Congratulations on your decision to go voip. The hardwork is done, now your next step is choosing the right provider and getting started. The question you should first ask yourself is, 'what provider has the best service and rates for my company'? The answer? Estimate how many phones youll need and the extent to which your employees will be talking on them. Certain providers charge a flat fee for each seat no matter how many calls are placed or received. Some voip providers charge a lower flat fee for a specific number of minutes, then charge extra for each minute over the flat rate. While this might work for firms with extremely low call volume, generally we recommend the unlimited plans. After all, you have more important things to do with your time than pour over every charge on your phone bill. Similarly, for a toll-free number, some providers charge a low monthly fee, then charge an additional per-minute rate for all calls. Other companies charge a flat fee for unlimited calls to the toll-free number. Take away message: If you have over than 1,000 minutes of toll-free usage a month, or more than 30 minutes daily, an unlimited number is more economical. Also, unlimited plans are just easier, why complicate your life?
So now that you have your provider it is time to evaluate your equipment. With voip, the most essential piece of equipment is the actual phone. Keep in mind some providers limit customers to using their phones, while some work with a wide array of phones. But regarding the actual phone here are some critical points to consider: How frequently do you use speaker phone? If you use your speaker phone a lot, then definitely pay for a phone with high-quality speaker sound. Phones with a full duplex speaker, like Polycom phone have great quality. You probably want a secondary Ethernet port in your phones. Genereally offices have only one Internet connection per desk. If that is true at your office, youll want phones with a dual Ethernet port, so that you can plug your phone into your computer. The cordless/wireless options. Cordless phones are available and usually appeal to people who work from home because people are used to talking on cordless around the house. Cordless phones cost roughly $180 more than regular phones. Wireless (or wi-fi) phones are available, but not recommended as they are not reliable especially for business use. In addition, you dont want power-over-Ethernet. These phones get their power from the Internet, so you dont have to plug a separate cord into an electrical outlet. While the benefit is that it reduces clutter and to keep the phones going during a power outage, we dont think the added cost is worth it.
Now for step three it's time to investigate a providers customer service capabilities. Some key questions to keep in mind are: Ask about average customer service wait times, the shorter they are the better off you are. Ask if the customer service is in-house or if it is outsourced to a third party in another country. You will fare better with in-house customer service workers who understand the product and speak fluent English. Check out how much information is online. You can easily access information, and find your own solutions, especially if hold times are long.
Now decide which features you want"and investigate which providers offer those features and at what price. Here are some that we think are beneficial to most small businesses, and some that are not worth the added cost. The features we like: Auto Attendant Extension-to-extension dialing so you can forward a call to a colleague. Voicemail to e-mail which allows you to receive voicemails as email attachments. Call forwarding. Simultaneous ring. You can have your cell phone and desk phone ring at the same time, so you dont miss any calls. Outlook integration Fax solution. A feature that allows fax to e-mail and e-mail to fax, so that you dont have to keep a separate fax provider.
A few features that are probably not worth paying for: Instant Messaging. (You probably already have IM, and if not, you can get it for free.) Video Conferencing. (Again, you can get it through Skype for free) Unlimited calls to Europe or parts of Asia. (Most small businesses dont make enough global calls to justify the expense.)
Step Five: Figure out how much bandwidth you need"and test it. As a general rule, you need 100Kbps of bandwidth per user. That way, everyone can be talking on the phone and be online simultaneously. 1 Mbps equals 1,000 Kbps, which is enough for 10 users. Going down to 30Kbps per person may work (depending on what your company does), but we dont recommend anything below that. Also, make sure you have a T1 line. A residential cable or DSL line is not high-powered enough for a business using voip. Also, we recommend testing the bandwidth, instead of relying on your ISPs word. - 21151
So now that you have your provider it is time to evaluate your equipment. With voip, the most essential piece of equipment is the actual phone. Keep in mind some providers limit customers to using their phones, while some work with a wide array of phones. But regarding the actual phone here are some critical points to consider: How frequently do you use speaker phone? If you use your speaker phone a lot, then definitely pay for a phone with high-quality speaker sound. Phones with a full duplex speaker, like Polycom phone have great quality. You probably want a secondary Ethernet port in your phones. Genereally offices have only one Internet connection per desk. If that is true at your office, youll want phones with a dual Ethernet port, so that you can plug your phone into your computer. The cordless/wireless options. Cordless phones are available and usually appeal to people who work from home because people are used to talking on cordless around the house. Cordless phones cost roughly $180 more than regular phones. Wireless (or wi-fi) phones are available, but not recommended as they are not reliable especially for business use. In addition, you dont want power-over-Ethernet. These phones get their power from the Internet, so you dont have to plug a separate cord into an electrical outlet. While the benefit is that it reduces clutter and to keep the phones going during a power outage, we dont think the added cost is worth it.
Now for step three it's time to investigate a providers customer service capabilities. Some key questions to keep in mind are: Ask about average customer service wait times, the shorter they are the better off you are. Ask if the customer service is in-house or if it is outsourced to a third party in another country. You will fare better with in-house customer service workers who understand the product and speak fluent English. Check out how much information is online. You can easily access information, and find your own solutions, especially if hold times are long.
Now decide which features you want"and investigate which providers offer those features and at what price. Here are some that we think are beneficial to most small businesses, and some that are not worth the added cost. The features we like: Auto Attendant Extension-to-extension dialing so you can forward a call to a colleague. Voicemail to e-mail which allows you to receive voicemails as email attachments. Call forwarding. Simultaneous ring. You can have your cell phone and desk phone ring at the same time, so you dont miss any calls. Outlook integration Fax solution. A feature that allows fax to e-mail and e-mail to fax, so that you dont have to keep a separate fax provider.
A few features that are probably not worth paying for: Instant Messaging. (You probably already have IM, and if not, you can get it for free.) Video Conferencing. (Again, you can get it through Skype for free) Unlimited calls to Europe or parts of Asia. (Most small businesses dont make enough global calls to justify the expense.)
Step Five: Figure out how much bandwidth you need"and test it. As a general rule, you need 100Kbps of bandwidth per user. That way, everyone can be talking on the phone and be online simultaneously. 1 Mbps equals 1,000 Kbps, which is enough for 10 users. Going down to 30Kbps per person may work (depending on what your company does), but we dont recommend anything below that. Also, make sure you have a T1 line. A residential cable or DSL line is not high-powered enough for a business using voip. Also, we recommend testing the bandwidth, instead of relying on your ISPs word. - 21151
About the Author:
Frank Newman is a VoIP expert, providing in-depth analysis of IP phones, VoIP providers, and more on his industry leading site. If you are shopping for a VoIP solution, be sure to get more beneficial VoIP info before you be your decision.
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