As advancements in technology have abounded for the past decade and the usage and speed of the internet increased, VoIP technology has too, bringing with it an increased number of followers, especially among small to medium sized businesses.
COST SAVING:
The major reason for switching your current telephony system for many is cost. With businesses often having to make numerous and often lengthy calls nationally, internationally and to mobile service providers, monthly telephone usage puts a huge dent in the companies figures. The reason behind this is you're probably using good old PSTN lines (normal copper based circuit switched landline phones have been around for a long time) carrying an analogue signal for your call. Telephone companies charge a huge amount in both line rental packages and call costs. Every minute used costs you money, and the maintenance and upkeep of the systems' underground network is passed onto you the user from the telephone provider.
With VoIP, the only charge you will be faced with is your usual monthly internet package price and possibly a small charge for a VoIP service package depending on your office needs, plus your call charges but on a much more palatable tariff. Of course, as it would be a digital data call, a lot of bandwidth with a better than average connection speed is required, but most services today offer 24/7 ADSL connection or fibre optic with rip roaring speeds at a fairly low fixed monthly rate. Good for business when you can call whoever, whenever you need to. Indeed, studies have shown that making the switch could save over 40% on local calls and over 90% on international calls.
MOBILITY:
Another great benefit of using VoIP is the abilty to use the phone without being chained to the desk. Since VoIP needs only internet connection for communication, and possibly a headset if call quality is paramount, there is nothing physically tying you down when needing to make a call, no need to wait until you're back in the office to hold that important meeting via phone. This offers a great benefit to small business in particular who, with a smaller workforce and sometimes often need to be out-and-about doing and generating business, vital calls can be made from anywhere with an internet connection. This reduces the need for company mobiles and further ongoing costs. If work mobiles are a necessity, VoIP calls can be made from anywhere using 3G or 4G or WiFi without the need for any computer or hardware (depending on your mobile provider and handset capabilities). Moreover, costly calls back to base or to clients while overseas will soon be a thing of the past using VoIP as all you need is your VoIP login details and an internet access point which are usually readily available locally.
PORTABILITY:
As business demands often change, at times a change of location may be in order. In the past, it was a costly situation when you needed to keep you phone number and move it elsewhere as your office moved. However, with a VoIP system in place your number goes wherever you are, so the only thing that needs to move is your internet connection.
BUSINESS EXPANSION:
As your business grows so does the demand on your telephone system. Installing new lines is both costly and time consuming. Coupled with the increased number of office phone users, bills are only set to rise further. By using VoIP for your business, the only thing increasing will be the number of users logged into the network. No additional expensive hardware needs to be purchased to keep staff in communication, as headsets can be low-cost if even required since your laptop usually comes equipped with speakers and a microphone (albeit not so common on desktops). There's no need to worry about tying up the bandwidth either, as VoIP technology makes efficient use of bandwidth, meaning than for the moments of “silence” when you're not the one doing the talking in any given conversation, you are not using any bandwidth, and it is used elsewhere on the network keeping speeds high for all.
If your business ventures overseas, you can be sure than your communications network will still remained streamlined as clients and customers will be calling the same numbers at the usual call rates, and your call costs will remain the same as no landline on foreign soil will be necessary - which often involve hefty setup costs and long contracts before the cost of making a call come into play. No additional charges or international rates packages need to be added to your office VoIP system.
EXTRA USUAL FEATURES:
Other than the ones mentioned above, VoIP offers a vast array of features compared to standard PTSN lines. With call waiting/blocking, enhanced voicemail, call forwarding, caller ID blocking, call transfer, online account management, call recording, voicemail to email notifications, auto attendants, multiple extensions; it truly is a feature rich technology.
All things taken into account, it's clear that serious thought needs to be given the next time VoIP comes up at a meeting. With not only huge savings to be had, but increased work/time efficiency, your business seeks to benefit in more ways than one. Installing a VoIP system into your business operations will surely go a long way to aiding sustainable business growth.
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Article Source: The Benefits Of VoIP For Your Business
