VoIP Based Telephone service for Small Business ?

Edwards Finance > Phones

Q. We are a small business with 5 tel. lines, 1 SDSL connection. I was approached by a VoIP vendor regarding a VoIP based product that would cut our phone bills by 1/2. I haven't looked at it yet. I am just looking for the main advantages/drawbacks. Main worry would be reliability. BTW, is this over the internet?

A. Reliability is really based on your ISP with VoIP. But personally I have no problems using https://www.voicepulse.com/ It has been very reliable for my business. As to cutting cost well, it more then cut over 75% off my phone bill. This isn't enough information to say anything useful. Who is the vendor? What is the product? This could be anything from an IP device at your premises, to a service that your calls get switched to by your existing phone company... or something in between. Each of these has its own advantages and drawbacks. These 5 lines, are they coming from the telco or are they extensions hanging off of a PBX? Would you be interested in using a Phone you can plug into your LAN? Each phone can be contacted by an extension number you can set. Each extension can have its own voicemail and you can bring anyone who you call or calls you into a conference room. Would you be interested in using SoftPhones? Each PC running linux or windows can have a software phone you run as an application on your systems for use with a microphone and headset, using your computer as a telephone. Voicemail, PBX, and conferencing still apply here. Are you looking to use your newly acquired LD service remotely? Say you have an IP Phone or Softphone at home you want to register to your business system and use it at home as you would at the office... does this sound like something you could use? Don't be afraid to ask them questions before purchasing. What about Long Distance service? Can you connect the gear to the 'net to use VoIP services and truly benefit from VoIP? Or are they simply offering hardware? When you check your email can you receive your voicemail? I know a lot of systems out there don't quite add up to Asterisk (www.asterisk.org) which includes all of the above features but if you're going to pay for something you should at least be able to ask the vendor how you can use the system or how will it beneift you. If this vendor isn't on point for each question you ask you may want to reconsider and look towards an open source solution with the ability to adapt with the requirements of your business or your clients.

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