VOIP for Everyone!

We’re sure you have seen all kinds of hype in the past few years talking about VOIP and may be wondering what it is all about. VOIP is an acronym (don’t we just LOVE those acronyms!) for Voice Over Internet Protocol. In short it’s a way of making phone calls on the internet. You may have seen ads for Vonage, a popular VOIP system for home use.

Most people and businesses in the past 3-5 years have installed high speed internet in their homes and businesses. With all that available speed, it’s now feasible to put the phone traffic on that same internet line.

Phone calls take up a small amount of the internet “pipe”, and when implemented correctly, sound as good or better that the POTS (Plain Old Telephone System – couldn’t resist another acronym!) line you’ve been using. You can use the internet line for VOIP and internet browsing simultaneously. VOIP can use your existing phone system with a “gateway”, or you can have a pure VOIP system from the phone on up.

VOIP has many advantages, especially for businesses.

• Reduced Cost – monthly line charges are lower than the typical line charges from the phone companies. In many cases the difference in cost can more than pay for the new VOIP system in less than 3 years.
• Mobility – Cell phones can integrate with VOIP or you could even bring your office phone home or offsite, plug into local internet and Voila, you are on your office phone system – ideal for telecommuters, salespeople, etc.
• Unified Messaging – Many systems can transcribe your voice messages and send them to you as an email, although sometimes it can be quite amusing to see what it thought the caller said. This feature really grows on you – not only for the convenience of one place for all of your messages, but also for archiving and using the transcript for task management, etc.
• Flexibility – Businesses aren’t one size fits all, and good VOIP systems are very flexible in how they can be used in business processes. They can also scale from one to hundreds of users.

There are some things to be wary of and like any other system requires some careful planning and decision making.

• Use your existing system or implement a new one. Using your old phone system will get you the cost savings but none of the other advantages of VOIP.
• Make sure your local network and internet connection are up to the task. A VOIP professional can help you evaluate and make any changes before making the switch (pun intended).
• Choose a good “host”. You still need someone to get you from the internet back to the world of phone lines. Choose a reliable host that is always up.
• VOIP requires high speed internet. T1, Cable, and FIOS are good choices – DSL is marginal, and dial up is right out.
• VOIP can be hosted or in house – how you use it will determine the best choice. Again, a good VOIP professional can help you choose a best fit.

Apart from all the hype, VOIP is a solid reliable business communication tool that can enhance your productivity and reduce your overall communication costs. It does require some careful choices and considerations in implementing it. Contact us here at SSC if you would like to review your communication systems and needs to see if a VOIP system can help you lower costs and improve your productivity.