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Talk is cheap, but VoIP makes it cheaper
2007-03-21
For John McNeil, having a voice-over-Internet-protocol (VoIP) phone system at the office can be too much of a good thing.
"If my phone at home was [programmed to receive calls] from work I think I'd be disowned by my wife," says the IT specialist with Agrium Advanced Technologies, a developer of agricultural nutrients and specialty fertilizers in Brantford, Ont.
"But with VoIP I could easily set that up if I wanted to."
Being connected at home might be a step too far for most employees. But the fact that a VoIP phone connection can follow you wherever you go is a great plus for small-business operators, especially those with multiple locations. It's only one of many things that can be done with VoIP once the basics are mastered.
Having one system handling voice and data offers a number of advantages, says Ashok Kalle, president of Pathway Communications in Markham, Ont., a provider of VoIP services. Because VoIP is software-based, businesses don't need to maintain hardware or carry the costs of phone additions, moves or changes, he says. "The beauty is that a lot of features sit centrally and not on the device itself. All you need is a broadband connection to make it work," Mr. Kalle says.
Adding advanced features is cheaper, too, he says. "Businesses can get a whole bunch of features free of charge, from interconnecting phone systems at different branches to having the phone number travel with you wherever you go."
As a technology expert, Mr. McNeil has spent many months adding features and functions to Agrium's VoIP system. He started the project two years ago when the company was working with Bell Canada to upgrade its networking infrastructure. Once it had a larger "pipe" in place, he says, "We started to look to eliminating local line costs by adding VoIP and get some long-distance savings."
Since then, Agrium has reduced telecommunications costs by 65 per cent through lower long-distance charges and centralized management, Mr. McNeil says. Land-line fees alone have been reduced by $600 a month.
At the outset, Agrium was no different from any other business turning to VoIP for cost savings. But the company, which also has locations in Sarnia and Putnam, Ont., now can centrally manage its communications over a single network. Employees can dial other sites using only four digits without incurring long-distance charges. Also, upgrades and programming changes to IP devices -- including phones, printers and faxes -- can be made from a single location, rather than requiring visits to each site or calling in a specialist.
"A constant request we hear from small businesses today is how to extend the same feature sets they have at their head office to their branches," says Rahim Jivraj, business development manager for Avaya Canada Corp. in Vancouver.
"The great thing about IP communications is the ability to extend advanced features to branches seamlessly at no extra cost."
One significant VoIP project for Agrium has been the addition of a call-centre application that allows for separate 1-800 numbers to terminate into one voice-mail and queuing system. This enables Agrium to centrally manage customer calls and, based on which 800 number is used, route them to the right service representatives in its Brantford or Sarnia offices.
"It's important for us to be able to separate customer calls from general reception or specific inquiries that require a designated product specialist," Mr. McNeil explains. "The VoIP system has the smarts to find the next open person and to log anyone out that isn't at their desk, so no one calling in has to listen to a phone ringing at an empty desk. The best part is, it wasn't a largely expensive add-on to the system."
Agrium's system also has a "teleworker" application. With it, employees can take their IP phones home and log in via a high-speed Internet connection to carry on business as usual.
Mr. McNeil or any of the other 65 VoIP users at Agrium can also choose any IP phone at any business location and use it as their personal phone for the day. They simply log in and the phone is automatically programmed with their profile. "Wherever I'm sitting, when it rings it's for me," says Mr. McNeil.
Agrium's system can also be programmed to ring at designated phones simultaneously, or to page selected lines or all phones at all locations at once.
Mr. McNeil has even added a function that can transfer calls on his cellphone to any IP phone within range, simply by pressing a button on the device. This eliminates roaming fees and saves the trouble of asking the person to call him back on an office line.
Because voice and data run over the same network, unified messaging allows voice mails to be forwarded to both the user's IP phone and e-mail in-box. "I never pick up voice mail on my phone," says Mr. McNeil. "I can just use my PDA or home PC to play messages."
VoIP will prove its worth further when Agrium makes an acquisition in the coming months. Rather than taking on the costs of a dedicated phone system at the new location, Agrium will bring the new company into the fold simply by accessing the VoIP system at the head office via the Intranet and deploying IP-based phones. "With VoIP it will all be much, much easier than having to integrate telephone lines and hardware," Mr. McNeil says.
What he likes the most about VoIP is the possibilities it offers. "Once you have it, all you really need to do is escalate features as people come up with things they'd like to have."
VoIP stats
17% - Number of small businesses in North America that have combined voice and data onto a single network.
Two-thirds - Number of small businesses that indicate they recognize the value of VoIP networks
30% - Percentage of small businesses that intend to upgrade their phone systems over the next year
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VoIP Providers Statistics |
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Providers in database: 3315
Users Online: 306
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