ROI Insight Podcast

Dan:
We have Vincent Finaldi of TeleCloud with us today. Vince and I first connected at the Telesystem Partner Summit in Nashville. It was a total coincidence—we ended up sitting next to each other during one of the keynote sessions. We got to talking, realized there was alignment in our work, and hit it off from there.

Since then, I’ve done some marketing work for him—not what we’re here to talk about—but it’s how our connection started. What really stood out to me was Vince’s authentic approach to business. He’s just a regular guy who truly cares about his clients, and that comes through in how he leads. His company has been around for 42 years, which says a lot in an industry as fast-changing as telecom.

Vince, why don’t you introduce yourself and give us the high-level overview of TeleCloud?

Vince:
Thanks, Dan. Yeah, it was great meeting you at the Gaylord Hotel—what a massive place, almost like its own little city. As for TeleCloud, we’re a second-generation, family-operated business. We started as a traditional telecom interconnect, servicing clients in the tri-state area—New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut.

Back in the day, we were handling everything from on-prem PBX systems to general voice services. But in 2014, we made a major shift to cloud-based communications. We’ve kept up with tech changes, adjusted our pricing strategies, and remained relevant—42 years later, which still blows my mind when I say it out loud.

Dan:
Yeah, that longevity is rare—especially when you consider how volatile telecom has been, especially recently. I know I was laid off in the UC space during the 2022–23 waves, and it wasn’t just my company. There were mass shifts across the board.

But businesses like yours, with a strong local presence and focused service approach, seem to stand out. You’ve built that trust by offering white-glove support. Can you speak to what you’re seeing in the UC space today—particularly the tech changes, market shifts, and how they’re reshaping the value TeleCloud provides?

Vince:
Absolutely. I wear two hats—owner and salesperson—so I think about this from both the client and partner perspective. And honestly, COVID was a major turning point. It accelerated digital adoption like nothing else. Hybrid work, video collaboration, Teams, Office 365—it all exploded practically overnight.

Today, I see a lot of confusion in the market. Take a typical 50-person business: maybe 8 salespeople are using HubSpot or Salesforce, the rest of the team uses Teams for internal chat and calendars, and they have a third system for telecom. Leaders are asking: “How do I simplify this? How do I make it cost-effective and scalable?”

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. And in a market where pricing and features look nearly identical across providers, differentiation is about trust and solving real problems.

Dan:
Totally agree. The fragmentation across apps is real—what we call “app sprawl.” Unified Communications helps bridge those gaps, but not every provider gets into the details like you do. Most companies don’t even think about CRM integrations until it’s too late in the discovery process.

What I love about your approach is that you dig into those use cases early. And while you’re not focused on deep contact center features like IVA or IVR, you’ve carved out a space where reliability and service matter most.

Vince:
I probably take for granted how obsessed we are with service. It’s in our DNA. We’ve got 15–30 full-time team members depending on the year, and we all take ownership of the experience. We’re based in New Jersey, but we support clients remotely all over. And if there’s a local networking issue, we’ll go onsite.

That’s all I’ve known for 18 years. So I don’t really know what “poor support” feels like from the provider side—we just make sure our clients are taken care of, no matter what.

Dan:
Exactly. You’ve got a hands-on, human-first approach that stands out. In the SMB space especially, that’s rare. Many providers outsource support overseas or automate everything, which just doesn’t work when a business needs real help, fast.

Vince:
Right—and that’s why smaller providers like us still win deals. We just onboarded five AFC Urgent Care locations in Long Island, for example. The client told me flat out—they switched because their old provider wouldn’t return a call for 2–3 weeks. Not even for support—just to have a basic business conversation.

That’s wild. All they wanted was a five-minute call. Sometimes, it’s that simple.

Dan:
That says everything. The tech is complex, but the reason people switch providers often comes down to the basics—communication, reliability, and trust.

Let’s talk a bit about the tech side again. You mentioned earlier that you’re not trying to be everything to everyone, and you’re honest when a client outgrows your platform. How do you approach helping clients scale or move into areas like contact center, AI, or more advanced integrations?

Vince:
Yeah, if a client needs something we don’t offer—like a deep Salesforce voice integration—we’ll refer them to someone who can deliver. We’re not in the business of pretending. We’d rather keep that long-term relationship and help them find the right partner than overpromise.

And honestly, it’s not always about features. A client might not even be equipped to use half the tech they’re paying for. We always ask: who on your team is going to champion this rollout? That determines how successful the adoption will be.

Dan:
And you support more than just UC. You also handle internet, cabling, and network infrastructure, right?

Vince:
Yep. We look at the full plumbing—circuits, SD-WAN, routers, switches, cabling. We’re not an MSP, but we work closely with many, and we help clients vet and choose the right one when needed. Our goal is to be their go-to telecom partner—whether that’s VoIP, SMS, networking, or anything in between.

Dan:
And that includes onboarding, too. I know you guys offer white-glove setup, including physical site work when needed. That’s huge, especially for businesses with warehouses or older infrastructure.

Vince:
Exactly. Everyone talks about the cloud, but if you’ve got paging systems, door buzzers, or old wiring, someone has to get their hands dirty. We blend the software and the hardware to make it seamless.

Dan:
That foundational stuff really matters. Without it, even the best UC platform will struggle.

Last topic—your LinkedIn presence. I think it’s great how personal and real you are with your posts. It’s not just company news or promotions. You bring a lot of value and vulnerability, and I think that’s rare.

Vince:
Thanks, man. I just try to be authentic. LinkedIn’s noisy, so I focus on sharing stories that have meaning—not just to sell, but to help someone else who might be in a similar situation. It builds trust over time.

We’re also working with IMPACT, a coaching company, to align our messaging around the customer journey—so we’re constantly improving how we deliver value and make it easier for people to do business with us.

Dan:
That mindset is everything. You’re 42 years in, 18 personally, and still investing in getting better. That says it all.

Is there a particular client story that stands out—one that shows your ideal customer and the kind of service you provide?

Vince:
Yeah—Access Self Storage. They have 22 locations in the tri-state area. They switched to us from a VoIP provider simply because it took 2–3 weeks just to get a call back from account management. That’s it. They couldn’t run a business like that.

I love that story because it highlights how simple the need really is: just talk to me and help me when I need it.

Dan:
That perfectly captures why someone would choose TeleCloud. You cover all the essentials, stay current with tech, and—most importantly—you show up.

Thanks for being here, Vince. It’s clear why people trust you and your team.

Vince:
Appreciate it, Dan. This was great. Thanks for having me on.