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Voip Small Business/home Business Advantage
By Joel Walsh, Sat Dec 17th
Small businesses, home-based businesses, and self-employedindividuals have been turning to internet telephone service(also called broadband phone or VOIP) in droves. What is theattraction? As a self-employed, telecommuting,small-business-owning freelance writer, I can provide someinsight. I switched my business to internet phones early in 2005. Despitea few hiccups, I'm not going back to landlines. Internet phoneservice has too many advantages, which I'll describe for you. Ialso have some tips for avoiding possible rough patches. VOIP Internet Phone Small Business and SOHO Advantages
VOIP Advantage No. 1: Look bigger. * If your small business has to seem large, a virtual PBX with adial-by-name directory might help. These systems cost thousandsto install. But many VOIP companies let you rent this servicefor less than a hundred dollars a month. * Give each member of your team their own outside line. Withmost VOIP companies, each line costs around $10. * Get one or more 1-800 numbers at around $10/month. VOIP Advantage No 2. Freedom of movement. * Freedom to travel. When I went to Sacramento to visit afriend, I ended up extending my stay to a whole month. Icouldn't have done that without regular phone access. With VOIP,my Massachusetts number follows me wherever I go. * Tropical adventures. I regularly work with a virtual assistantcompany that takes phone calls on their Quebec phone numbereveryday. That wouldn't be so strange except they're in thePhilippines. They're using the same small business VOIP phoneservice sold right here in North America. True, VOIP companiesdon't generally guarantee their services will work outside thecountry of purchase. But the internet is the internet, whetherin Fargo or the South Pacific. With the growth of broadband tovirtually every non-pariah nation on earth, your second officereally could be in a tropical paradise--or year-round skiresort. Isn't that the freedom you hoped being your own bosswould bring? * Telecommuting. Feel a cold coming? Work from home! With VOIP,even the receptionist may be able to telecommute! * Voicemail by email. You don't have to be by the phone to getvoicemail. This is the perfect service for busy people and emailaddicts. Bonus: the message (in a file similar those used on MP3players) can be
stored indefinitely. Internet Phone Advantage 3. Cost * Make lots of calls? Many VOIP providers' unlimited-callingplans cost just $20 to $80 a month. * Features such as call waiting, caller ID, hold, callforwarding, and multiple ring-to numbers are usually costlyextras with landline service. With most VOIP services, those arebuilt-in features. SOHO VOIP: Tips for Making it Work for Your Business SOHO VOIP Tip 1. Test internet phoning out before committing. Yes, some VOIP connections are so scratchy and patchy they soundlike cell phones. That's usually because of a problem in theinternet connection. Such problems may not be apparent inordinary web browsing and file downloading. Go with a servicethat has a 30-day money-back guarantee. Try VOIP out where youlive and work. Make sure to try inbound and outbound calls. Small Business Internet Phone Tip 2. Phoning from a laptop. With VOIP telephones, you don't need a computer. But you can useyour computer as a phone. A piece of software called a"softphone" uses your computer's speakers and microphone. Ifyour laptop is running too many programs at once, calls willdeteriorate. Higher-end laptops shouldn't have this problem. SOHO Internet Phones Tip 3. Go with an established VOIP company. You don't want to lose your telephone service and possibly yournumber. Yet only a few VOIP companies have roots before 2000.Choose a service with deep enough roots to survive a VOIPindustry shake-out. Small Biz Internet Phoning Tip 4. Choose a provider carefullybefore putting the number on your business cards. Switching VOIP companies is at least as much of a pain asswitching landline phone companies. In fact, there is typicallyno outward number-portability. You can bring a number in, butgood luck taking it with you. Researching in early 2005, I foundno nationwide VOIP services officially offering outward numberportability. Choose a VOIP provider with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Testthe service out thoroughly. One thing is likely: you may want toswitch VOIP providers, but you won't want to go back tolandline. About the author:Joel Walsh, freelance writer and small business owner,recommends you check out Packet8, an established: VOIP service povider:http://www.packet8.net |
