When most people think of voice over IP (VoIP), the first thing that comes to mind is going to likely eb the free platforms such as Skype and Google (News - Alert) Voice, and fair enough: free services understandably grab attention. However, these programs are somewhat limited, both in functionality and their cost-saving benefits compared to paid VoIP — especially if you're still using a traditional landline.
Many business and residential VoIP plans operate just like landline technology, but at cost a fraction of the price at $10 or $20 per month compared to $50 or more. All that's needed to get started with VoIP is an Internet connection, which most people already have.
Small businesses especially stand to gain a lot from switching to VoIP as the technology offers them a lot more than just cost savings.
Indeed, VoIP is both scalable and customizable, two elements that are almost as important to small businesses. Not only will most VoIP solutions fit in offices of any size, it's easy to add or remove extensions as needed, while moving an extension is as easy as moving your phone.
In general, business VoIP is available in tiered price plans, meaning the price per extension will go down as the number of extensions needed goes up. Better yet, VoIP service provider AVOXI allows customers to create their own customer VoIP solution. Since AVOXI also offers more advanced IP phone solutions — such as toll free numbers, cloud PBX (News - Alert) service and virtual call center software — this level of customization can truly guide a business from start-up through to full-sized enterprise, covering practically every need along the way.
And yet, with so many services thrown into the mix, VoIP is remarkably easy to use, especially in terms of hosted VoIP and related services. For example, AVOXI's hosted PBX keeps the call platform and PBX features in the cloud, delivered as a service, providing similar functionality to a SIP trunk, without the need for technical know-how or potentially costly maintenance.
Edited by Ashley Caputo