What is a telephone switch and IP telephony?

What is a telephone switch?

A telephone switch—technically known as a PBX, for Private Branch Exchange—is the system that manages and directs calls within a company. It is the "central" that decides where each call goes: it receives those that come in, distributes them among extensions or departments, and allows calls to be made abroad sharing the same set of lines.

Without a switch, each phone would need its own outside line and there would be no way to transfer calls or have a single contact number. The switch is what allows a company with twenty employees to operate with a single main number and distribute calls in an orderly manner.

What is IP telephony?

IP telephony—also called VoIP, for Voice over IP—is the technology that transmits voice calls over the Internet instead of traditional copper telephone lines. Simply put, it converts your voice into data and sends it over the same network you use to browse.

This changed the rules of the game. Previously, a switch was an expensive physical box installed in offices, with cables everywhere and a maintenance technician. With IP telephony, the switch can live in the cloud: there is no hardware to buy, it is configured from a screen and your team can answer calls from a laptop or cell phone, wherever it is.

The advantages of IP telephony over traditional telephony are clear:

• It costs much less, especially for long distance calls.
• No special hardware or wiring required.
• Your team can answer calls from anywhere with internet.
• It integrates with your CRM and your business systems.
• Easy Scaling: Adding an extension is a click, not a job.

What is an IVR and how does it work?

The IVR—Interactive Voice Response—is that voice menu that greets you when you call a company: "dial 1 for sales, 2 for support." Its function is to automatically direct each call to the correct department or person without a human having to answer and transfer.

A well-configured IVR means that no call is missed and the customer reaches someone who can help them quickly. It can provide basic information (schedules, directions), queue calls, offer callbacks, and even route based on the schedule. In modern systems, the IVR can even understand what the customer says and respond with artificial intelligence, not just tone menus.

Why does it matter to your business?

Telephony is usually the first real contact between a customer and your business, and a missed or poorly answered call is a sale that goes away. A cloud switch gives you these advantages:

• A unique professional number with extensions by area.
• No call is lost: queues, mailbox and callback.
• Reports on how many calls come in, are answered and are lost.
• Call recording for quality and training.
• Attention from anywhere, ideal for remote teams.

How Aura solves it

Aura includes a cloud telephone switch with IP telephony integrated into the same platform where your CRM and inbox live. This means that when a call comes in, Aura already knows who the client is, shows their history and records the conversation along with the rest of their interactions via WhatsApp, email or networks.

You can set up your IVR with menus and extensions without touching a single cable, answer from your computer or cell phone, record calls and see reports of all telephone traffic. And because Aura's artificial intelligence is in the background, it can transcribe calls, summarize what was discussed, and create follow-up tasks automatically. Telephony stops being an island and becomes just another part of the client's file.