News Pilothouse Communications, LLC

The Pilothouse Navigator

Your Guiding Light to Business Communications

October 2008 - Vol 2, Issue 4

In This Issue

Telephone Equitte Tip

GN Netcom Headset Recall

Video Surveillance & more

Quick Links

Greetings!

Happy Fall!!!
I love this time of year, bright blue skies, crisp air, beautiful trees- just makes you feel alive and full of energy- doesn't it?

Hope this finds all of you well. I am better now. I got a new cobalt and chrome hip last month and am recovering nicely. I'd like to thank my great staff for keeping things running so smoothly in my 3 week absence. I hope things ran smoothly from your end. If anyone is in the market for a new hip I can recommend a great doctor. Technology is amazing . Enough about me- I hope that you are all fairing well in this crazy economy. We at Pilothouse have chosen to not participate in a recession-I hope you will join us, keep positive and keep doing the right things.

I have a couple of announcements:
We are just getting going with our new Blog. Please check it out and add your thoughts and comments-
Pilothouse Blog

We have become an agent of Paetec. Paetec has also entered into a relationship with Toshiba and their SIP trunk products have been certified to work with Toshiba CIX products. Paetec offers everything from PRI and T-1 for voice and data to SIP trunks to MPLS networks with very competitive Long Distance rates. If you are interested in a price quote give us a call we can do an analysis of your current bill and let you know if we can save you some money.

We continue to expand the products and services we can offer you. Video Surveillance is becoming very popular as businesses look more to protect their investments. Data backup solutions and Email security, too are growing, as business are realizing their customer information and daily computer transactions are vital to their business and the loss of them would be catastrophic and that wading through the hundreds of SPAM emails everyday is just wasting too much time. The other day I had over 400 emails in my SPAM report! And of course, Toshiba products continue to be our core. We are currently in the process of an exciting installation that I will talk about in the coming months.

Have a wonderful, productive fall and holiday season.

Sincerely,

Sue Carlson

5 Most Frequent Caller Complaints

Remember that presentation is everything. Treat Callers as you would hope they would treat you. The way you present yourself on the phone can leave lasting impressions of you and your company.

1. "The Telephone rings for a long time before it is answered" Try to answer within 3 rings. Callers become frustrated when they feel that their call is not important to you.

2. "They place me on hold for sometimes, it seems, hours." Make sure your hold recall timer is set correctly so that caller isn't left there too long. If you know it's been a while pick up and ask them if they would still like to hold of someone or offer voicemail.

3. "The line is busy for hours it seems." Try to keep calls short. If your lines are always busy, that may mean more business and that you may need more phone lines.

4. "They let me talk on and on only to realize that they're not the person I should be talking to." Politely interrupt the caller if you are unable to help them. Don't waste time listening to the whole story and pass on any information you do have to the person you are transferring the caller to, so they don't have to repeat what they already told you.

5. "They answer with an aggravated voice, as if I disturbed them by calling." Remember that customers are the reason you are in business. It is sometimes difficult to always stay polite but again, your disposition reflects on your company. Try to treat each caller as you would hope to be treated.

phone etiq

HEADSET RECALL

Wireless Headset Batteries Recalled by GN Netcom Due to Fire Hazard
In cooperation with the Danish Safety Technology Authority (Sikkerhedsstyrelsen) and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and other regulatory agencies GN Netcom is voluntarily recalling Lithium-ion batteries from ATL (ATL P/N 603028) used in GN9120 wireless headsets and sold from January 2005 through September 2008. These lithium-ion polymer batteries can overheat due to an internal short circuit in the batteries, which can pose a fire hazard. The battery has only been used in the GN9120 wireless headset. If you are using any other headset solution from GN Netcom you are not affected by this statement.

Go to this link to see if your headset battery is an effected one. It's easy, quick and free to get your replacement battery sent.

GN Battery Replacement Info

Video Surveillance Security

As one of the first Panasonic i-PRO Certified Resellers in the country, we can design and implement a solution to help you protect your business investment.

Protect your physical location, your assets and your personnel. We are implementing only IP based camera solutions because of the flexibility and quality of the recordings. If you have ever seen the old analog cameras and how poor the quality is- that is not what we sell- You have to see the quality to believe it- even in pitch darkness or bright sunlight-

Call for a demonstration of the new IP quality cameras manufactured by the same people who make motion picture and television cameras.

See There When You Can't Be There.... manage your business from anywhere, hear and see what's going on with the complete line of Panasonic IP Network Cameras.

Data Security Tips for Business

Are you a lawyer running an office with 6 computers?

Are you a doctor's office who has a nurse running our "IT Stuff?"

Are you a financial services company with highly regulated and sensitive information on a network "running itself?"

Are you a small to mid size business whose IT department is your unemployed cousin or teenage nephew?

Here are a few things to think about- a starting place- where we can help

Backup and Restore Solutions-

Theft, viruses, system crashes, and misplaced or stolen backup tapes are driving demand for reliable, disk-based backup solutions. We offer SonicWall CDP Solutions:

Real-Time /Continuous Data Backup
Tapeless, Enterprise-Level Data Protection
Offsite Protection for complete disaster protection
Instant Recovery and File Versions
Unlimited PCs
Compliance with HIPPA, Sarbanes-Oxley , Gramm-Leach-Biley
And more!

Firewalls-

Typically small businesses will have DSL or Cable for Internet access with almost all connections you will be provided with a small firewall provided by the carrier. While better than nothing they are not meant to protect a business network. You want to look for something that provides Unified Threat Management (UTM) which provides edge-of-your-network security features like anti-virus, anti-spyware, intrusion prevention, enforced desktop anti-virus, content filtering and more. SonicWall TZ Series Firewall/VPN/UTM uses true deep packet inspection along with dynamically updated protection to fully protect any size business.

OS Patching-

There is a good chance that your business is running some kind of Microsoft products-when was the last time you updated the OS on all of those machines? If you don't know what I'm talking about - call us right now!

Unpatched PCs and Servers leave you and your company's data vulnerable to hackers-that's why Microsoft releases security updates on a frequent basis. You need to make sure these updates don't cause conflicts and problems with other programs you might be running specific to your business.

There is a lot to know- you are the expect at running and knowing your business- let us help keep your data network working for you. We can be a back up to your current IT support or assist with more advanced applications that your current support does not have expertise in.

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There's just one call you make and we can take care of it all and you can be assured that you will be taken care of with the same commitment to service, technical expertise and concern for your business that you have come to expect from Pilothouse.

Call for information on these and other communications services we can provide as your communications business partner. 203-649-6405 or toll free 866-887-5792.

Thank you for your continued business.