The modern-day internet has brought forth an era of digitalization, where the digital world has become the control center almost over everything. This is not a bad thing since it has made things convenient for us to handle. It has enabled us to do many things at the same time. But it would be a surprise to know that the internet has become what it is today if you knew about its past.
The internet was basically created as a tool for the military to use for communication over long distances. The reason being that radio waves were being hijacked by enemies. So a safer way to communicate was needed. And thus the creation of the internet, a tool for communication. But with the evolution of computer science and technology, we can even see each other, although we are a thousand miles away, and also talk to each other. One form of communication over the internet is called VoIP, which is short for voice-over-internet protocol.
What is VoIP and How does it Work?
When you are calling someone on your phone, you are using radio waves to do so. The mobile uses a SIM or subscriber identity module, a small chip provided by a carrier, to access radio towers to connect to another SIM on a phone. The mobile phones convert voice into radio wave signals that ride on these radio towers and then again convert the signal back to voice into another phone. That is how a call basically works.
But in the case of VoIP, it is almost the same principle, just the medium in which the voice travels is different and much more cost-effective. You are using an already established network, the internet to convert your voice into data/packets and they travel through the internet, and then the data is again converted into voice.
The methodology is the same, but because carriers use radio towers, the cost rises significantly, since there are many towers to relay the signal from one another. Meanwhile, since the internet is an already established network, that uses collective servers all around the globe, it costs less to call people over the internet.
How Businesses can Benefit from VoIP?
While VoIP is slowly gaining ground all around the globe, the ones to benefit from its spread is none other businesses. In fact, businesses are already benefiting tremendously from VoIP migration, since it is the next best thing. Let us look at some of these advantages below:
1) Cost-Effective
As we have already said above, that VoIP is a more cost-effective method of communication than mobile carriers. The reason behind it is we are using already created networks for making calls, i.e. the internet. Since the internet is already widespread, we are using it to create more opportunities. One opportunity is a cost-effective VoIP.
Besides VoIP also does not require you to get lines installed or any extra hardware whatsoever. If you already have a computer, a microphone, and a pair of headsets, you can call anyone using VoIP. Also, it does not have a lot of difference when making local and international calls. Meanwhile, when you call another country on landline it can cost you a lot, making it a very unappealing idea.
2) Enhancing Versatility
The best thing about VoIP migration is its versatility as you can integrate it into your business applications. Whatever you can think of that requires voice communication over the internet, you can integrate VoIP into it. So business based apps can specifically benefit from it, where you can manage client accounts, their information and call them in case you need something from them or need to inform them of something.
3) Promotes Mobility
Smartphones have allowed you to take your work with you everywhere, but you cannot call people up on a landline and move at the same time. Besides, landlines are bound by wires. Compared to that VoIP is available easily if you have access to the internet. This allows greater mobility, and you can work on your business while taking calls with clients regardless of where you are.
4) Easier Conference Calls
When you want to have a meeting with multiple people at a time over the landline, it can be a nuisance. But with VoIP, you can easily have conference calls and handle matters together. This makes it ideal for business meetings over long distances, specifically multinational companies, who have branches throughout the globe, can take advantage of this feature.
5) Improved Client Dealing
Since you are calling over the internet using a computer, you can deal with clients efficiently. You can open spreadsheets and other business-related software and work on it while you are talking to a client. This helps you give clients relevant information that they require on the go without making them wait as you go through files. VoIP has become really significant in client dealing, it helps it improve drastically from landline calls.
6) Highly Reliable
As long as you have a stable internet connection, you can call anyone anywhere while they are connected to the internet. The more the connection is stable, the better your conversation can be. You can rely on VoIP for being able to send calls and receive calls any time you want.
Obstacles while using VoIP
While VoIP is such a great asset, it has its share of downfalls. These are not as prominent, but this just tells us that the internet still has a long way to go before VoIP replaces landlines completely. Since these problems are so big, some people still rely on landlines and mobile phone carrier services. Here are some of the obstacles we face while choosing VoIP migration:
1) Internet Dependency
Mobile phone carriers have signals almost everywhere. But internet connection is very limited. You are dependent on a stable internet connection for VoIP. Meanwhile for a normal call using your mobile phone carrier service. This severely cripples the ability of VoIP calls.
2) Latency and Jitter
If you do not have a proper internet connection, you are going to face latency issues. This is accompanied by jitter. This is one of the most common problems of VoIP calls. Even though they are very cheap and in some instances free, the latency issues almost make it unusable at times. That is why mobile phone carrier services are much more reliable in this aspect.
3) Location Tracking Difficulties
If you ever call 911 services, they can almost instantly track the address and origin of the call. And it is very accurate as well, meanwhile tracking on the internet is quite a handful. This makes VoIP a huge problem, specifically when you are calling someone in an emergency. Emergency services can reach the origin of a call very fast even if you are unable to convey the address thanks to tracking from a mobile phone tower. And if it is a landline, it will be registered on an address, making it almost instantaneous for emergency services to track and respond.
Why VoIP is the Future
Soon enough there will be a time when you will have internet access almost anywhere. That is when VoIP calls will overtake mobile phone carrier services and landlines. Since it is so cost-effective, people will immediately and effectively switch to VoIP. Here are some points as to why VoIP migrationis the future of communication.
1) Simpler Communication
Calling over VoIP is simple, you have so many options. You can block communications from spam or prank callers. It does not cost you a lot and in some cases, it does not cost at all. You do not have to worry about mobile phone credits.
2) Affordable for Small Businesses
If you require a good and stable VoIP calling service for your small business, you can get it easily at very low prices. This is very beneficial as you are saving tons of costs on communications. You will not end up with a huge telephone or carrier service bill at the end of the month. With VoIP, you are just utilizing an already essential business utility, the internet. And with a little monthly package, you can make as many calls as you want without hassles.
3) Hassle-Free Migration
When you are having issues with one VoIP service, it is easy to migrate to another. Meanwhile, if your mobile phone carrier service is not good for your calls, you will have to go get another connection which might take a while to do so. So the migration from one service provider to another is much more easier in VoIP. Also, some applications offer you to find contacts saved on your phone and add them to your VoIP list making it incredibly easy to migrate from mobile phone carrier to VoIP calling services.
Conclusion
VoIP is the future of calling, and this is specifically the case for businesses. The convenient services provided by VoIP calling has so many possibilities. The versatility of VoIP calls makes them excellent for integration into business applications and thus it is why you should invest in a VoIP call system like Opentact.It is one of the best business client applications that give you the option of VoIP along with so much more.