It’s an acronym that stands for Voice over Internet Protocol, an internet phone that makes and receives telephone calls via the internet. It also provides more communication functions and features for your company to utilize.
What is Voice over Internet Protocol?
This is actually a technology that makes use of your high-speed internet connection to connect voice with data. It’s similar to how your regular phone lines are connected to your home telephone network. The process works like this: you make phone calls to another person, which is sent to the receiving phone. The receiving device then analyzes the sound waves that were made and converts them into regular phone lines.
Why would people choose a VoIP Phone Service?
First off, VoIP allows you to use your internet to make phone calls rather than using conventional phone lines. Conventional phone systems can be very costly when it comes to long distance and international calls. In addition, these systems may not provide you with the security and bandwidth you need. Lastly, they may not be able to provide your employees with the latest and greatest in communication technology.
Now, VoIP phone systems will allow you to utilize an alternate telephone network that includes your Internet connection. The best business service providers will provide their customers with access to this kind of connection so that they can make the kinds of phone calls they need and want to make. VoIP trunks are basically connections that allow you to connect to the Internet and make telephone calls without using your standard phone lines.
In order for you to take advantage of these kinds of services, however, you need to have a high-speed internet connection. The connection should allow for you to get optimal audio quality while at the same time not slowing down your normal browsing. The VoIP provider you use will also need to offer VoIP trunks or SIP trunks so that you can make phone calls with just Internet access. These kinds of services work great for small businesses, especially those who have only one location and don’t need to spread their costs across multiple locations.
There are some limitations to VoIP that you need to be aware of if you’re going to be using it to replace your standard PABX lines. One of the most important limitations is that calls made with VoIP are much lower in price than calls made using your regular telephone network. You’ll obviously need to be able to accept phone calls from your SIP phones as well as from regular phones without interruption.
If you’re using a VoIP provider like RingCentral, you’re still going to have your standard PABX lines. You can, however, get RingCentral Plus, which gives you extra features like voicemail, caller ID, call forwarding, and more. It’s not as extensive as RingCentral, but if you have business communications needs that are larger than 3 phone lines, this could be a good option for you. The other option available is ViaMaverick, which provides many of the same features as RingCentral Plus but also allows you to add voice mail to your plan for an additional fee. Both options are very useful for businesses that have voice communication needs but don’t want to pay for voice mail.
- With all of the various VoIP providers out there, it’s important to know what your options are and what’s most important to you.
- If you’re working with a limited budget, for example, it may make more sense to go with a simple phone system like ooma.
- If your company is fairly large, you might want to consider avaya or another provider.
- But no matter what your needs are, having a reliable VoIP phone service is always an important consideration.