With the UK’s PSTN network shutting down in January 2027, every business that still relies on traditional phone lines needs a plan. But even companies already on VoIP often find their phone system lives in a separate world from their CRM, helpdesk, and order management tools. Agents re-key call notes. Managers chase reports across three dashboards. Customer data falls through the cracks between systems that were never designed to talk to each other.
Computer telephony integration (CTI) is the fix — software that connects your phone system directly to your business applications so calls are logged automatically, customer records appear the moment the phone rings, and routing decisions happen based on your actual business rules rather than a vendor’s defaults. The problem is that most off-the-shelf CTI platforms charge per seat, lock down your call data, and offer limited ability to match your workflows. For growing UK businesses, that model breaks down fast.
At ByteGears, we build bespoke telephony integration software for British businesses. You get a system designed around how your team actually handles calls, connected to the tools you already use, and owned outright with no per-user fees. We are a London-based team that works with a small number of clients at a time, so you get proper attention and UK compliance knowledge from the start.
Why off-the-shelf telephony platforms fall short
SaaS telephony products like Aircall, RingCentral, and Dialpad work well enough for standard setups. But as your requirements grow, the cracks show:
- Per-seat costs that scale against you. Aircall charges £40-80 per user per month. RingCentral starts at £16-28 per user but escalates quickly once you add contact centre features, AI analytics, or premium integrations. For a 50-person team, that is £10,000-48,000 per year in licence fees alone — before add-ons.
- CRM integration that is not as native as it looks. Several platforms charge extra for Salesforce connectors. Screen-pop latency of two to five seconds is common. Call dispositions and custom fields frequently fail to sync back to the CRM, leaving agents doing manual clean-up.
- Vendor lock-in on your call data. Call recordings and transcripts are stored in the vendor’s cloud in proprietary formats. Exporting them in bulk for analytics or compliance purposes is difficult and sometimes impossible without paying for professional services.
- Rigid IVR and routing logic. If your call routing depends on customer value tiers, specific client assignments, or approval workflows that are unique to your business, most SaaS platforms require expensive professional services engagements (£5,000-25,000+) to configure what should be straightforward.
- Hidden costs that accumulate. Extended call recording retention beyond 90 days is often charged per gigabyte. Premium support adds 10-30% to your monthly bill. Advanced analytics and custom reporting are frequently locked behind higher-tier plans.
- Data residency questions. Many platforms store call data in US data centres. For UK businesses handling sensitive customer information, particularly in financial services or healthcare, that creates GDPR data residency concerns.
The result is a phone system that technically works but does not actually fit. Staff develop workarounds, customer data sits in silos, and you are paying a growing monthly bill for features you do not use while lacking the ones you need.
How our custom approach works differently
We build telephony software that fits your business rather than asking your business to fit the software.
Process-first design We map your current call handling workflows — who answers what, how calls get escalated, what data agents need on screen — and build software that supports those patterns directly.
You own it outright No per-seat subscriptions. One investment. As your team grows from 20 to 200, your telephony costs do not grow with it.
Direct system connections We integrate with your CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot, Dynamics, or bespoke), helpdesk, ERP, and other platforms through their APIs. Call data flows automatically. Screen-pops appear in milliseconds rather than the two-to-five-second delays common with SaaS integrations.
UK compliance built in from the start GDPR-compliant consent recording, encrypted audio (SRTP) and signalling (TLS 1.2+), configurable retention policies, and full audit trails. For regulated industries, we build to FCA, MiFID II, and Ofcom requirements. Data hosted in the UK where required.
Modular architecture Need predictive dialling in six months? A new IVR branch next quarter? The system is designed so features can be added without re-engineering the platform or migrating to a new vendor.
London-based team Our developers work UK business hours. You speak to the people writing the code, not a support queue in another timezone.
What we build
Core call handling
- Inbound and outbound call management — SIP-based voice handling with automatic call distribution (round-robin, least-idle, or skills-based routing)
- IVR and call routing — Menu-driven routing, time-of-day rules, caller ID-based logic, and custom branching that maps to your business structure
- Call transfer and conferencing — Warm and blind transfers with call state preserved, plus multi-party conferencing
- Voicemail — Visual voicemail with optional transcription, auto-forwarding to email, and retention policy enforcement
CRM and system integration
- Screen-pop — Customer record, order history, or case details appear on screen the moment an inbound call arrives, matched by caller ID or account number
- Automatic call logging — Every call logged to the correct CRM record with duration, outcome, disposition, and recording link. No re-keying
- Click-to-dial — Agents start calls directly from CRM records, helpdesk tickets, or internal tools
- Webhook and API orchestration — Post-call workflows trigger automatically: create a follow-up task, send an email confirmation, update a pipeline stage, or escalate a support ticket
Reporting and dashboards
- Real-time wallboards — Calls in queue, average wait time, agent availability, and SLA status. Configured around the metrics your managers actually use
- Historical reporting — Call volumes, handle times, abandon rates, and conversion metrics by agent, team, queue, or campaign
- Custom KPIs — Build the reports you need rather than working around the ones your vendor provides. Integration with Tableau, Power BI, or Looker if you already have a BI platform
- Agent scorecards — Answer rates, call duration, customer satisfaction, and first-contact resolution tracked per agent
Compliance and recording
- Call recording — GDPR-compliant with consent announcements, encrypted storage, and retention policies you control (90 days for QA, six months for disputes, five to seven years for FCA-regulated calls)
- Audit trail — Every login, configuration change, recording access, and data export logged with timestamps and IP addresses
- Data residency — UK-hosted storage where required, with no call data leaving the jurisdiction without your explicit configuration
- Role-based access — Agents, supervisors, and administrators see only what they need to
Additional modules
- Mobile access — Web-based agent interface that works on phones and tablets for remote or hybrid teams, with no desktop software installation required
- Callback queues — Callers request a callback during busy periods instead of waiting on hold
- Outbound campaign tools — Progressive or predictive dialling, lead list management, disposition codes, and per-campaign reporting
- Workforce management — Call volume forecasting, shift scheduling, and real-time monitoring to help you staff appropriately
- Multi-channel support — Email, SMS, and web chat handled alongside voice in a single agent interface (Phase 2 for most projects)
How delivery works
1. Discovery and planning (2-4 weeks) We audit your current phone setup, map call handling workflows, identify integration points with your CRM and other systems, and define what the MVP needs to do. If you are migrating from a legacy PBX or preparing for the PSTN shutdown, we plan the cutover during this phase.
2. Build — Phase 1 MVP (8-12 weeks) Core call handling, IVR routing, primary CRM integration (screen-pop and call logging), call recording with GDPR compliance, and basic reporting. Regular check-ins every two weeks so you can see progress and adjust priorities.
3. Pilot and testing (1-2 weeks) A small team (10-20 agents) runs the new system alongside your existing setup. We fix issues, tune call routing, and verify CRM sync before full rollout.
4. Full rollout and training (1-2 weeks) Cutover to the new system. Agent training typically takes four to eight hours. Supervisors and administrators get additional sessions on reporting and configuration. Legacy system decommissioned once you are confident.
5. Phase 2 and ongoing support Advanced features — predictive dialling, workforce management, multi-channel support, additional integrations — added over a further 8-12 weeks. Optional maintenance packages for ongoing updates, or full documentation for in-house management.
Most projects go live within three to four months. If you have a hard deadline (PSTN migration, compliance audit, new office opening), we can prioritise the critical pieces and phase the rest.
What it costs
Custom telephony integration costs more upfront than signing up to a SaaS platform. But the maths changes over time.
A 50-person team on a mid-tier SaaS platform pays roughly £20,000-50,000 per year in licence fees. Add CRM integration add-ons, premium support, extended recording storage, and professional services for custom routing, and the real annual cost is often higher. Over three years, that is £75,000-180,000+ — and the number only goes up as you add users.
A bespoke build is a single capital investment followed by a modest annual support cost. There are no per-seat charges. No surprise add-on fees. No expensive migration when you outgrow the platform.
Where the savings typically come from:
- Eliminating per-user licence fees that scale with headcount
- Automating call logging and follow-up workflows that currently take 15-25 hours per month of manual effort
- Reducing screen-pop latency and improving first-contact resolution, which directly affects customer retention
- Avoiding the £5,000-25,000+ professional services fees SaaS vendors charge for non-standard configuration
- Owning your call data and recordings rather than paying storage premiums
Every project is priced based on what you actually need. A free consultation gives you a real number once we understand your setup.
Industries we build for
Financial services — FCA-compliant call recording with five-to-seven-year retention for investment advisory and trading calls. Client identity verification workflows, AML/KYC-ready audit trails, and secure recording access controls. MiFID II compliance built into the architecture rather than bolted on as an afterthought.
Legal practices — Client intake routing to the appropriate solicitor by specialism. Billable time auto-logged from call duration. High-fidelity recording for depositions and interviews. Seven-year-plus retention and privilege-safe access controls for sensitive matters.
Healthcare — Patient record integration with EHR systems. After-hours routing to on-call clinicians with non-urgent calls sent to voicemail. Appointment reminder IVR. Compliant recording with patient consent management and NHS data standards where applicable.
Professional services — Call distribution for accountancies and consultancies with client-specific routing rules. Engagement tracking with billable hours captured automatically from call records. Structured client onboarding calls logged directly into CRM.
Contact centres — Skills-based routing, predictive dialling, disposition codes, supervisor dashboards with real-time wallboards, and agent scorecards. Built for teams that have outgrown per-seat SaaS pricing or need routing logic their current platform cannot support.
E-commerce and retail — Order status lookups and returns processing via IVR. Inbound calls matched to customer order history for instant context. Post-call follow-up automation for abandoned purchases or delivery issues.
Property management — Tenant enquiry categorisation, maintenance request logging with automatic ticket creation, and priority routing for emergency repairs. Call data linked to property and tenancy records.
Education — Parent enquiry routing and student support call tracking. Safeguarding-compliant call recording with appropriate audit trails. Outbound campaign tools for alumni engagement and fundraising.
Insurance — Claims reporting via IVR with routing to adjusters. Policy details screen-pop for inbound customer calls. Five-to-seven-year recording retention for dispute resolution. Fraud detection flagging for anomalous call patterns.
Common Questions About Custom Telephony Integration Software
How does custom development cost compare to SaaS telephony platforms?
SaaS telephony platforms typically charge between £16-80 per user per month. For a 50-person team, that is £9,600-48,000 per year before add-ons for CRM integrations, premium support, or extended call recording storage. Over three to five years, those costs often exceed a custom build. With a bespoke system you pay once for the build and a modest annual support fee, with no per-seat charges as your team grows.
What's the typical development timeline?
A phased MVP covering core call handling, IVR routing, CRM screen-pop, call recording, and basic reporting typically takes 12-16 weeks. Advanced features like predictive dialling, workforce management, or multi-channel support are usually added in a second phase over a further 8-12 weeks. We can prioritise critical pieces if your PSTN migration deadline is pressing.
How do you handle updates and changes after go-live?
We offer optional maintenance packages for ongoing updates, or provide full documentation so your in-house team can manage the system. Because we build with a modular architecture, adding new IVR branches, integrations, or reporting dashboards does not require re-engineering the platform.
Can you integrate with our existing CRM and other systems?
Yes. We most commonly integrate with Salesforce, HubSpot, Microsoft Dynamics, and Pipedrive for screen-pop and automatic call logging. We also connect to helpdesks like Zendesk and Freshdesk, ERPs, and bespoke internal systems. Where a standard API exists we use it; where it does not, we build custom middleware.
What about call recording compliance and data security?
All builds include GDPR-compliant consent announcements, encrypted call recordings (SRTP for audio, TLS 1.2+ for signalling), configurable retention policies, and a full audit trail for data access. For financial services clients we build to FCA and MiFID II requirements, including five-to-seven-year recording retention. Data can be hosted in the UK to meet residency requirements.
Do we need to replace our existing phone hardware?
Not necessarily. We build systems that work with modern VoIP and SIP trunking, but we can also bridge to legacy PBX hardware during a transition period. If you are moving off PSTN ahead of the January 2027 shutdown, we design the migration so there is no gap in service.
Do you provide training for our team?
Yes. Agents typically need four to eight hours of training on the new interface and call handling. Supervisors get additional sessions on reporting, call monitoring, and queue management. We also provide written documentation and short video walkthroughs for future reference.