Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP for short, has taken over the business world. VoIP advantages far outweigh the few disadvantages of VoIP. VoIP lets you make phone calls with your internet connection instead of a traditional phone line, and If you think a phone call is just a phone call, regardless of the technology used, think again. Switching to VoIP can inject new life into your business and make your company more efficient thanks to its many features.
VoIP Advantages: 8 Reasons VoIP Is Better Than Traditional Phone Services
1. Your Internet Connection Runs the Show
VoIP technology relies on the internet to send audio in the form of data packets. This differs considerably from how your traditional phone systems work. On a regular phone, when you speak into the receiver, a magnet jiggles and creates an electric current that travels down a phone line until it reaches the other end. While this system has worked great for a century and change, there isn’t much more that we can do with traditional phone tech.
Think back to when you had to connect to the internet over the phone line. Do you remember how incredible it was when you finally had your first DSL or cable connection? Or maybe you remember the first time you plugged in your brand new HD TV after ditching the old tube. Switching to VoIP from regular phone services is just like that. Your internet connection takes phone calls to the next level.
If you’ve had bad experiences with VoIP in the past, realize that the technology has matured so much since then. Early on, it struggled with latency and dropped connections. But now that our internet networks are much more robust, VoIP has more benefits than ever.
Better Caller ID Information
One such benefit is that you can very easily ID your callers when you’re using VoIP. Old school caller ID might be able to give you the caller’s name or their business, but with the power of the internet, you can get more information. You can even link your contacts to your VoIP system and see your call history when someone rings.
Freedom From Cables
With your internet connection powering your telephone system, you no longer need to be plugged into the wall. VoIP works on any kind of internet connection, whether it’s Wi-Fi or wired, mobile or desktop. As long as you can transmit data, you can make a voice call.
But the freedom does not end there. You can take your VoIP number anywhere in the world, which is one of the biggest advantages of VoIP compared to traditional phone service. Even your standard mobile number won’t work abroad unless you pony up for costly roaming packages. But with VoIP, you can still make and receive calls while abroad as long as you have internet access, which is usually much easier to find.
Does VoIP Affect Internet Speed?
2020 taught us that our internet speed is one of the most valuable resources in the world. Nobody wants to have dropped calls or choppy communications. Internet telephony consumes very little data and is quite easy to transmit, so it should not adversely affect your internet speed.
If you’ve used FaceTime successfully, or Skype, then your connection is definitely strong enough for VoIP. Audio consumes less than 10% of the data that video does, so if you can handle a video call, you won’t need to worry.
2. Your Business Can Be Anywhere
Freedom for your calls equals freedom for your business. With VoIP, you don’t need to rely on traditional phone lines to conduct business. This matters because you can base your business anywhere in the world and communicate with other places without having to have a physical presence there.
Make a Call From Any Location
With a traditional phone, you can only use that number when you’re attached to the phone line. If you want to make a business call away from the office, you can’t use your business number. Of course, your mobile phone number fills that gap somewhat, but now your clients have to keep track of multiple numbers.
With VoIP systems, you can use your virtual phone number from any location as long as you’re connected to the internet. Your standard phone service just can’t compete with VoIP technology.
Call Anywhere With Your VoIP Phone
Just like your regular phone, you can make outgoing calls to any destination with your VoIP number. Your clients or suppliers don’t need a VoIP number either: You can call everything from regular landlines to mobile phones to VoIP phones.
Make International Calls With Ease
Traditional phones are typically limited to making calls nationally and require lots of extra steps (and expenses) to call other countries. Using a VoIP system is like having a magic passport for your phone. Not only can you call abroad more easily, but many VoIP providers can give you international numbers too.
Instead of calling Spain with your US number, you can just use your Spanish number and your client in Barcelona won’t have to worry about long-distance charges or having difficulty receiving your call.
Is VoIP Good for Home Use?
While most of our discussion has been about the benefits for a large business, we know that these days plenty of people have to work from home. Fortunately, VoIP works perfectly at home. Of course, if you have lots of employees working remotely, you may want to evaluate their internet connection before relying on VoIP.
The most common problem is bad Wi-Fi coverage at home. Lots of people place their Wi-Fi routers in poor locations, or perhaps work in the opposite corner of the house where the connection is not so strong. This could present problems, so make sure you give your workers some advice on how to configure VoIP.
3. Enjoy Significant Cost Savings
Your local phone system may not be very expensive, but it’s easy to run up a nasty bill. The typical service provider will charge connection fees, service fees, local taxes, and overages when you make certain kinds of calls too frequently.
The advantages and disadvantages of traditional telephone systems are quite clear when we talk about finances. While a single line may not cost much, it’s always going to cost more than a single VoIP number.
No Long Distance Charges
Long-distance calls made with your traditional phone service can become ridiculously expensive, as anyone who’s ever had a kid run up a phone bill knows. But your VoIP phone system doesn’t have this problem because the internet doesn’t care about where you are.
Does your internet service charge you more to send an email to France? No, it doesn’t. The internet protocol VoIP treats your voice the same as that silly meme you want to send. To your internet service provider, it’s all data, and it doesn’t matter where it’s going or where it’s coming from.
Unlimited Incoming Calls and Outgoing Calls
Business VoIP services provide unlimited calling in either direction. Make calls as often as you’d like without worrying about getting a surprise bill at the end of the month. Businesses shouldn’t have to worry about running out of minutes or having to call the telephone company to get some more talk time.
With international calls, you may have certain limits. However, most of these can be bypassed by just having a local number in the country you intend to call. Since most VoIP systems offer numbers in dozens of countries, you shouldn’t run into many issues unless you’re trying to get a hold of someone in North Korea!
4. VoIP Service Works on Any Device
The boring old phone system only works on clunky old phones. If someone calls your office number, you can only answer if you’re sitting at your desk. How lame is that? Today’s businesses need flexibility, and that’s exactly what VoIP services give you.
The best VoIP services offer software that lets you use your virtual number anywhere you like. You can use any device anywhere as long as you’re connected to the internet and are in the mood to have a chat.
Desktop Apps
Many VoIP services have a desktop app that you can install on your Mac or PC. Once you’ve installed it, you’ll have access to all of your virtual numbers. You can then pick up a call on your computer and use your microphone and headphones to handle the call. Likewise, you can place a call using the same software.
If you don’t want to open up yet another app, see if your VoIP provider has a web-based application. You can simply open up a new tab in your web browser, log into the VoIP phone system website, and handle your calls through there. Desktop apps are usually a bit faster and more responsive, but if you prefer to work through the web browser, it’s an option.
These apps also include other features like SMS messaging and voicemail. You can also manage your account and configure your settings within the app.
Mobile Apps
When you’re on the go, you need your VoIP calls to follow you. Ask your VoIP provider about their mobile app support. Most major VoIP companies have apps for Android and iOS that let you handle your VoIP calls through your cell phone. You can even configure your phone to use your VoIP app exclusively so that every time you place a call, it goes through your VoIP service instead of your mobile plan.
This is a great solution for people who are constantly out and about or who travel frequently for work. Turn your mobile device into a fully-featured Voice over Internet Protocol telephone.
It’s also a good idea to install these apps as a backup plan. If you have to deal with power outages, for example, you can use your mobile data and keep the business churning.
You Can Even Use Your Traditional Phone
If you’re the ultimate hipster and want to use your grandmother’s antique rotary telephone to make VoIP calls, believe it or not, that is actually possible. The trick is to use your private branch exchange, which is a system that manages your landline internally.
When you dial out from a designated traditional phone, the private branch exchange can be configured to send your call to your VoIP phone system.
Use Multiple Devices at Once
Combine all of these features into one cohesive network. You can leave your desktop app logged in while your mobile app is also in use. When you get a call to your VoIP phone number, all of the devices that are logged in will light up, just like how your several home phones ring simultaneously when someone calls.
You can answer on any of those active devices. The VoIP advantages just keep on coming.
5. VoIP Gives Your Business More Control
While your phone company can give you a report of all the calls made and received, a VoIP phone system can provide you with much more information and more control over how your service is used. Of all the VoIP advantages, this is one of the biggest for large businesses.
Best of all, these features come at no extra cost and can help your business to improve its practices using VoIP.
User Management
With regular phone lines, anybody can waltz into your office, pick up the phone, and make calls to whomever they wish. Not only is that a potential problem, but it’s also disorganized.
Using VoIP software, you can assign a specific number to a specific user, which ensures that they cannot make calls using any other number. You can organize your business phone practices this way and take more control over how your employees handle the telephone.
Phone System Management
You can even limit which devices individuals can use to take calls. For example, perhaps you want your secretary to only receive calls to her desk phone or desk computer. That’s an option with a VoIP phone system.
Analyze Your VoIP Activity
VoIP advantages extend beyond the actual phone network. Since Voice over Internet Protocol turns your voice into data packets, you can run that data through analytics software and evaluate your business behavior. For example, you can find out who is using your VoIP service the most, and who is avoiding it.
You can also see how many minutes you spend talking to certain clients and perhaps find out where you need to dedicate more time and attention.
6. Record Your VoIP Phone Calls
Another one of the great VoIP advantages is that you can record every call without any special equipment. As your voice passes through the internet, you can capture those precious data packets and save your calls in audio form. This is a huge asset for businesses both big and small.
Best of all, many systems provide this feature at no cost, or at least a very low cost. You can usually record your conversations for free on your local computer. However, if you need a centralized space to keep all of that data, you can ask your VoIP service if they have cloud storage options.
Improve Your Customer Service
When you make calls on your business phone lines, you want to be sure that your employees treat your customers right. By recording their interactions, you can review the content and give your workers valuable feedback to improve your company’s service. We all need to review our work from time to time, and call recording is just one way you can do that.
This is one of the VoIP advantages that stands out from your typical telephone service. Recording landlines requires special equipment and can negatively affect the quality of the call. But when you use internet data, your voice still comes through loud and clear and you don’t need to spend anything to make it possible.
7. Use the Most Advanced Features
Large businesses love the advanced features that VoIP telephone systems provide. While some of these features exist on traditional phones or on your mobile phone, you can take them to the next level when you use a virtual service.
Many of the advanced features are included with your basic packages, but some cost a bit more. You can sometimes add these to your plan. If not, you’ll have to upgrade your plan to get access to all of these options.
Call Forwarding and Call Routing
These classic tools have been a mainstay of phone networks for years. However, they’ve always been a pain to set up. If you want to configure call forwarding you have to call the phone company and tell them what you need. The same goes for routing calls throughout your organization.
Even when your business has phone network hardware on-site, do you know how to use it? Phone systems are so ancient that you’ll often need a certified technician to come in and set things up.
With a VoIP system, you can just log into your account and set it up in minutes. Keep your business moving and configure your virtual phone service in no time.
Artificial Intelligence At Your Service
As technology continues to advance, so do the VoIP advantages. Some companies have started providing artificial intelligence features. While these are reserved for premium plans and not every provider has this option, if you can get it, it’ll change everything.
You can get AI assistants that handle incoming calls and route them to the right person. It’s possible to set up an AI-driven SMS or text chat system too, so anyone who writes to your virtual numbers can get a quick response. AI technology is poised to explode in the coming years, and you won’t be able to use it on your old landline.
8. Expansion Made Easy
Every small business owner dreams of competing with the big businesses in the world. Even the giant businesses want to stay on top and keep growing. However, if your systems don’t scale, your business will start to hit walls and struggle to expand.
It’s like when you were a kid and your clothes started to get too tight as you grow. But replacing a phone system isn’t as easy as buying a new pair of jeans. Think of your VoIP phone system as a magic spandex jumpsuit that grows as your business does.
VoIP Scales in Seconds
If you need more numbers or more users, all you have to do is log into your account and add them. The provider will add the necessary amounts to your bill. It’s as simple as that.
The physical infrastructure scales quickly too! If you want to add more landlines to your business, somebody from the phone company has to come out and dig a hole. If you want more phones in your office, you might need to carve some drywall and add new phone jacks.
But when all you need is an internet connection, you can just add more devices to your Wi-Fi network and you’re good to go.
Help Your Business Grow
Ultimately, whatever tools you add to your business should help your business grow. The advantages of these new technologies greatly outweigh the disadvantages of VoIP. They will help your business to be more successful and lucrative.
Whether you need a phone number in the area code where your clients reside, or you’re looking for a more efficient way to manage your calls, VoIP can provide the perfect solution for you.
What Do You Need to Use VoIP?
So, now that you’re ready to sign up, what do you need to switch to a smarter solution? Obviously, a good internet connection and solid Wi-Fi coverage are essential.
From there, evaluate whether you should upgrade your desk phones, as you can use smarter ones that connect to the internet. After that, think about your microphones and headphones. You want your calls to sound great, so make sure you have the best equipment. We would also recommend getting the same gear for everyone for consistency.
