Shaw Business Phone Systems Review: Is It The Right Call?

Shaw brands itself as “western Canada’s leading network and content specialist”. The company connected its first cable customer in 1971, and now delivers both consumer and business products.

Shaw was founded in 1966 as Shaw Communications Inc., and now serves over 3 million customers – with nearly 2 million Shaw Internet customers and 860,000 kilometres of fibre cable.

Review
Shaw BusinessRating
Ease of Use
Reliability
Features
Price
Overall
Reviewed by Expert Market:06/01/2023

Shaw Business Phone Systems

Shaw Business has a national fibre-optic network, which provides data networking, video, voice and internet services to businesses large and small.

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Shaw Business Products

SmartWiFi

Shaw’s WiFi products include business hotspots, which are separate WiFi connections for businesses and customers with enterprise level services provided specifically for small businesses. Custom guest logins can display special offers and gain valuable customer data. The service is fast, with unlimited data.

SmartVoice

Shaw’s business phone product is SmartVoice, a unified communication solution incorporating messaging, email, calendars, video calling, conferencing, call waiting and more. Collaboration is mobile and systems are scalable.

Shaw offers mobile solutions for single or flexible use, and call diversion and per desk options for businesses that need desk-based hardware. Shaw also has a basic Business Phone plan with connection, standard features and competitive call rates. SmartVoice is the more advanced option.

SmartSecurity

Shaw also provides Cloud-based updates for virus and data protection, which are tailored for small to medium-sized businesses. Elements include VPNs, business grade firewalls, application controls, and protection for remote workers.

Shaw Business Phone Benefits

Shaw’s SmartVoice purports to offer the same unified communications normally enjoyed by larger businesses. Collaboration across desk phones, mobile devices and applications, and computer networks improves productivity without large scale capital investment.

Instant messaging, desktop sharing, video conferencing, and advanced voice technology also improve efficiency and limit the amount of voicemails received.  Cloud based connectivity means employees can be connected anywhere and anytime.

As SmartVoice is a managed solution with installation, training, upgrades and support there is no need for IT experts, hardware or unnecessary downtime.

Other dedicated features of a Shaw business phone system include Meet Me Conference, Auto Attendant, Reception Console, On Hold Messaging, Instant Messaging and Voicemail to Email.

Shaw Business Phone System Costs

SmartVoice

SmartVoice Mobile Collaborative on a 3-year contract starts from $39.95 CAD per seat/person per month. This is a software based, unified service which connects mobile and laptop and includes instant messaging, video calling, desktop sharing and device switching via Call Pull.

SmartVoice Collaborative

SmartVoice Collaborative is the desk based solution and on a 3-year contract starts from $49.95 CAD per seat per month. Features include collaborative tools for teams, call forwarding, desktop sharing, instant messaging, video calling, and instant meetings via conference calls.

SmartVoice Mobile

This setup allows desk phone, laptop/PC and mobile integration for teams and is $59.95 CAD per seat per month on a 3-year contract.

Shaw Business Phone Reviews

Shaw protects the identity of all customers, therefore the following case studies include the type of business who offered the review but do not include their names.

Shaw Retail User

A retail outlet had an outdated phone system which was causing delays and delivering poor customer service. The retailer needed a scalable but personal system to respond to customer demand and seamless out of office integration for managers.

This customer chose unified communications and saw immediate results in productivity, customer satisfaction and more sales for one fixed monthly cost. They also opted for a cloud based solution ready for expansion to a second location.

Shaw Professional Services User

A professional services firm whose employees spent a high proportion of time out of the office but needed the best software available to collaborate online and supporting excellent WiFi. This firm chose a managed WiFi solution with multiple networks to speed file transfer and management.

Shaw supported the company with a cloud based dashboard for centralised management by the IT team. Employees and Managers with thrilled with both speed and reliability.

Expert Verdict

Shaw is an established Canadian brand with a good history. It has very transparent and structured pricing. Features are comprehensive and explained well, but not as innovative as those offered by some of the other brands available. Reports on reliability are good, and many customers appreciate Shaw having a local presence.

Written by:
Aimee profile image
Aimee is Expert Market’s resident telephone systems and point of sale go-to. If she’s not writing about business products, you’ll find her daydreaming about dog walking on Dorset beaches.
Reviewed by:
James draws on his 4+ years experience as a researcher to offer specialized advice on a wide range of categories from CRM to Fleet Management. He believes all businesses can grow if they use the right tools and services.