Natural Convergence (News - Alert) Inc., a provider of hosted VoIP (Voice over IP) software for service providers that focus on supporting the small business market, has announced the general availability of Release 3.1 of its silhouette product.

Natural Convergence is already able to tout 20,000 licenses in use and as such, is considered a formidable player in the hosted key systems market. Natural Convergence has set out to improve VoIP service providers’ business case with silhouette 3.1 as it introduces a variety of new value-added features that enhance small business administrators’ Web-based control over their organizations’ services.

“Our primary focus with Release 3.1 is to allow the small business administrators to be more productive,” said David Cork, Chief Executive Officer, Natural Convergence, in a Monday statement. "With the enhanced features in silhouette 3.1, we are helping the administrators manage their companies' most vital tool, their communications system, more effectively and efficiently -- without having to call their service providers' help desks. This, in turn, improves our service-provider customers' revenue opportunities and profitability."

The small business administrator’s most common tasks can be automated with Natural Convergence’s silhouette 3.1. The administrator can use default call-coverage settings to avoid manual configuration of each user’s settings. Voice-mail access personal identification numbers (PINs) can be quickly reset without involving the VoIP service provider.

Release 3.1 also provides administrators per-user control over the outgoing-call numbers to be shown in recipients’ phones. This functionality enables the small business to protect the confidentiality of particular users and ensure that calls are returned properly.

Other new features that are available with Release 3.1 include enhanced intercom and paging capabilities, hands-free answer back and a more customizable auto attendant’s directory. Natural Convergence has also added French and Dutch as options for user languages to reach more worldwide markets. Plus, the range of IP phones has been expanded to increase a service provider’s flexibility to support a wider array of equipment.

"Natural Convergence's constant development of features in silhouette is providing us with the tools we need to be successful in the small business market," said Jay Swayze, President of BluArc Communications (www.bluarc.ca), in Monday’s statement.

"Small businesses are replacing their aging key systems, and Natural Convergence enables us to profitably address this market opportunity. The improvements and the added functionality of the self-service features in silhouette 3.1 further reduces our customer care costs thereby improving our business case."

Communications are an important part of ensuring that the business can run smoothly and that customers are properly contacted and supported. They can also be a drain on resources, especially for smaller companies, whether it is in the equipment or the man-hours to manage the system.

Solutions that not only provide the latest in communications innovations, but also improve efficiencies and reduce time spent on managing calls is a significant value-added service. Natural Convergence is answering a great demand with the silhouette 3.1 release and will likely enjoy swift adoption.

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Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.

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