Ten Key Questions about hosting VoIP services (1)

VoIP decisions should not be based on technology, but on how it affects your business. Before deciding to use VoIP, choose hosted VoIP or implement it on your own, enterprise decision makers should ask themselves 10 questions.

Before Janou Pakter's chief financial officer Bob Halper decided to change the company's voice and Internet services, he is used to comparing his unstable and expensive internal telephone systems with those used by Alexander Graham Bell. For the New York-based research company with branches in Paris, Milan, and Los Angeles, the telephone system is truly essential. Recruiters use this telephone system to arrange creative designers around the world.

Like many small enterprises, Janou Pakter does not have full-time IT staff. The same is true for chief financial officers. Halper is also responsible for many financial and management matters, including telephone systems. As a non-professional, Halper has signed local and long-distance voice, data, and Internet service contracts with four different companies. He said that if I had to do these things, I would tear my hair away. Unfortunately, I have to deal with these things. He wants to use a new phone system to save money for the company, provide predictable monthly costs, and retain his hair.

Thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises are facing the same choice-how to handle their own voice and data services. More and more SMEs are seeking to integrate their voice and Internet connections to a network. However, when deciding on how and when to transition to VoIP, we will analyze various publicity. Various choices, service providers, and hardware vendors are a minefield for any enterprise.

VoIP was initially promoted as a low-cost technology to replace traditional telephones transmitted over public exchange networks. This idea is that voice data packets can be transmitted over the Internet at a lower cost. In the early stages, although the price may be low, the quality of speech is usually poor. However, in the last two years, the VoIP service has matured. Enterprises of all sizes are satisfied with the quality of voice, data, and Internet communication transmitted over the same network. Internet phones are increasingly integrated into enterprise applications to increase productivity and access information.

Small businesses have two main options for interest in VoIP: self-built or outsourced systems to hosted VoIP providers. In typical VoIP settings, enterprises purchase and manage their own VoIP devices and services. On the other hand, hosted voice providers run customers' Company voice, data, and Internet services on their own networks, place devices in their own data centers, and only put IP Telephones in customers' offices.

After considering his choice, Janou Pakter chose M5 Networks, a managed VoIP provider in New York. Managed Services are the answer of many small and medium-sized enterprises. However, it is not the answer for every small and medium-sized enterprise. If your company plans to use VoIP and you want to make a choice in the internal installation and hosting solution, you should consider the following 10 key questions before making a decision.

1. How does VoIP help your business?

VoIP decisions should not be based on technology, but on how it affects your business. Steve Hilton, vice president of corporate research at the market research company Yankee Group, said that before any small business invests in a new telephone system, they should be advised to ask themselves four simple and important questions:

1. Will it help me grow my business?

2. Does it help me protect my business?

3. Does it simplify my business?

4. Does it support my business?

For Halper of Janou Pakter, simplifying his business means canceling his old-fashioned system and purchasing an IP phone number from Cisco Systems at $350 per hour, then let M5 Networks manage everything. Now, only four numbers are needed for phone calls to the Milan, Paris, and Los Angeles offices, and there is no international telephone fee. The monthly management fee also includes local and long-distance calls that are not limited in time.

Another customer of M5 network company, Lloyd Group, is an IT outsourcing company in New York with 60 employees. The company found that the company's business was helped through the M5 telephone center solution. Adam Eiseman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Lloyd Group, was able to access some statistics to learn about the speed of calls, the length of customer waits, And the busiest call times. Without these measurements, you will hit the wall, he said. The answer speed is 10% faster, and Eiseman now knows when to increase or decrease the number of people.

A single business needs drive decisions that change the phone system, whether IT's price, company growth, lack of IT resources, or any single reason.