Business VoIP Reliability
When you are a business servicing customers, a reliable, clear phone connection is critical. Does VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone service meet these criteria? And how does it stack up when compared to traditional telephone company phone service? This article will answer these and other questions about a technology that has seen increasing adoption by businesses around the nation – as well as around the globe.
VoIP Voice Quality
Your business may have considered VoIP telephone service (also referred to as hosted PBX service or virtual PBX service), but hesitated due to reading discussions about garbled speech and lag time that occurred in the earlier days of this digital voice technology. But in recent years, these issues have been largely resolved. The quality will vary, though, based upon the VoIP service provider selected, since the software and backbone quality may differ among providers.
Business Grade Really Makes a Difference
While a low-end residential VoIP service provider may lack a bit in sound quality, this quality rises to a superior level with business-grade hosting service. “Business-grade VoIP service offers voice quality that is the same or better than ‘Ma Bell’ offers,” says John Scarborough, Managing Partner at IP5280 Communications, a Denver-based business VoIP hosting service. “A consumer provider will often simply send an ATA, (analog telephone adaptor), that plugs into a regular phone,” explains Scarborough. “The adaptor must convert a traditional or analog voice signal, into a digital signal. With a business provider, you receive specialized IP phones. These contain a built-in Ethernet jack that plugs directly into the network. There’s no signal conversion required, and the resulting voice quality is much better.”
Polycom Soundpoint 501 IP Phone
Source: IP5280.com website, photo used with permission
However, voice quality is usually primarily affected by the quality of the Internet Service Provider that your business uses. “It’s important to make sure you have enough bandwidth to handle the voice traffic, or problems could occur,” says Scarborough. To help with handling voice data, some businesses install a Quality of Service (QOS) system that acts like a data “traffic cop”, giving priority to voice data transmission to prevent voice transmission from being bumped off by other network data traffic.
Dropped calls are usually not a problem if business-grade equipment and a good broadband connection exist. “Dropped calls are usually caused by the voice signal getting ‘bumped out’ by other traffic, by using a cheap adapter, or by having a poor ISP connection,” says Scarborough. “You won’t see these problems with the right equipment, installation and configuration.”
Choose an Experienced VoIP Service Provider
This is one reason why businesses will want to work with a host experienced in providing business solutions. “You really can’t have this same quality if you just buy a box online, and plug it in,” says Scarborough. “A good business VoIP service provider will provide a consultative approach, sending an engineer onsite to make sure your network is ‘VoIP ready’ before the system is ever put in place, resulting in superior voice quality.” This includes identifying if the current network configuration, such as the routers, switches or other hardware, will be a problem, or whether the company firewall would block voice data transmissions. They will suggest solutions for optimal implementation of the service. To find and compare business VoIP service providers in your area – Click Here
What if a power outage occurs? If this occurs, a business can choose to either have battery backup or to automatically route IP calls to cell phones. This can also be done if the company network goes down, to prevent important missed calls.
The State of VoIP Security
Another concern raised has been the security of VoIP, in part because with VoIP, specific ports in the company firewall must be open in order to allow voice traffic data transmission. Fears are that network security leaks or denial of service attacks could occur if VoIP is implemented. But the reality is that it is often easier to “tap in” to a physical phone line than a digital one. And listening in on VoIP transmissions is difficult, if the company has network security in place.
“In essence, VoIP data is only as open to hacking as other company data, “says Scarborough, “If a company is security-minded, and has network encryption in place, then VoIP transmissions will also be encrypted. Companies that don’t employ encryption, but want extra security, can opt to use one of a growing number of software products designed for VoIP security.
Other security measures can also be implemented, such as turning off any VoIP protocols that aren’t being actively used by the company, effectively closing potential doors to intruders.
Implementing the VoIP System
Installing the phones or adapters and software required to implement VoIP service is much simpler, and less expensive, when compared to installing a traditional system. Hosting company representatives will come out onsite to assist clients with the initial configuration. Once the business rules are built into the templates provided by the hosted PBX service, most systems require little ongoing input, unless additional protocols are added at a later time.
The fact that business VoIP services providers have much less equipment to install than traditional land-based PBX (public branch exchange) phones makes for a more rapid implementation. Instead of months, a typical hosted business solution can take a couple of weeks to install and configure, depending on the number of users. “This could take a bit longer, if the business wants to port (transfer) their existing number to the new system,” says Scarborough. “In this case, it can take several weeks until the number is ported over.”
Assessment: First Step in Getting VoIP Ready
A critical step in implementing a VoIP phone system is conducting a careful assessment of how “VoIP-ready” the existing network is, and fixing problems that might interfere with voice quality. “If a company doesn’t have a good broadband connection, or can’t acquire one, then they really aren’t a good candidate for VoIP,” says Scarborough. You can test your internet connection to see how many VoIP phone lines your internet connection can have by going to our VoIP Speed Tester. A company with an existing traditional phone system that they like may still be a good candidate, though, since they can use business-grade adaptors to continue using their current phones while they make the transition over time.
As a business and its needs grow, a VoIP system can grow with it. “It allows a company to scale up, without having to purchase a huge infrastructure, or paying the prices that would normally involve,” says Scarborough. “With VoIP, a small business can gain access to features normally associated with larger corporations, such as follow-me roaming, Web conferencing, multiple extensions and simultaneous ringing of several phone lines at once, among others, as part of their basic service package at no extra charge. You can never really outgrow a VoIP PBX system, and so you’re ‘future proofing’ your phone service when you implement it.”
“Free” Long Distance?
One misconception about VoIP is that it provides unlimited, free long distance calls, worldwide. This isn’t the case; instead, calls between members of the same network are unlimited, and free; out of network calls are charged, but at a significantly lower rate than seen with traditional phone service. Real savings can be seen when employees at different locations must call each other frequently. VoIP will allow them to converse all day long, at no charge, even if they are in different states. Scarborough says, “With VoIP, a company can be ‘virtual’, but look bigger, with calls transferred from a central number that locates and rings employees in different locations.”
Calling 911
Another concern raised has been the difficulty of finding the exact physical location when a call to emergency services is placed to 911 over a VoIP phone. This issue has been addressed by the FCC, which mandated E911 capabilities for all VoIP service providers. With this system, physical location data such as a street address and floor location are provided, giving the location the call was made from within 1000 feet. But employees must be reminded to update the location when a phone is moved.
If 100% reliability and identifying exact physical location are considered critical, it is still recommended that a traditional analog phone be used.
Weighing the Benefits
VoIP phone service is growing in popularity. Many of the drawbacks seen when it was first introduced have been addressed by improvements in equipment and ISP connectivity. Not every business may be a candidate for VoIP phone service, but a growing number are choosing to use this digital-based phone service option to enjoy reduced rates and improved productivity, as well as scalability for future growth.
A Comparison of VoIP and Traditional (POTS) Phone Service Advantages and Disadvantages |
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|
POTS |
VOIP |
Voice Quality |
Excellent |
Fair to excellent, varies with host and equipment. Major business VoIP systems now equal or exceed POTS in clarity |
# of Dropped Calls |
Rare |
In the worst cases, equal to most cell phones. Some loss of data if heavy data traffic present unless a QOS system is implemented. 99.6% uptime is normal. |
Coverage |
Worldwide |
Worldwide |
Bandwith usage |
Inefficient (high consumption) |
Very efficient |
Long Distance Rates |
Vary; can be costly |
Relatively inexpensive; free if within network |
Maintenance Costs |
High, due to aging infrastructure, high cost of copper, etc. |
Low, due to relatively light infrastructure |
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