Few small or mid-sized business owners have not heard of IP telephony or VoIP, and few seem to have major holes in their understanding of what IP telephony can provide, in terms of benefits. That is one big change, compared to what might have been widely expected, 10 years ago.
Nor does it seem to be the case that SMB fundamental concerns have changed too terribly much over the last decade or so. Smaller organizations tend to focus on immediate recurring cost savings and simplicity. New capabilities remain important.
What does not seem to have changed, though, is the “refresh” cycle for business phone system replacements or upgrades. If the typical entity changes when there is a physical move of location, when the older solution is outgrown because of employee growth or is techologically inadequate, that remains the case.
From a sales perspective, the advent of IP telephony, in both premises and hosted versions, does not seem to have materially affected the typical replacement cycle. Smaller organizations that are not growing rapidly might still refresh their business communiclations system every five to seven years.
https://communities.metaswitch.com/docs/DOC-18594
