What Is VoIP: The Technology and Its Benefits

Every business owner seems to be asking the question what is VoIP and how it can help in reducing my telephone bills. VoIP is an acronym for voice over internet protocol, a system of transmitting speech over the internet. That’s about all but does not answer the question what is VoIP and how it benefits businesses.

Actually the question what is VoIP and its benefits to businesses can be answered by going into the history of business phone systems.

Medium and large businesses had to install a private telephone exchange (PBX) in their premises to save the cost of internal telephone calls. It was switchboard manned by an operator who connected internal calls, routed incoming calls to the concerned department and connected outgoing calls to the telephone company’s network.Manual system gave way to automated business systems that eliminated the operator. The primary objective was achieved but the matter of high cost of long distance calls still remained. The advent of the internet eventually provided a solution. The massive growth of data networks led to better understanding of packet switching, the method of digital communications that groups all transmitted data. The convenience and low cost of digital data transmission was tempting and led to the development of VoIP. That brings us back to the question what is VoIP.

What Is VoIP: What Is It Exactly

VoIP is a system that uses the internet to transmit calls. Analogue audio signals are first converted into digital data and transmitted over the internet. This may be through an internet phone or a normal phone connected to a router through an analogue telephone converter. VoIP also enables computer-to-computer calls, which are totally free.

Why Use an Internet Phone

The internet has not only changed the way information is disseminated but also the way we communicate with friends, family and business associates. If you have access to the right technology and know how to use it you advantage, you can cut down your phone bill to a fraction of what you are paying right now.

The fact of the matter is that first cell phones and now internet phones have dealt a death blow to the poor old humble landline phone. While the good old home phone still has its uses as it is easy for emergency services to track wherefrom the calls is originating, the low cost of internet telephony has been responsible for many people changing over to VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) using internet phones.

Similar to a traditional phone, an internet phone, as the name suggests, uses the internet to make phone calls. It can be connected directly to the router, either through Ethernet RJ-54 connector or Wi-Fi. Internet phones already have onboard hardware and software required for making VoIP phone calls. The internet phone is equipped with a converter that automatically turns analogue audio signals into digital data for transmission over the internet.

The cost factor is the major reason why internet phones and VoIP are getting so much attention. As long as you are not using any network other than your internet connection, you pay nothing except for what you are already paying to your internet service provider. No mainstream traditional telephone service provider has the type of plans offered by internet telephony. An unlimited plan for local and long distance can cost as little as 20 dollars a month. The voice quality is as good as traditional networks provided you have a fast speed broadband internet connection.

How to Use VoIP for Calling Long Distance

VoIP stands for voice over internet protocol, a method of turning analogue audio signals, what you hear when talking on a phone, into digital data that can be transmitted over the internet. Learning how to use VoIP will change the way you think about making long distance calls. It is a revolutionary technology that has all the makings of completely reworking and replacing traditional phone systems.

The usefulness of learning how to use VoIP is that it can turn a broadband internet connection in a way to make free long distance calls. By using VoIP software you are actually bypassing telecom companies that charge you on per call basis. VoIP calls mean that you pay nothing apart from what you are already paying for a broadband internet connection.

The simplest and the most common way how to make VoIP calls is to get an analogue telephone adaptor (ATA) for connecting a normal telephone with your computer. The adaptor is basically a converter that converts analogue audio signal into digital data.

The other way how to make VoIP calls is to use an internet phone known as an IP phone, which can be connected directly to your router. IP phones come equipped with the necessary hardware and software for making VoIP calls. Wi-Fi IP phones can be used for connecting with Wi-Fi routers.

However, the easiest way how to use VoIP to make free long distance phone calls is to make computer-to-computer calls. All that is needed is software (available free), microphone and speakers and a sound card to make calls over the internet. The person you are calling must be using the same software and connected to the internet at the time of the call.

Pros and Cons of Voip Service

With the everyday costs of living rising at an astronomical rate, many people change to voip service to save the costs of their phone bills. This is just one of many ways to save money, especially if you use the phone a lot or make many international calls. There are pros and cons with using voip service; here is a list of them.

Pros

* Calls going from one SIP to another are virtually free; that is the biggest advantage of voip service.

* Other calls are much reduced in rate, so basically the biggest advantage is always the reduced cost.

* Voip service offers many features not available on an ordinary phone line. For instance, several people can talk together, impossible with an ordinary phone.

Cons

* Voip service does not pass your details on to emergency numbers so it is basically useless trying to call them.

* Any power failure will make your voip service useless, since it relies on the power to run.

* There is no 100% guarantee of sound quality; it all depends on the line congestion at any given time.

But even though the pros and cons are even, it is still one of the most popular ways to save money. After all, the sound quality is not always poor and power failures are not very common. It is therefore to most people’s advantage to use voip service whenever they can, especially since they are always going to save on costs by doing so. So long as you have another way to call those emergency numbers and to make important calls when there is no electricity, using voip is a great idea.

What to Look for in Voip Providers

With many more people than ever turning to voip technology to reduce the costs of their phone bills, it is time to choose from the many voip providers available. So what should you expect from your voip providers?

* You should first define the kind of calls you are most likely to make. National or international, on the net or local are the choices. Once you know this fact you will be able to compare voip providers and call costs to work out which one would suit your phone usage best.

* Another criterion in choosing voip providers is to decide which features you will need in your voip system. For instance you might want caller ID, voicemail or a PSTN gateway for outgoing calls.

* You also need to look at the cost of local calls from your voip providers. Any that connect with the major carriers are likely to offer the cheapest rates.

* Your voip providers cannot usually control the quality of sound since much depends on what kind of device you have and what device is at the other end. However if calls to PSTN numbers are made the connection is via high quality connections.

* It is also important to realise that some voip providers lock their voip devices so that you cannot switch to another provider.

Don’t forget that voip phones do not offer emergency call numbers or the ability to make calls when the power is out, so you do need another landline or mobile phone.

Are Your Customers Frustrated with Your Telephone System?

When a small business – or a large one, for that matter – does not have the right kind of telephone system it can well cost them customers. How does this come about? You only have to put yourself in the place of a customer to find out. For instance, if you ring a business and your call simply goes unanswered, you would feel really frustrated. Yet many small businesses are so stretched flat that they cannot have someone sitting at a desk just to answer phone calls that may or may not come in.

So if customers call your business only to find that the phone is engaged time after time, what are they likely to do? Go to the competition where they can get some service. If you have the right telephone system this will not happen. The right telephone system will have features such as a customised message service that kicks in if the phone has not been picked up after five or so rings. This at least lets the customer know that your business is still in business and wants their custom.

Some telephone systems can answer many calls at the same time; ideal for those businesses that are flooded with telephone calls. Other telephone systems present options to the caller such as press one for support and so on. This is far better than you having to hurry through one call to take another. That is only likely to make your customers feel that they are not as important to you as someone else. Such a feeling can well cost you customers.

What to Expect from Modern Phone Systems

When it comes to modern phone systems you can expect a great deal. No longer do you have to stand next to the wall and rotate a handle to get access to someone who will connect you to your phone number like they had to in the old days. Phone systems these days do so much that it is almost like having another person there to help you out in the business. These days you can expect many features from phone systems:

* Flexibility.

* Plenty of features.

* Ease of use.

* Access for multiple sites

* Receptionist functions.

* Messaging options.

* The ability to expand as your business grows.

* Reliable and stable technology platforms.

* Management that is remote.

Such office phone systems are intelligent and offer the modern business a great many enhanced features and possibilities. In addition, you can get phone systems to suit very small businesses of up to six or eight employees, medium businesses that have eight to sixteen staff and even larger businesses. This makes them even more affordable, since you are not paying for things you don’t need.

For instance, the right phone system may offer such features as hold, mute, voicemail, transfer, call queue capabilities, auto attendant and after hours answer. You may want all these features or you may want something extra such as conferencing. If so, you can get it with the right phone system. Most modern phone systems are flexible enough to give you just what your business wants and needs.

What does the IP Phone Look Like?

An ip phone is actually the same as a voIP phone and it looks very similar to any modern standard phone. However, the ip phone has a rather larger housing to contain everything that is needed to make it work. Generally there will be the receiver that you pick up and hold to your ear and mouth, just like any other normal phone. This contains a microphone. Then there is the part that holds the receiver when it is not in use.

The rest of the ip phone is made up of a display screen area next to the receiver that is used to show caller ID messages and user input. Below the display area the ip phone will have a touch pad or touch buttons for inputting the phone number and text. Inside the casing are a number of other components that make the ip phone unique.

* A general purpose processer for application message processing.

* A digital signal processer for processing RTP messages.

* Convertors to change digital data to voice and vice versa.

* Hardware for Ethernet or wireless networks to send messages via data network.

* Ethernet port for a computer hook-up.

* A power source such as a battery or DC source.

When you have an ip phone you can use it to make local and international calls and thus save a lot of costs in phone bills. However, it does require internet access to work if there is no compatible PBX locally. Since it works by electricity, an UPS device should be installed in case of power cuts.

Is an Internet Phone the Way to Go These Days?

Many people are changing over to an internet phone due to the high cost of telephone calls. When you use an internet phone you are using voip technology. That is, the phone calls go through your internet connection rather than through the landline. For this to succeed, you firstly need to have a fast and reliable internet connection. Then you need to have a modem that is connected all day and night and never goes off.

The only times that an internet phone cannot work is when there is a power failure and there is no internet connection. To reduce the chances of this happening, you will need to get an uninterruptible power supply device, generally referred to as an UPS. It will need to be the kind that lasts for some hours; not the sort that only allows you fifteen minutes or less of power so that you can finish what you were doing and shut the computer down properly.

If your internet service tends to cut out at all – even briefly – then an internet phone is not really the way you should go. Cutting out will interfere with the transfer of data and so your voice will become choppy or be lost altogether. To hook up your internet phone you need to have an telephony adaptor. You plug the standard phone jack into it and then plug it into the modem with a network cable – a standard one. There are many providers of voip these days so you can choose whom you like.

What do You Want Your Business Telephone to do?

These days a business telephone is an important part of any business. Getting the right business telephone can streamline your business processes and make them faster and more efficient. But even more than that, the many features of a business telephone make it almost like a virtual assistant. So what do you want your virtual assistant to do for you?

* In such a competitive business climate, missing customers’ calls can have a really negative impact on your bottom line. If you only have one business telephone and your customers always find it engaged, they are likely to hang up and call your competition. That is, unless you have voice mail that will take care of the backlog. It will even send you an email alert when calls come in.

* Especially useful for smaller businesses is the call waiting feature that a business telephone may have. It will use a special tone to alert you that a call is waiting and you can then use a certain button on the business telephone to talk with them while still keeping your first customer on.

* Wait and see is an expansion of the above. It allows you to see the caller’s identity and phone number so you can choose to attend to them immediately or call them back later. 

* A tri-connect feature on your business telephone will allow you to connect with two others so that all can be informed at once without having to leave their workstations.

* Automatic repeat dialling is feature of a business telephone that can save you countless hours in time if the numbers you call are often engaged. The phone will automatically dial the number at intervals until it is answered. 

How to Choose a Business Phone

When you are running a business the right kind of business phone will have a big part to play in whether it is successful or not. Thus it is important to give serious consideration to the kind of business phone you get. While budget is important, it is not necessarily the most important consideration and it certainly should not be the only deciding factor. Here are some more points to consider.

* When looking for a business phone you need to look to the future as well as the present needs of the business.

* Think about whether you or your employees are out on the job or on the road most or a big part of the time. Your business phone may need to be mobile to allow your customers to connect with you during working hours.

* What features would you most need in your business phone? Many have things such as multiple extensions and route to fax capability. They may also offer call forwarding and remote voicemail pickup. But there are also other numerous features available.

* Do you want some optional features that could well give you an edge over your competitors? Such things as conferencing and call hunt are not available on some business phones.

* What sort of business do you have? Even a small business that is run out of a spare room at home can benefit from the right business phone.

* One thing you would appreciate with your business phone is the ability to expand as your business does. Being able to do this will save you money in the long run in having to replace a perfectly good business phone system simply because it does not cater to your expanded needs.

What is the Best Voip Phone System?

When it comes to picking the best voip phone there are many factors to consider, especially if you are a business that requires stability and reliability in your communication system. If you are looking for the best voip system here are few pointers.

* Do you want the system to be fully integrated or a separate application? Full integration has both positive and negative aspects that should both be considered carefully.

* Do you want it hosted on site or hosted remotely by the service providers?

* To choose the best voip phone system you need to consider what kind of customer service features you will get with each one.

* The best voip system will offer functions that service all areas of the business such as marketing, distribution and accounts receivable. 

* What is your budget? It is not always wise to choose the cheapest system. But expensive does not necessarily define the best voip for your needs. 

* Do you need features such as a help desk, ticketing system and other things to make your business more efficient and streamlined?

* Is the vendor reliable? The best voip system will have vendors you can rely on to do any troubleshooting or maintenance quickly so that your down time is reduced. Any time spent incommunicado is time wasted in business.

* Can you maximise usage of existing infrastructure with the new phone system? The best voip system will allow you to do this and thus save costs. 

To find the best voip for your needs it may be necessary to consult with a professional.

What to Expect from an Avaya Phone System

Communication is probably the most important aspect of any business. If your business cannot communicate with consumers, suppliers and staff then it really cannot do business at all. Thus the most important component of any business is its phone system. Many businesses these days choose an Avaya phone system because it not only provides many features that enhance business processes, but it is a reliable and affordable way to communicate.

So what exactly can you expect from an Avaya phone system? When you choose the right Avaya phone system for your business you will find that it is easy to use. While this should be expected with any phone system, not all are as easy to use as the Avaya phone system. You really don’t want to waste time constantly training every new employee how to use the phone.

Technology is another thing you can expect in your Avaya phone system. In modern and feature rich phone systems you can expect many innovations that will enhance your business processes and provide a professional look and feel for your customers. Automated features will ensure that your callers are taken care of quickly and efficiently.

The ability to upgrade as your business expands is an important feature of the Avaya phone system. Features that you may not have needed last year are now important parts of your business. But unless your phone system could be upgraded you would be up for more costs to update. This is not a problem with the Avaya phone system, making it the ideal communication centre for your business.

1800 Numbers – How do they Work?

Nearly everyone has dialled 1800 numbers at some point in time. Whenever you have to contact a business you usually look for 1800 numbers so that the call won’t cost you heaps. When businesses are busy they usually put you on hold and if you had to pay for the call it would really skyrocket your phone bill. However, even though we are familiar with them we often don’t realise just how 1800 numbers work.

After all, if many businesses numbers have this same prefix, how come our call goes to the business we want and not to some other random business? It is because 1800 numbers are actually virtual numbers that do not use a dedicated phone line. How then do we contact businesses with 1800 numbers? Each 1800 number is set up to be redirected to another specific phone number. This is rather like an extension number. So whenever the consumer dials 1800 numbers, the phone calls goes to the specific number it is linked to.

It can be an office number, a mobile phone number or even an overseas number that the 1800 number is linked to. One great feature of 1800 numbers is that they can be prompted by the callers’ postcode. This means that a business with offices all over the world or the country can have the caller automatically routed to the office nearest their postcode location. How good is that? It not only saves on possible higher costs for an international call, but it gives the caller a local office closest to them to deal with, so everyone wins.

The Two Types of 1300 Numbers

Most people are familiar with 1300 numbers as they are offered by many businesses as a way of connecting with their customers while keeping costs to the customers down to that of a local call - even if the company is not local to the customer. Statistics show that most people will choose to call 1800 numbers or 1300 numbers if given the chance as they know that if they are kept on hold for any length of time it will not cost them much.

However, when it comes to 1300 numbers there are two types. This need not concern the customer, but is of great interest to the businesses who want to have 1300 numbers. So what are these two types of 1300 numbers?

* Normal free 1300 numbers. These are free for the company to have and you can usually choose them from a list, so this allows you to choose a number that is easier for your customers to remember. While they are called free, there is still a set-up fee attached to them.

* Custom 1300 numbers that must be paid for. Why would you choose paid 1300 numbers if you can get others for free? These are often referred to as smart numbers and they incorporate a word. A word is really easy to remember – far easier than a row of numbers. It also helps to advertise your business when you can have a word for people to call. Usually the word is either the business name or something about it that is familiar to the consumer.

Paid 1300 numbers come in about three price grades with the most expensive being sets of phone and fax numbers.

Know What is VOIP to Understand its Pros and Cons

The buzz about VOIP is such that no one really needs to ask what is VOIP. While most people may know that VOIP is a manner in which one can make calls over the internet, there are a few people who really know what is VOIP to be able to make the best use of the technology.

For those who do not know what is VOIP, VOIP is Voice Over Protocol. This is technology where voice is digitized and carried over from one VOIP system to another via the same lines that carry data. The manner in which you make calls remains the same and what changes is the network via which the call travels.

There are also some free VOIP service options that can be used by offices and individuals. These options use software that can be downloaded for free. A large number of individuals are now using this technology to make personal international calls.

When you know details about what is VOIP you will know that there are some disadvantages of the system also. When offices use VOIP, they stand to have issues with overdependence on one set of lines. This means that when the lines are down, the internet connection and the phone lines shall also be down. Some level of back-up plan is therefore required to ensure continuity.

At the same time when you know what is VOIP, you also know that the savings that you can make by using this system are large and cannot be ignored by companies.