Tag: Vox

Looking After Your Contact Centre’s Rands and Sense

Posted on by Natalie van der Merwe

The Economic Benefits of a Locally Based Solution

Operational efficiency and customer satisfaction are critically important for contact centres. However, looking to global providers for the required cutting-edge technology generally comes with a globally sourced price tag, which can be costly in Rand terms. Add in the infamous volatility of the Rand and you’re looking at a financial headache, at best, and cost-cutting exercises at worst, just to stay with internationally based technology. The solution lies closer to home.

The primary purpose of a contact centre is to offer customers efficient and effective technical support, customer service and sales assistance. But at what cost does this happen – and can your business survive currency upheaval, which has a very real impact on the local economy across the spectrum?

The volatility of the Rand is a significant hazard for South African companies, because it’s seen as a proxy for emerging market investment. This makes the local currency highly exposed to external shocks and global events, and thus very unpredictable.

money rands 2951142 1920 | Vox | Looking After Your Contact Centre’s Rands and Sense

In turn, this has negative effects on potential investment and local business operations. It therefore makes sense to go with a locally sourced provider that operates cost-effectively yet still according to global standards of expertise.

This is where the partnership between Vox and Smartz Solutions is a game changer for the South African contact centre market. Both companies, with deep and proudly South African roots, bring together local expertise, innovation and a profound understanding of the market, to deliver exceptional products and services.

World-class Technology, Stable Costing

Many global providers price their solutions in US dollars or euros, exposing businesses to exchange rate fluctuations. A sudden depreciation of local currency can double or triple the cost of maintaining these platforms, wreaking havoc on budgets. As a case in point: the Rand has once again been volatile over the last year,[1] ranging from R19.23 against the US Dollar in April 2024 to R17.10 in September 2024.

For contact centres operating in dollar- or Euro-based terms, costs can quickly become very onerous – and yet the issue of a quality service offering is not negotiable.

In answer, Vox has partnered with Smartz Solutions to offer advanced, cloud-based contact centre solutions that are geared to deliver exceptional customer experiences and thereby support businesses.

In addition, Smartz Solutions provides a local offering that is innovative, cost-effective and tailored to meet regional needs while solving global problems. This means that Smartz Solutions is levelling the playing field by offering world-class technology at a fraction of the cost.

‘Smart’ Benefits for Local Contact Centres

business 4313966 1920 1 | Vox | Looking After Your Contact Centre’s Rands and Sense

Smartz Solutions offers world-class platforms that are priced and designed for local realities. It’s able to deliver the following economic and strategic advantages:

  • Cost efficiency without compromise: By pricing its solutions, professional services and support in Rands, Smartz Solutions ensures cost predictability by eliminating exchange rate risks. This assists organisations with their planning and allows them to allocate resources effectively, without sacrificing functionality or quality.
  • Faster support and customisation: Being locally based means quicker response times and lower costs for support and customisation. Smartz Solutions is quick and responsive, ensuring seamless operations.
  • Agility and Innovation: Free from the bureaucratic constraints of larger organisations, local companies can move quickly and innovate at a pace that global competitors often struggle to match.
  • Deep Understanding of Local Needs: Local companies often have an intimate understanding of the specific challenges and opportunities within their markets, enabling them to design bespoke solutions. They also understand cultural and contextual nuances, which allows them to foster stronger connections with their customers.

 

By choosing local providers like Vox in partnership with Smartz Solutions, businesses can navigate global challenges with confidence, ensuring they remain customer focused as well as competitive and agile. As an additional value-add, choosing to support local companies contributes to the growth of South Africa’s tech ecosystem – another win.

Smartz Solutions understands the importance of localised, cost-effective solutions and pricing. So why pay Dollars, Euros or Pounds for your contact centre technology, when your Rands will go further for the same quality and functionality? Local solutions are economically viable and also strategically advantageous for businesses that need to stay in contact with their customers.

With Vox and Smartz Solutions, you get continued customer service excellence that simultaneously helps you to look after your Rands and cents.

Which is only common sense, right?

[1] https://businesstech.co.za/news/finance/816948/how-much-the-rand-should-be-worth/

5-Star Experience vs 1-Star Google Review: Your Guests Want Great Wi-Fi

Posted on by Craig Blignaut

How the Travel Industry Needs to Get Connected

 

From the moment that plane commuters reach their destination, travellers around the world can immediately hear the surround-sound beeping noises as passengers, now safely arrived, turn on their phones to once again become fully connected. We find a similar story when travellers arrive at their guesthouse or hotel: according to a travel industry survey, one-third of guests ask for the Wi-Fi password as they register at the front desk, and two-thirds are online within seven minutes of checking in.

 

luggage 7653518 1920 | Vox | 5-Star Experience vs 1-Star Google Review: Your Guests Want Great Wi-Fi

It just proves once again that in today’s connected world, being able to access information and communication services is increasingly important. Just because someone is away from home doesn’t mean they don’t need to stay connected, even when on holiday (unless they’re making the deliberate choice to go off-line).

As for business travellers, a seamless Internet experience is necessary to communicate with clients and colleagues, access work documents and take part in meetings. Providing quick and efficient Wi-Fi services allows both leisure and business guests to enjoy their stay without undue stress.

Let’s look at how the Wi-Fi experience in a guesthouse or hotel can shape either a five-star guest experience or earn your establishment an unwanted one-star Google review.

 

Wi-Fi For Guests: A Fundamental Hospitality Amenity

People who travel want to update others on their safe whereabouts, and being unable to receive communication, or send outbound messages, can cause anxiety. By providing reliable, fast Wi-Fi services from the moment of registration, hotel guests can start to relax and enjoy their stay sooner.

Access to excellent Wi-Fi increasingly ranks as a necessity for today’s traveller when choosing a hotel – right up there with comfort, cleanliness, and excellent food and beverage offerings. With mobile devices, laptops and remote work now prevalent, complimentary access to Wi-Fi has become a key requirement for both business travellers and holiday makers.

A speed of 10 to 20Mbps per guest is recommended as being a decent Wi-Fi offering that should comfortably allow your guests to stream in full HD – you wouldn’t receive complaints if your customers had access to these speeds.

Excellent Wi-Fi adds to the guest experience, while the opposite also holds true: unhappiness with the Wi-Fi can make people more easily inclined to find fault in other, unrelated areas. From a purely commonsense perspective, this seems counter-intuitive, and a negation of the cost and effort that’s been spent on the marketing initiatives to entice the traveller to your establishment in the first place.

 

Factors to Consider for your Guests’ Wi-Fi

nature 2564502 1920 2 | Vox | 5-Star Experience vs 1-Star Google Review: Your Guests Want Great Wi-Fi

While most hotels and guesthouses today offer complimentary Wi-Fi service to guests, it might not be equivalent to what people are used to having in their own homes, which can cause frustration.

Considerations when choosing a guest Wi-Fi solution include the following:

  • Cost: The pricing structure will be based on the coverage area, usage and the number of users.
  • Technical support: Reliable customer support is critical.
  • Compliance requirements: The network must meet relevant data privacy and security regulations.

 

Elevating the Wi-Fi Experience

Vox provides managed Wi-Fi services for businesses. This enables remote software and firmware updates, as well as remote troubleshooting and fault remediation using cloud-based administrative tools. This all works to enhance ongoing connectivity.

Vox offers audits on existing Wi-Fi, because we know that not every business is looking for a new-build Wi-Fi, and we may be  able to upgrade existing assets or infrastructure. To provide a superior internet experience for guests, hotels and guesthouses should ensure that they:

  • Invest in high-speed Internet infrastructure (the foundation of your Wi-Fi experience) to support faster bandwidth and improve overall performance.
  • Implement a reliable Wi-Fi network that covers all areas of the premises, including common areas and guest rooms.
  • Optimise the Wi-Fi signal strength with strategic placement  of Wi-Fi access points or meshdevices, to ensure a strong and consistent connection throughout the premises.
  • Implement robust security measures such as strong encryption and password protocols.

 

With Vox, our aim is to enhance your guests’ Wi-Fi experience. We can provide a neatly pre-packaged Wi-Fi mesh unit solution to ensure that all areas of the guesthouse are serviced. These mesh units are also easily managed by a user-friendly app, which further enhances the functionality. If more advanced cabling solutions are required, perhaps for a larger premises, our technicians and engineers can set up the solution.

 

Happy Guests, Positive Business Outcomes

Noting that ‘The Customer is King’ is especially critical in the travel industry – guests want to feel valued as they step over the threshold, and excellent Wi-Fi is a key aspect of attracting quality guests and then retaining them for future return visits.

 

woman 1851464 1920 | Vox | 5-Star Experience vs 1-Star Google Review: Your Guests Want Great Wi-Fi

Investing in fast and dependable Wi-Fi access gives you a competitive edge in terms of increased guest satisfaction and corresponding loyalty. It’s also important to gather feedback from your guests to stay on top of any Internet connectivity issues that might have occurred, to keep your standards consistently high.

Another consideration is for South African hoteliers to aim their marketing at the local target market. The rise of domestic travel since the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic presents an alternative option in addition to targeting overseas guests. Arguably, domestic tourists might also be more easily able to plan a repeat visit if they’re content with their overall experience.

With everything that South Africa has to offer tourists, both local and international, wouldn’t it be a pity for guests to be unhappy with your Wi-Fi offering, when it’s a relatively simple amenity to offer – to excellent standards – thanks to experts like Vox?

Talk to us at Vox if you have any questions or concerns about setting up a great guesthouse Wi-Fi experience. We’d love to hear from you – contact us via help@voxtelecom.co.za or call 087 805 0530.

Treat your Customers Like Royalty with Vox and Smartz Solutions

Posted on by Natalie van der Merwe

A partnership designed to revolutionise customer engagement in SA

Poor customer service can have a serious impact on the overall health of your business. In the short term, it can affect sales, and over the longer term, it can lose your business some of its existing clients, as well as harming your reputation and your brand overall. When your employees don’t universally treat your customers like royalty, cracks in your brand loyalty will quickly begin to show.

There’s a little mantra right there: ‘Treat like royalty to ensure brand loyalty.’

For larger organisations, your contact centre is a critical part of offering excellent customer service, being a central point from which your company can manage all customer interactions across various channels. Its primary purpose is to offer customers efficient and effective technical support, customer service and sales assistance.

In this article, we look at how Vox has partnered with Smartz Solutions to offer advanced, cloud-based contact centre solutions that cater to the dynamic needs of the modern market.

 

From Call Centre to Contact Centre

You could think of a contact centre as being an upgrade of the original call centre, which traditionally relied on phone lines for both inbound and outbound calls. Today, contact centre technology – which encompasses the software and hardware used in contact centres for digital customer service and support – extends beyond phone systems, although the use of phone systems still has an important role to play.

 

Round | Vox | Treat your Customers Like Royalty with Vox and Smartz Solutions

 

The customer contact digital channels that are used by contact centre technology include email communications, text messages, web-based live chats, and social media interactions including WhatsApp and video chats.

Integration of the contact centre software with applications such as customer relationship management (CRM) software and workforce optimisation software (WFO) adds deeper understanding and analytics to the contact centre’s operations.

These integrated tools enhance efficiency, improve customer service and allow for better data analysis. With the increasing demand from customers for organisations to be consistently available on various channels, and not only over the phone, contact centres are embracing multichannel (or omnichannel) approaches to enable them to refine their customer service, increase efficiency and improve insights into customers’ behaviours and needs, in a holistic virtuous circle to create better customer experiences overall.

Adding to this virtuous circle is the importance of retaining top talent in your contact centre.  High attrition rates cost businesses, both in recruitment and training expenses, as well as the quality and consistency of their customer service. By empowering the agent with the right tools, organisations can build contact centres where agents thrive and want to work, which is essential for building long-term customer relationships and trust.

 

Vox and Smartz Solutions: Ensuring that the Customer is King

 

smileys 5776137 1920 resized | Vox | Treat your Customers Like Royalty with Vox and Smartz Solutions

Contact centre technology shapes a customer’s journey by supporting interactions across channels. It ensures that interactions reach agents, and facilitates seamless communication between customers and the brand, regardless of the channel used.

The partnership between Vox and Smartz Solutions – an omnichannel communications solutions specialist – is designed to offer advanced, cloud-based contact centre solutions in a collaboration aimed at enhancing customer engagement solutions across South Africa.

  • Terminology note: Omni-channel means an integrated customer service experience across all possible channels that a customer uses to engage with a business. These channels could include Voice, video, SMS, WhatsApp, e-mail, web chat and social media.

 

Smartz Solutions’s feature-rich, cloud-based contact centre technology is designed to reduce your total cost of ownership (TCO) and increase your return on investment (ROI), while improving both client and employee experience at the same time. Vox is able to tailor-make a Smartz Solutions offering for your business.

Smartz Solutions features and benefits include the following:

  • Completely local and Rand-based: Buying in Rands helps customers avoid unfavourable, fluctuating exchange rates, which can double or triple the costs of these platforms, wreaking havoc with budgets.
  • Omni-channel integration: Unified customer experience across all channels with seamless transitions.
  • AI-Powered analytics: Real-time insights into customer behaviour for data-driven decision-making.
  • Intelligent routing: Efficient call handling and prioritised issue resolution based on customer needs.
  • Predictive customer support: Anticipates customer needs for proactive problem resolution.
  • Scalability and flexibility: Easily adaptable to growing business demands, reducing total cost of ownership.

 

Redefining Customer Experience

 

customer 3864831 1920 | Vox | Treat your Customers Like Royalty with Vox and Smartz Solutions

Nobody likes having an issue with a company that’s providing a service, but then being unable to get hold of anyone to assist them. The days of being on hold indefinitely belong to the dark ages of customer service.

By maximising Smartz Solutions’ innovative platform, Vox is set to redefine customer experience for businesses of all sizes. The partnership aims to deliver exceptional experiences and support businesses in their growth and customer engagement strategies.

By choosing Vox as your Smartz Solutions provider, customers can benefit from Vox’s market-leading expertise and commitment to service excellence, combined with Smartz Solutions’ innovative and customer-centric communication platform.

Driving His Future within the IT Arena and Beyond

Posted on by Vivienne Fouche

People of Vox: Spotlight on Lunga Hoho

At Vox, we believe our employees are the beating heart of our company, with merit and value built into all our available positions. In this edition of People of Vox, we meet Lunga Hoho, who works in the IT Department as a Desktop Support Technician.  When you meet Lunga, you realise very quickly that he’s a ‘People’s Person’, through and through! 

Lunga, who works at Vox Head Office in Joburg, but helps people remotely around the country, is one of the Vox IT support team members who’s there to help people at the drop of a hat when their computers are misbehaving. At the same time, he’s also highly skilled at putting the smiles back onto faces that were (at best) wearing a frown, and (at worst) spewing choice words into the surrounding atmosphere.

As you get to know Lunga, it also becomes apparent that he has an admirable self-driving philosophy (you’ll see why that’s a great pun a bit later in the article), which spurs him on to new challenges all the time. Lunga has been at Vox for around eight years now and has had an interesting career with us so far!

This, together with his People-Person outlook on life, meant he was top of mind when we were looking for the first person to interview for our new ‘People of Vox’ series of blog articles, in which we bring you the stories behind some of our less-well-known heroes.

Valuing His Culture   

Lunga Culture 1 | Vox | Driving His Future within the IT Arena and Beyond

Lunga values his Xhosa heritage

Lunga (short for Lungako) was born and raised in a small town in the Eastern Cape, where his Xhosa background became an integral part of shaping his personality and outlook on life. “What I truly appreciate about my culture,” he notes, “is its rich heritage with strong traditions, and its emphasis on love and respect for people.”

Both of his parents, as well as his sister, are schoolteachers. While he stands apart from his family members in pursuing a career outside the education arena, he shares their philosophy of being a life-long learner.

“Like the rest of my family”, he says, “I’ve always been around books and education, and I understand and appreciate its value. My mother says that ‘Inside every teacher is a school’ and her outlook has always inspired me to try to extend myself as much as I can.”

Crafting A Career Path 

Lunga joined Vox in mid-March 2017 on a 12-month contract basis, as part of an internship programme, where he worked as a Stores Assistant. Later that same year, on 1 August 2017, he became a driver for the company.

Lunga Vox car 1 | Vox | Driving His Future within the IT Arena and Beyond
Driving into his future with Vox!

He outlines: “I was so happy because this was now a permanent position! I was a driver for about two years and then became a service engineer for Qwerti (then known as MIT Services) in August 2019, where I remained until 2023, when I finally joined the IT Support Team as a Desktop Technician, which is my current role.”

Learning and studying formed an integral part of Lunga’s journey from becoming a driver for the company to being part of the IT team. This studying took place through both internal and external courses. He first became interested in becoming part of an IT support team when he was a driver visiting Vox clients.

“I started studying by registering myself on Vox Academy – because Vox Partners with Microsoft – and began my initial learning that way. Through these early courses, I became aware of more possibilities, both internally and externally, and I got to a point where I was knowledgeable enough to apply to become a service engineer for Qwerti (MIT Services), and then, as I mentioned, into my present position.

“I would like to add that throughout my career at Vox, I’ve been so fortunate in working for great line managers, who always supported and encouraged me, including taking the next steps into the next position or opportunity. I want to be an inspiration for any new interns going forward, because I’ve had so many people within the organisation who have made time to help me on my own journey.”

A Natural Fit in the IT Department

Lunga says he feels blessed by the opportunity to become part of the IT Support Team, which plays such an important role within Vox.

Lunga working 1 | Vox | Driving His Future within the IT Arena and Beyond
The serious business of work

He notes: “We protect the company’s data, secure its network, and seek ways to develop and improve our systems and IT infrastructure. I report to Sipho Sibanyoni, for whom I have great respect and admiration as an excellent manager, and my job is to ensure that Vox employees have all their technical needs met, thus allowing them to perform their duties. This includes being able to access the necessary shared folders on the server, getting onto the VPN, accessing printers and other office devices, encrypting confidential information and managing network traffic.

“Everyone who contacts me seeking help – from across various Vox branches around the country – is a vital cog in the company, and so I cultivate a positive attitude towards my clients and performing my duties. I’m always happy when I can solve someone’s tech problem and leave them happier than when I first went on the call to help them – it’s always wonderful when you are part of a solution, and this is one of the reasons why I love my job so much.”

Lunga reiterates that, partly because of his cultural background, he feels a deep love for humanity. He adds: “The best moments for me at Vox have been my encounters with people – those moments when I assist someone are really what makes my heart tick. I don’t think about the computer as much as I think about the person behind the screen.”

Exploring New Horizons

But it’s not just IT and people that makes Lunga tick – he also enjoys travel, studies and sports. He clarifies: “I enjoy seeking knowledge and studying in general, and just finding out how to better myself. This year, I’ve enrolled at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) to study Communications, which has always interested me. I’m so excited about investing in myself further – there’s always room to learn more!”

As for the travel, Lunga adds: “At the end of the day, we are here to collect as many good memories as we possibly can, and I have some great travel aspirations. For example, in the future I would like to climb Mount Kilimanjaro and visit the Great Pyramid of Egypt, to add to my previous travels to Botswana, Mauritius, Mozambique and the Mozambican Islands, as well as within South Africa itself. Further afield, I’d also like to visit Dagestan, in Russia, because one of my sports heroes, in Mixed Martial Arts, comes from there.”

Lunga cruise | Vox | Driving His Future within the IT Arena and Beyond
Just cruising!

Staying with sports, Lunga is usually one of the first to raise his hand when Vox, as a sponsor of the Golden Lions, is able to make free tickets available to staff members. More seriously, he clarifies: “My ultimate goal is to leave the world a little better than I found it. Working for Vox, because of its people-friendly and transparent, accessible culture, reminds me that behind all the professionalism I experience, I’m always dealing with human beings.

“I really enjoy working for a company that, besides being so innovative, also encourages such a great open-door policy, for employees as well as customers,” he concludes.

How to Make the Most of Your Vox Connectivity Line

Posted on by Vivienne Fouche

Tips to make sure you’re getting what you signed up for

Picture the scene. It’s early afternoon and your small one is streaming HD videos in one room, your teenager is on a video call in their bedroom, and mom and dad are both working from home, simultaneously accessing the Internet via different laptops, in two other corners of the house. Best of all, thanks to your Fibre to the Home (FTTH) Internet connection, there’s no buffering or lagging in sight.

 

How to Make the Most of Your Vox Connectivity Line
How to make the most of your Vox connectivity line

Looking back, it’s quite surprising to think that even 15 years ago, this wasn’t a common scenario – for starters, YouTube was only started in 2005, and Netflix Streaming in January 2007. As for widespread Fibre connectivity in South Africa, it was still just a twinkle in somebody’s eye, because the first subsea Fibre cable to reach South Africa went live only in 2009. Today, Internet access has become one of the most important areas of our lives.

Internet connectivity opens us up to an incredible world of information, entertainment and opportunity, and nobody wants a slow or buffering connection, while price and value-conscious consumers are justifiably concerned about getting true value from their purchases. But what happens when you’ve paid for a decent Internet package, but it doesn’t seem to be working quite as well as you expected? When the Modern Family-inspired Internet scenario sketched out above starts stuttering and freezing?

Because even with a Fibre Internet connection – generally regarded as the crème de la crème of Internet connectivity – several factors can still reduce the performance of your Fibre to the Home (FTTH) Internet speed and reliability.

This article looks at how you can make the most of your Vox FTTH Connectivity line when certain challenges rear their heads.

 

Wi-Fi: Enabling Wireless Connectivity from Your Fibre Optic Line  

improve Wi Fi signal

 

Good Internet connectivity depends on many factors, including your Internet Service Provider (ISP) first and foremost, as well as the speed of your chosen Internet package; whether your devices are modern or no longer that new; and Wi-Fi options and challenges.

  • The job of a Wi-Fi router is to ‘convert’ the data packets carried within light pulses through Fibre Optic cables laid in your neighbourhood, into the Wi-Fi radio wave signal inside your home.
  • This then enables your family’s digital devices – laptops, tablets, smartphones and smart TVs – to link into the Internet, creating a wireless Internet connection for your home (cable-free Internet, in other words).

 

Wi-Fi functionality is integral to the performance of your Fibre-based Internet line.

 

Improving Your Wireless Signal

 If your internet connectivity line doesn’t seem to be giving you the results you were expecting, or if you’re experiencing Wi-Fi dead zones in your home (caused by the distance of your device from the wireless router, thick walls or electrical interference), there are a few things you can do to improve your Wi-Fi network, as follows:

  • Router position: Choose a central location in your home, and raise the router off the floor. Also, don’t place the Wi-Fi router inside a cupboard or desk. Sometimes just raising the router a little higher up from the floor for better signal distribution will increase its range and speed. Make sure your router is away from other electronic and electrical equipment, metal objects and solid brick or concrete walls.
  • Router speed: Your router should handle a speed rated the same or higher than your chosen Internet package. And so, if your Fibre Internet is 500Mbps, your router should be able to offer speeds at least this fast.
  • Number of devices: All Wi-Fi equipment supplied by Vox is strong enough to cover an estimated 100 square metres, depending on what material your walls are made of. Vox recommends adding an additional device for every 50 to 100 square metres extra.
  • Mesh System to enhance signal: If the Wi-Fi range in your house is poor, a Vox mesh router system can help to push the signal further, so the whole family can stay connected throughout the house, providing an uninterrupted lag-free high-speed Wi-Fi connection for multiple devices in every corner of your home.Vox Wi Fi Home Mesh
  • How many mesh units can I have in my home? The Vox two-pack can connect up to 100 devices and you can include up to eight units in your home if more coverage is needed. A Vox Wi-Fi Home Mesh network can handle a mix of IoT products, smart TVs, smartphones, tablets and other electronic devices, such as wireless printers.
  • Other devices can interfere with your Wi-Fi connection, including microwave ovens, cordless phones, Bluetooth products, baby monitors, alarms, cameras and other wireless LANs. To prevent this, position the Wi-Fi router or mesh extender as far away as possible from microwave ovens, Bluetooth devices, and 2.4 GHz cordless phones.
  • App-Enabled: If you want to check your Wi-Fi range, there are apps available for Apple and Android smartphones, for example ‘Sweetspot’ for Apple and ‘WiFi analyzer’ for Android.

 

Not Just the Wi-Fi to Consider

A Wi-Fi router is not the only critical component that enhances your user experience.

  • Wired after all: As outlined above, a Wi-Fi Home Mesh network can provide incredibly strong Internet connectivity, but there are still times when an Ethernet cable might be the best solution – for example, if you have very thick walls, or for plugging into an HD television or gaming setup, where the speed needs to stay high and the connectivity lag-free. Look at buying an Ethernet cable that is rated for ‘Cat 5e’ or ‘Cat 6’.
  • Great Internet, old device = problem: You won’t get the maximum range and performance from a newer wireless router unless your devices also use the same Wi-Fi standard. An old laptop is unlikely to have ‘ac’ or ‘n’ Wi-Fi access, so check the specifications to see which wireless standard it is using. If you don’t want to buy a new laptop straight away, you can buy a wireless adapter that plugs into a USB port on your laptop.

 

The Magic of Blazing Fast Internet

 

Vox Wi Fi Home Mesh

When you signed up for your FTTH Internet connection, you chose an option for yourself and your family that is fast, reliable and future-proof, and ready to deliver you the best possible Internet experience. Considering its scope and importance, maximising your internet connectivity line is critically important.

The good news is that you can optimise your home Wi-Fi experience with the right choice of routers, extenders and mesh options.

Your Vox Home Fibre line is future‑proof and capable of delivering outstanding home Internet, but a few simple tweaks to router placement, device choices and using mesh or Ethernet where needed will ensure the whole family gets the experience you expected.

If you need help optimising your home Wi‑Fi or want to add Vox Wi‑Fi Home Mesh, simply visit vox.co.za, sign up with Vox, or contact Vox Support on 087 805 0530.

With Vox Fibre to the Home, you are enabled by great Internet access. Welcome to a world of online opportunities.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I tell if the issue is my Vox Fibre line or my home Wi‑Fi?

Run a speed test directly from a device connected by Ethernet to your router. If wired speeds match your plan, the issue is likely Wi‑Fi or device related.

How many Vox mesh units do I need?

A Vox two‑pack covers many typical homes and supports up to 100 devices. You can add up to eight units for larger homes or difficult layouts.

Where should I place my router for best coverage?

Position the router centrally, elevated and away from thick walls, metal objects and kitchen appliances. Avoid cupboards or behind large furniture.

Will a mesh system reduce my Internet speed?

A well-configured mesh keeps speeds high across the home. For best performance, place mesh units strategically and use wired backhaul where possible.

Do I need a new router if I upgrade my Vox Fibre package?

Your router should support the speed of your new package. If it’s rated lower than your plan, consider upgrading to a higher‑spec router or Vox Wi‑Fi Home Mesh.

Can old devices cause slow Wi‑Fi for the whole house?

Older devices can occupy airtime and reduce performance for others. Where possible, update device Wi‑Fi adapters or move bandwidth‑heavy tasks to wired connections.

Is Ethernet worth the hassle for a smart TV or console?

Yes. Ethernet (Cat 5e/Cat 6) offers the most reliable, low‑latency connection and is ideal for HD streaming and competitive gaming.

How do I contact Vox Support for help?

Visit vox.co.za for product info and self-service tools, or call Consumer Support on 087 805 0530 for assistance.

Too Big, Too Small or Just Right? Choosing the Right Internet Plan for Your Household

Posted on by Vivienne Fouche

Getting the right fit for your household’s size, usage habits and budget

There’s an age-old fairytale for children called ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’. If you think about it from a South African perspective, it’s really a tale of a home invasion – a minor and harmless one at least. One takeaway from the folk tale (besides ‘Don’t enter people’s homes when they aren’t there!’) is apparently that Goldilocks is looking for her fit in life.

Vox guide to choosing the right speed, data and connection type for your household that’s just right for everyone.
Image courtesy www.kids-pages.com

 

Here at Vox, we obviously don’t condone home invasions of any sort, but we do endorse finding the right fit. As one of South Africa’s leading Internet Service Providers (ISPs), we understand that your online experience should allow everyone in your home to enjoy seamless connectivity for all their devices and activities. We also know that choosing the right Internet plan for your household doesn’t have to be an impossible fairytale either.  

At Vox, we’ve got multiple Connectivity plans for you to choose from, but it’s important to understand some key points to make an informed decision.

So here’s a guide on selecting the best Vox Internet plan based on the size of your household, the usage habits of everyone who lives there, and your budget – because just like Goldilocks (but not in a creepy way) we understand the importance of getting it ‘just right’.

 

Assess Your Household’s Internet Usage

home internet for family 

Start by assessing your household’s Internet usage patterns. How many Internet users do you have at home and what do they do online? For example, do your family members regularly spend time streaming entertainment, gaming or in online video meetings? How many devices could potentially be connected simultaneously at any given moment? Thinking about these factors will help you to determine the required speed and data allowances of your Internet plan.

Internet speed is typically measured in megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and uploads. So: how many teenagers – or almost teenagers – are living in your house, and are any of them currently planning a career in gaming or becoming a YouTuber? You’ll want to choose higher speeds if anyone in your home is regularly involved in bandwidth-intensive activities like online gaming or HD streaming.

The table below offers some useful guidelines.

V104.1.7 How to Choose Table V1 030225 FINAL | Vox | Too Big, Too Small or Just Right? Choosing the Right Internet Plan for Your Household
choose internet plan South Africa

Select Your Internet Plan for Seamless Connectivity

When you’re choosing a household Internet plan, you want one that offers sufficient speed to support your family’s online activities without experiencing slowdowns or buffering.

Compare pricing structures among our different Internet offerings to find a plan that fits your budget and your speed requirements, as well as whether your Internet data usage will be capped or uncapped. At any given moment, you’ll find a promotional offer available and a variety of options across all our different Connectivity options (which are outlined in the next section).

Evaluate your household’s typical data consumption and choose a plan with sufficient data allowances to avoid throttling of your Internet speeds. Throttling occurs if you use more than a certain, pre-determined (as outlined within your contract) ‘fair’ amount of data in a given timeframe.

If your Internet usage is ‘throttled’, your line speed is slowed down during peak times to give other users fair access to the network. In simple terms, being throttled means that your upload and download speeds will be significantly reduced at certain times, until the new month begins and the ‘reset button’ takes you back to your contractual speeds. If you find that your home’s Internet connection is being regularly throttled, perhaps you need to upgrade to a package with higher speeds.

 

Types of Internet Connections 

You can find out what types of Vox Internet connections are availably simply by going to the Vox home page and typing in your address. All the options available to you in your area will then be shown.

These could include the following: Fibre to the Home, which provides blazing-fast Connectivity by using light pulses to transmit data packets through Fibre Optic cables; LTE and 5G, which work via the same wireless cellular technology that powers your mobile phone network; and Satellite, presenting your eye in the sky when other options aren’t available.

Each type of Internet connectivity for home usage has unique characteristics:

  • Fibre to the Home: Enjoy super-fast, reliable Internet with Vox’s Fibre to the Home packages, with speeds that range from 4Mbps to a whopping 1Gbps.
  • LTE and 5G: Get connected to the Fibre-like speeds of Vox’s LTE and 5G offerings without having to wait for a fixed-line Fibre option to be installed in your neighbourhood.
  • Satellite: When your area’s access to FTTH, LTE and 5G connectivity is limited, Vox offers Satellite Internet, independent of cabling, across the country. It isn’t as fast as the other options, but it’s reliable and available across South Africa.

 

Choose the Right Internet Plan Today 

internet speed for streaming and gaming

Selecting the right Internet plan makes sure that everyone in your home can stay connected and productive, for communication, remote work and online learning, banking, shopping and entertainment.

At Vox, we know that, just like the Three Bears in the age-old fairytale, everyone’s needs are different. Why not contact us today for expert advice on how to choose the right Internet plan for your home and your family? We’ll help you make the right choice: not too big, not too small, but just right.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Is fibre always better than 5G or satellite?
Fibre typically offers the most reliable speeds and lowest latency. 5G/LTE can deliver fibre-like speeds and fast installation in many areas. Satellite is best where terrestrial services aren’t available.

What does ‘uncapped’ mean and is it worth it?
Uncapped means you don’t have a fixed data limit for normal use; check for any fair-usage policy. Uncapped plans are valuable for heavy households whose members frequently stream, game or work from home.

Why does my internet speed slow down at certain times?
That’s usually due to throttling under a fair-use arrangement or network contention during peak hours. Upgrading to a higher-tier or uncapped plan can help.

Can I mix connections (fibre with LTE backup)?
Yes. Vox and many ISPs offer redundant setups (fibre primary with LTE failover), which is useful for critical remote work or businesses operating from home.

How many Mbps do I need for remote work and video conferencing?
For reliable video calls, aim for at least 10–25Mbps per active remote worker, with good upload speeds to avoid degraded video quality.

How do I check which Vox options are available at my address?
Use the Vox availability checker on vox.co.za and enter your address to view Fibre, LTE/5G and Satellite options and the recommended plans for your area.

 

How Premium Hosting is the ‘Blue Tick’ your Business Needs

Posted on by Vivienne Fouche

Join the club and enjoy the benefits

 

The issue of how to become part of an elite, exclusive grouping that others urgently want to belong to has been around for centuries and more. An invitation to ‘join the club’ usually speaks to people’s pre-programmed desires to be part of the In-Crowd and enjoy positive outcomes in one way or another.

 

band 8330128 1920 | Vox | How Premium Hosting is the ‘Blue Tick’ your Business Needs

In the UK and across Europe, we have royalty and rock stars. In America, there’s the huge celebrity that comes with being part of the crème de la crème of Hollywood. (Oh yes, and these days, if you’re a Tech Billionaire you automatically snagged an invitation to the 2025 Presidential Inauguration.) In South Africa, we had our own even-bigger-than-royalty home-grown celebrity with our late, truly great President Mandela, and we admire and revere our sports heroes (preferably when they’re winning, of course).

On social media we have the Blue Tick badge – a verification sign to show that the site is authentic. And when it comes to web hosting, here at Vox we know that Premium Hosting with WordPress is the Blue Tick that your business needs.

(Not to be confused with WhatsApp blue-ticking, which means you’re being ignored or even ghosted.)

So let’s look at why Premium Hosting from WordPress gives you and your target market peace of mind that you’re dealing with the real deal – and why you would want your business to join this club.

 

Your Web Hosting: The Real Deal

Meta Verified | Vox | How Premium Hosting is the ‘Blue Tick’ your Business Needs

A social media Blue Tick is a recognised stamp of approval that provides ways to separate an account from a duplicate or spam account. The advantages of this badge – which is different for Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn – include greater credibility and a reduced fear of impersonation, higher search results, potential increased engagement and increased brand awareness.

Now if only there was a way to apply all those benefits to your website.

Enter WordPress and Premium Hosting.

WordPress is a Content Management System (CMS) that’s used to manage blogs, full-blown websites, online e-commerce stores, news portals and other types of websites. Its mission is to enable the creation and editing of content on a website without needing to be fluent in a programming language. WordPress makes it easy for content producers without any previous coding knowledge to design and manage their entire portal, store or blog, simply and intuitively.

WordPress Premium Hosting goes further by offering a reliable, locally hosted WordPress website without the administrative challenges of managing a server. Your company gains the benefits of a professional site that is secure and able to grow with your business.

But why should you choose WordPress Premium Hosting over some of the other options that are available? And how does Vox assist?

 

No More Singing the Blues of Shared Web Hosting

With e-commerce enabled functionality, your website is a place of business in its own right. It’s often the first experience customers have of your organisation.

  • Traditionally, shared web hosting means that more than one website shares the resources of a single virtual or physical server. This makes for a low-cost solution but means that service levels can’t be guaranteed.
  • Unlike shared web hosting, Vox’s Premium WordPress offering is a solution for customers who require better performance, uptime and scalability.

Vox Premium WordPress hosting offers the following:

  • Dedicated hosting infrastructure – no more shared web hosting.
  • High-speed storage, ensuring premium performance.
  • Built on the Vox Internet network, meaning guaranteed performance with the ability to upgrade when required.
  • Monthly Website Vulnerability Assessments to identify risks and be proactive with your website’s cybersecurity.
  • Ongoing backups to ensure you don’t lose your website.
  • Locally hosted servers with 99.9% uptime guarantee.

 

Taking Your Business to the Next Level

businessman 2682712 1920 geralt Pixabay | Vox | How Premium Hosting is the ‘Blue Tick’ your Business Needs

WordPress hosting is tweaked for high traffic websites, providing excellent performance and faster loading websites. Vox’s Premium WordPress offering delivers performance and scalability to your fingertips, with three different package options depending on your needs:  WordPress Starter; WordPress Innovator and WordPress Fanatic.

With all of these benefits, be prepared to turbo-charge your website – and your business – and enjoy greater credibility, rock-solid e-commerce performance, increased engagement and positive brand awareness. Welcome to the Premier Club.

Fibre or Wireless for Business: When Your Real Estate Makes a Difference

Posted on by Vivienne Fouche

Vox has a business solution no matter where you’re based, because location matters. Whether your premises sit in a newly cabled business park or in an area where fibre isn’t yet available will determine the most practical, cost‑effective and resilient connectivity option. Vox offers both Business Fibre  and licensed Wireless for Business so your organisation can stay connected, wherever you are.

‘Location, location, location.’

It’s the mantra that estate agents everywhere live by, and it also works in the world of Business Connectivity – where your business is located can have significant implications for your Internet options.

Is your organisation situated in an area where Fibre Optic Cables are already laid – or at least in the planning stage? If so, sorting out excellent Internet Connectivity for your organisation is guaranteed, and you’ll be able to make use of the fantastic speed of Fibre to the Business (FTTB), with its clear benefits for all users.

But what if the neighbourhood doesn’t yet have FTTB on its radar?

That’s when you look to another phrase that starts with the letter ‘L’ – and find out how ‘Line-of-sight’ can also help with excellent Internet access, through Wireless for Business Connectivity, delivered by Microwave radio technology.

We take a look at the different features and benefits provided by both FTTB and Wireless Connectivity for organisations.

 

Business Fibre: A Premium Cabled Service

Internet Connectivity that’s provided by Fibre to the Business, or FTTB (as well as Fibre to the Home, FTTH) uses Fibre Optic cables, composed of strands of glass, to transmit Data at incredibly high speeds using light pulses sent through the glass Fibre. This means that Fibre Optic networks are capable of much greater speeds and bandwidth than the traditional copper-based ADSL lines.

 

Fibre to the Business

Fibre Optic solutions bring you the best available speed within the current Internet landscape – users can achieve incredible speeds of up to 1,000Mbps. They’re also highly reliable due to the smooth, constant flow of Data during transmission, while the steady signal, with increased bandwidth, means that even with multiple users, Fibre Optics can handle the load.

Overall, Fibre Optic Internet is generally regarded as being the pinnacle of Connectivity. However, it’s not the only option for businesses to consider today.

 

Not Just for the Office Kitchen

Microwave Internet – also known as Wireless – is a worthy alternative to FTTB, especially in areas where the Fibre Network Operators (FNOs) haven’t yet laid the required cabling infrastructure. It’s just as fast as Fibre, and more widely available.

Microwave signals provide a fixed wireless broadband connection through a high-capacity Microwave radio link, requiring arguably less infrastructure than Fibre Optics. A fixed Microwave signal delivers both voice and data traffic over long distances and to more remote locations and rural areas.

Wireless Microwave Connectivity requires power and a clear line of sight, with its access towers connected to Fibre lines. A device is pointed at a tower which services the area in which your business operates. While the last-mile connection may be wireless, the backhaul is provided by Fibre Optics.

 

Wireless for business
Image courtesy of: https://protowermaintenance.com/what-is-microwave-communication/

Vox Business Wireless, using licensed Microwave spectrum, is an excellent replacement for traditional fixed-line last-mile connections. With Vox, you can ensure that your business is always connected where Fibre connectivity is limited or not available, and the deployment is significantly quicker than with Fibre.

You can also choose to connect a Temporary Vox Wireless connection while you wait for your Fibre – our rapid Installation saves you time and gets your Internet operating at world-class standards. Vox Wireless can also be used as a redundancy option to Fibre, to ensure that your business is always connected.

 

Which Option is Right for Your Business?

Fibre to the Business is generally regarded as being the ‘standard bearer’ of Internet connectivity today. Often referred to as the ‘gold in the ground’, it opens a fantastic doorway to the business requirements of the digital age.

However, Vox’s Wireless for Business is an excellent alternative to Fibre to the Business, particularly when the Fibre Optic cabling infrastructure hasn’t yet been laid in your neighbourhood. One potential drawback is that, because the connection is delivered over the air, line-of-sight is needed between both points. This can make installation more difficult in certain locations – for example if your business premises is in a valley surrounded by hills.

A Microwave Internet link can also be used as an excellent backup solution to Fibre, because when a company isn’t reliant on only one technology, this allows for business continuity and resilience planning. If a fault should occur with a Fibre connection, the Microwave Internet solution isn’t likely to be experiencing the same type of failure: one solution runs through cabling while the other is air-based.

 

An Added Bonus: The Best of Both Worlds

The choice between FTTB and Wireless to the Business is essentially a win-win for our customers. But what if there was a reason NOT to make a choice? What about an option that provides the best of both worlds?

If downtime would be a catastrophe for your business, then check out our Active-Active offering and enjoy the best of both worlds – Vox is the first local ISP to offer this exciting new product!

Vox has always been able to incorporate both FTTB and Wireless to the Business into our business failover solutions, which are designed to keep your organisation’s Connectivity up and running even during challenging periods. And now, we’ve proudly gone one step further.

Our new Active-Active failover offering is a groundbreaking new option that no other local ISP is presenting. This option maximises the use of both a Business Fibre connection as well as a Wireless to the Business solution, to make sure that your organisation never loses connectivity.

system 3541577 1920 | Vox | Fibre or Wireless for Business: When Your Real Estate Makes a Difference

Our National Footprint

The great news is that Vox is able to offer viable solutions for your business, no matter where your organisation is located. Our innovative Connectivity solutions can be customised to the specific challenges of your business location and buildings, as well as your Internet speed requirements.

Our Wireless offerings range from 5Mbps up to 100Mbps, with alternatives in between. As for our Business Fibre solutions, our range can go up to 1Gbps, and we offer scalable options with tailored value-adds to suit your business needs – for example, state-of-the-art Wi-Fi connectivity and DDoS attack defences.

Our offerings criss-cross South Africa no matter where your business is situated. Contact us today for more information, because we’ve got the ‘Location, location, location’ philosophy sorted.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Wireless as reliable as Fibre?
Wireless (licensed microwave) is highly reliable and carrier‑grade, especially when mounted on properly surveyed sites, but it usually requires line‑of‑sight. Dedicated Fibre offers uncontended bandwidth and typically the highest resilience for heavy, continuous workloads.

What speeds can I get with Vox Wireless?
Vox Wireless licensed microwave services are available from 5 Mbps up to 100 Mbps (symmetrical), offered as either broadband (shared) or dedicated (1:1) links.

Can Wireless be used as a failover to Fibre?
Yes. Wireless is commonly used as a temporary connection while waiting for Fibre or as a redundant/failover link to keep your business online during cable faults.

What is Active‑Active and do I need it?
Active‑Active uses both fibre and wireless concurrently to maximise availability. It’s recommended where downtime would be costly, for example within retail, call centres, data replication and payment processing environments.

How long does installation take?
Wireless installations are typically faster because they don’t require trenching; Fibre timelines depend on local build status and site readiness. Contact Vox for a site assessment and estimated lead time.

Are speeds symmetrical?
Yes. Vox offers symmetrical lines for both Fibre and Wireless where specified (important for uploads, cloud backups and VoIP).

Do Vox services include SLAs and business support?
Vox provides 24/7 business support. Premium and Dedicated services offer stronger SLAs and priority support; details are provided during quoting.

What if my site is in a valley or has obstructions?
If line‑of‑sight is an issue, Vox will recommend alternative options based on a site survey, for example a nearby rooftop relay, temporary wireless, fibre where available, or hybrid redundancy.

Vox Hosting with the Mosting

Posted on by Vivienne Fouche

Providing a solution to meet your business requirements

Customer loyalty today demands digital options. If your business doesn’t have an attractive and well-functioning website, your potential customers will shop elsewhere.

South Africa’s online retail sector showed a significant increase in the past few years, growing by almost 30 percent (29 percent) between 2022 and 2023. Having reached the R71 billion mark in 2023, online sales are now anticipated to break the R100 billion barrier by 2026 – which is just around the corner.

And so, with South Africa’s online sales soaring, there’s never been a better time to make sure your business has a functioning website. Even with a bricks-and-mortar operation, it’s essential to back it up with an online option as well.

If you’re keen to upgrade your company’s online presence quickly and effectively – or even kickstart one if you haven’t got a website already – Vox offers several different hosting experiences with solutions to meet your business’s unique requirements, no matter your budget.

 

Domain and Web Hosting: The Right Address and Functioning Operations

street 767772 1920 edited | Vox | Vox Hosting with the Mosting

In the physical world, you need an address so your customers can find you, and you need premises from which to operate. These two terms represent different things in terms of getting your website infrastructure up and running.

  • Start with an address: Domain hosting is a service that allows you to choose and register a unique online name for your website and brand, in other words your web address.
  • Make sure your premises are fit for purpose: Behind the address lies the property from which your business operates. Web hosting is essentially what stores all your site’s information and files. It’s usually a server, or space on a server.
  • Let your customers come inside: When someone uses your domain to access your website, signals are sent to the server, which then opens up your live site for the customer – the online version of ‘going into your shop’.

 

With Vox Web Hosting, you rent space on our server and host your website contents through us. We offer multiple platforms to choose from, including WordPress, Linux and Windows. Vox Web Hosting includes a free .co.za domain.

 

Backed by Vox Expertise

difference 7370145 1920 | Vox | Vox Hosting with the Mosting

As well as being able to choose from multiple platforms and have a free domain, Vox Web Hosting also offers the following benefits:

  • Extensive network coverage: Vox Web Hosting has an established national and international backbone with over 13 local PoPs (Point of Purchase outlets) and footprints in all the Teraco Data Centre environments.
  • Security Team: All servers sit behind Vox’s state-of-the-art firewall infrastructure, with virus management and security updates.
  • 24/7 Expert Support: Our servers are locally hosted and managed around the clock by our engineering team for peace of mind.
  • Includes a Free SSL Certificate: If you’re going to run a prosperous website that is secure for your users and browsers, SSL certificates are an essential. Vox SSL Certificates keep your customers’ confidence by ensuring the safety of their data while they visit your website.

 

WordPress, Linux and Windows are some of the world’s most popular website hosting platforms today, and Vox Web Hosting is proud to bring you different options across each brand.

 

Shared Web Hosting: Linux and Windows

Shared hosting makes getting started online simpler and easier, saving you money, as well as taking the headache out of hosting.

With Vox shared Web Hosting, our customers experience a form of web hosting in which more than one website shares the resources of a single virtual or physical server, which means a stable but also low-cost solution.

Choose from Linux options as follows:

  • Linux Basic: 1GB of storage, 25 email addresses;
  • Linux Standard: 4GB of storage, 75 email addresses;
  • Linux Advanced: 20 GB of storage, 200 email addresses; and
  • Linux Ultimate: 30 GB of storage, 250 email addresses.

Alternatively, Vox Web Hosting also offers Windows options, as follows:

  • Windows Standard: 2GB of storage, 100 email addresses;
  • Windows Advanced: 4GB of storage, 200 email addresses; and
  • Windows Ultimate: 20GB of storage, 250 email addresses.

 

Premium WordPress Hosting

If you want to kick your website functionality up a notch, consider WordPress. Over the last two decades, WordPress has grown from being a simple blogging website to one of the world’s most used hosting platforms today.

Our premium WordPress offering delivers performance and scalability to your fingertips. It’s an excellent solution for customers who require better performance, uptime and scalability – although please note: it doesn’t come with email addresses built into the offering.

  • WordPress Starter is ideal for startups that require a professional WordPress website, offering 50GB storage and able to cater to up to 30,000 visitors monthly.
  • WordPress Innovator is perfect for growing businesses that need to scale and require speed and reliability, with 100 GB storage and ideal for up to 120,000 monthly visitors.
  • WordPress Fanatic is excellent for running an e-commerce website, with 150GB storage. It’s capable of catering to an unlimited number of visitors monthly.

 

Which Option to Choose?

Whether your business is already established or a startup about to take off, you need a strong online presence. From your website address to the online ‘premises’ behind it, Vox has the right option to help you with your online sales.

open sign 1309682 1920 | Vox | Vox Hosting with the Mosting

Shared hosting shares a single physical server with hundreds (if not thousands) of other websites, giving you a low-cost service. WordPress hosting is tweaked for high traffic websites, providing excellent performance and faster loading websites.

Contact us for more information and we can assist you with working out the option that’s best for your business. We can help you establish a business identity, give your organisation a professional look and feel, and build credibility on the web.

Join the sales revolution and be part of the drive to reach the one billion Rand online sales mark next year!

Available in your area

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