VoIP Providers List Worldwide VoIP Providers Directory

Naturally, hype surrounding VoIP helps generate lots of interest among businesses to determine if VoIP is right for them. However, the biggest mistake we see many IT managers make is that they try to adopt VoIP before they really understand what impact it will have on their networks. Some think that it is simply a software application and don’t realize that in VoIP’s case, voice traffic is data traffic. There are inherent challenges that come with that, particularly bandwidth, security, and availability.

Before you adopt VoIP, make sure your technology provider helps you conduct an extensive ROI analysis. It is not simply a question of if you need VoIP but how much, what kind, and what improvements you would need to make to have appropriate levels of service quality.

Here is a sampling of issues that we discuss with customers when we audit their VoIP requirements.

Voice Traffic Is Data Traffic

Because VoIP converts voice into data packets, you have to worry about many of the same issues as with traditional data networks. More than a few people we have spoken with have had “aha!” moments when we tell them why it is generally a bad idea to put their voice and data on one networka server crash or some kind of power outage brings down their phones. This is why network redundancy is important and why we discuss LAN/WAN, bandwidth, network security, and telecom carrier issues before we get into the finer details of a VoIP solution.

Pure VoIP Or Hybrid

When advising customers, we start by asking about how valuable communicating by phone is to their business. Some companies can lose substantial revenue if the phones go down even for a few hours. Ultimately, the investment is worth it if you can save money but also find ways to improve customer service and increase worker productivity.

One of the major questions for each company considering VoIP is whether to adopt “pure” VoIP or a hybrid solution that integrates with a traditional circuit-switched system. Hybrids are popular for a number of reasons. They provide backup in the event that an IP system goes down. Some companies are concerned with security, and others don’t want to give up on legacy investments. Some smaller companies or new companies are opting for pure IP. Those companies often value the flexibility and manageability that IP can provide, and they often don’t have large legacy telephony investments.

VoIP Beyond Making Calls

Whether using a pure VoIP system or a hybrid, you can deliver a number of services that IP telephony enables, such as CRM; unified messaging; least-cost call outing; and IP Centrex, which provides the call control and service logic functions. This is even before you start talking about wireless VoIP. We’re beginning to see some companies use wireless VoIP in warehouses for things such as inventory management. Workers can move around and still receive calls as though they are at their desks.

Have The Right Bandwidth

Knowing how much bandwidth you need and where you should get it is often complex. It is a really important issue when it comes to IP telephony because if you don’t have enough, voice latency increases, and phone conversations are incoherent. Newer technologies including MPLS need to be considered as part of your bandwidth portfolio to enhance quality of service and to support larger applications. Many of the companies we speak with either want MPLS now or are planning for it in the future.

When it comes to bandwidth, one of the points to consider is the growth of videoconferencing. Make sure your bandwidth leasing arrangements are flexible because if you plan for just IP telephony today, you may want to consider other high-bandwidth applications, such as IP videoconferencing, in the near future.

Know Where The Benefits Come From

The most well-known benefit is reduced phone charges. However, that may not always be the biggest source of cost savings. IP helps you avoid many cabling and wiring costs. Moving, adding, and deleting traditional phones can cost as much as 0 per hour, whereas to perform the same functions in an IP environment can mean just a few clicks. Remote management is also a big plus, since many businesses don’t have IT staff at every location.

The more locations you have, the more VoIP may make sense. You also have to consider how mobile your workforce is. When you have VoIP, you can provide users with software-based phones so they can make and receive calls wherever they have a broadband Internet connection, with the same functionality as if they are at their desks.