connected to our network.

Email

Email

Email support is provided via voip@pack-net.co.uk and handled by our expert UK-based team.

Purpose built VoIP phone system for business

Service up-time

99.99%
SERVICE UP-TIME

Extensions

20,000+
EXTENSIONS

Business

15+
YEARS IN BUSINESS

We’ve purpose built our voice & data network from scratch, allowing for quick resolution of issues & comprehensive SLA.

Trusted by more than 500 businesses in the UK

PushOn
Webpraxis
P11D Organiser
SafetynetIT
SLG
Codethink

Hosted Telephony FAQs

˅ What is a hosted VoIP solution?

A hosted VoIP solution is a phone system in which calls are made over the internet. The phone service is housed in a location which is not at the businesses’ premises, therefore it being ‘hosted’.

A hosted VoIP solution is also known as a Hosted PBX.

˅ What's the most reliable phone system for a startup?

If you’re a startup, we’d recommend a voip service. A voip system, such as ours, offers its users the flexibility and ease to grow or change to the requirements of their business. Better yet, our phone system, you’ll find that your overall costs on communication will decrease since you certainly won’t be spending much on upkeep, maintenance and best of all, international call rates.

˅ What is a Hosted PBX system?

Hosted PBX is a service in which an organisation’s phone system is hosted at the service providers location. The service provider, for example, Packnet, is responsible for housing the phone system, its hardware, software, call routing, switching and any maintenance the phone system may require. A Hosted PBX also allows users to utilise features such as voicemail, automated greeting and many more.

˅ What is a white label PBX solution?

A white label PBX solution refers to a PBX phone system that is developed by another company, it can be rebranded by another company, who can make it appear as though they made it.

The white label PBX solution is preferable to businesses who want to provide their customers with business phone services without needing to devote a large chunk of time and money into developing their own system.

˅ What is the best VOIP solution for a UK small business?

As a small business, costs are very important and so is your communication. With Packnet, you’ll find that call costs will be considerably reduced.

VoIP allows users to make international calls without the high rates you’d normally find with traditional phone systems. Better yet, a business using Packnet benefits from free calls between employees in different countries.

In addition to that, you’ll find that with us as your provider, your company will spend less on upkeep and infrastructure.

˅ Are VoIP and IP telephony the same thing?

Whilst the two terms are used interchangeably, they are not the same thing. However, there are similarities between them, the most obvious being that both technologies use the internet for communication.

VoIP (Voice over internet protocol) refers to making and receiving calls over the internet. IP Telephony on the other hand, refers to the overall use of the internet to communicate via methods that are usually made with a traditional telephone network.

˅ What do you mean by enterprise VoIP solutions?

An enterprise VoIP solution is a phone service that provides a company with a large number of employee’s to make calls via the internet. The phone service is specifically designed for big companies.

˅ The benefits of hosting telephone systems - Advantages

1. One of the great things about having a Hosted Telephony system in your business is that they are less vulnerable to power and internet outages during harsh weather. Usually your service provider, which would be Packnet, will have a network redundancy in place to ensure that in the case anything happens, there will be backup so your business won’t suffer.

2. A Hosted telephone system does not usually require any installation. The provider will send phones out preconfigured and access to phone system features, for example call pickup is automatic.

Traditional PBX Hosted PBX
Costs Adopting a traditional system will mean that the initial charge and set-up costs of your phone system will be higher. In addition to that, you will also have to fork out the money for maintenance. A traditional PBX is perfect if your company is more comfortable with making a one-time purchase rather than a monthly fee. Off-premise PBX systems do not require any installation, meaning your business will bypass the high initial charge. Money for maintenance is usually added within your provider’s plan, which means that in the case of any problems, you will be protected.
Maintenance Traditional PBX systems use copper wires, which are far more susceptible to bad elements and power outages. And since the system is on your premise, your business will need to foot the bill towards fixing any issues. Hosted PBXs are less vulnerable to power and internet outages during harsh weather. Usually your service provider will have network redundancy to make sure that in case anything happens there will be backup.
Flexibility When you have a  traditional PBX, you may need to remove or add extensions, and typically this does require training. Problems may occur if you don’t have any staff experienced with technology. With a provider maintaining the system for your business, things such as adding or removing extensions can be done swiftly by experts. If your organisation has more than one location or employees that need to travel frequently, a hosted PBX system gives you the option to have all extensions under one system.
Space With an On-site phone system, you will need to consider an appropriate space to keep your phone system powered and secured. If you have space to spare, then perfect. The phone system is held within the premises of your provider meaning that you don’t need a designated area specific to the phone system. This is great for budding businesses and SMEs.
Set-Up When it comes to a traditional PBX system, your business will be in charge of the system’s overall installation. A Cloud-based PBX does not usually require any installation. The provider will send phones out preconfigured and access to phone system features, for example call pickup, is automatic.
Usage When you have a traditional PBX, you may need to remove or add extensions, and typically this does require training. Problems may occur if you don’t have any staff experienced with technology. With a provider maintaining the system for your business, things such as adding or removing extensions can be done swiftly by experts.

Latest Hosted Telephony Blogs

Major Update to Incoming Calls – Monday 10th January

Major Update to Incoming Calls – Monday 10th January

January 5, 2022 | Callum Douglas - Byrnes

We’re kicking off 2022 with a major revamp to the Incoming Calls section, bringing it in line with the look and feel of our newer pages. In addition to new user interface updates, read this guide to discover brand new features and learn how to use them. Incoming Calls front page To improve our user […]

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Hosted Telephony for Call Centres

Hosted Telephony for Call Centres

June 12, 2018 | Mimi Dlodlo

If there’s one thing a call centre relies on, it’s voice communication. If your business’s communication with customers or recruits aren’t up to par, you could very well find yourself losing money. And who wants that? No one, therefore, why risk losing money with a subpar phone system?

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Increasing business efficiency With Hosted Telephony

Increasing business efficiency With Hosted Telephony

May 11, 2018 | Mimi Dlodlo

Whether you run an estate agency or salon, speaking to your customers is arguably the most important part of your business and any business to be truthful. Moreover, communication doesn’t just end between you and your customers; you need to speak to suppliers, partners, recruits and so much more!

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