Last month, we built a five-step checklist for a total anti-virus solution. This month, we take a look at telecommunications to see how your business can benefit from making the switch to VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol).
While businesses are busy moving into the cloud, few are embracing the benefits of moving telecommunications there, too. Reduced operating and capital expenses, and improved business continuity and flexibility are just a few of the benefits of moving from traditional phone systems to the internet. Here are five reasons your company should switch to VoIP.
1. Cost
Voice over Internet Protocol significantly reduces telecommunication operating and capital expenditure. Moving away from the costly phone infrastructure and industry regulations of traditional phone companies means less capital expense (and monthly fees). VoIP operating costs are also significantly lower than traditional phone companies. Moving to the cloud shifts IT service and IT support to your VoIP provider, which means fewer in-house resources are required to keep communications going.
2. Value
Switching from a traditional landline to VoIP brings many added benefits, and for little to no cost. By using the internet instead of a phone connection, VoIP virtually eliminates long-distance charges, employee moves, adds, and changes, and the expense of added features such as voicemail, call forwarding, conferencing, video calling and more. Providing more for less is just another one of the ways Voice over Internet Protocol reduces costs.
3. All-In-One
VoIP ties together all communications. Coworkers and clients can keep in contact with you through a single business number. Little do they know, you could be sending and receiving calls with a workstation microphone or headphones, or even accessing, sending and forwarding voicemail and faxes via email. Another benefit is that you can enable VoIP to ring on multiple devices simultaneously, so you won’t miss a call, no matter where you are.
4. Mobility
With Voice over Internet Protocol, you don’t need to sit next to the phone to receive a call. You can take calls anywhere, as long as there’s a broadband connection. This means you can answer calls and get voicemail and faxes via e-mail, whether it’s with a cell phone, laptop, tablet, or hybrid. Another added benefit is that VoIP allows for virtual numbers. With these numbers, choosing an area code (and not being assigned one) enables contacts to call without the hindrance of long-distance charges. VoIP makes working mobile from local and abroad easier and less costly.
5. Business Continuity
Cloud telecommunications brings disaster recovery and redundancy. By moving phone connections offsite, redundancy and failover ensure essential operations are full throttle. Communications can continue in the unfortunate instance of a power outage, and you’re not reliant on a single provider to get back up and running. Wherever there is internet connection, there will be a phone line. This flexibility and adaptability are crucial for ensuring business continuity and avoiding downtime.
Make the switch to VoIP
VoIP’s benefits far outweigh any potential drawbacks. Although, before you decide if Voice over Internet Protocol is right for your business, ensure bandwidth and internet strength are strong enough to support the service. If bandwidth or internet strength are low, phone quality and internet strength will be weak and potentially unreliable. To optimize VoIP and maintain quality communications, one line for phone calls and another for internet are recommended.
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