VoIP: A Simple Guide to Understand Voice Over Calling for Business

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What is VoIP?

Do you own a business? If you nodded in agreement, then you must understand the importance of calling and connecting with consumers. This write-up will help you get familiar with an efficient way of doing that, which is VoIP. You must have come across the term VoIP and have thought that it is too technical for you, and this blog will help you know it better.

Even though you might not be familiar with the concept of VoIP, you still use this technology more often than you think.

But how?

Through your Skype, Apple FaceTime, Discord, basically anything that lets you call using the internet. All your internet phone calls are VoIP calls. VoIP is an acronym for Voice Over Internet Protocol, and it’s self-explanatory. It means calling over the internet.

Now that you have a rough idea, let’s dig deep and try to know VoIP a little better.

Where did it come from?

Although VoIP might seem like a new-age technology that arrived just a few years ago, it is much older than that. ARPANET tried the first VoIP transmissions way back in 1973, and the first app for VoIP was launched in 1991. Four years later, Voltech which is an Israeli telecom came up with their Internet Phone. The biggest and one of the most popular VoIP was released in 2003 with Skype, and then Apple came up with Face Time, which made VoIP a rage.

How does VoIP work?

To understand it better, let’s get you acquainted with something that you will instantly connect with, which is the telephone. You must know how a telephone works. There is a wire that connects two telephones, and that wire is dedicated to them. Voice signals are transferred through the wire and to the devices connected to it.

VoIP works the same way, except there is no physical wire that connects the devices. The voice signals are divided into small packages, and each package has an address of the device where they are supposed to reach. That address is nothing but the IP address of that device.

For the unversed, an IP address is a unique string of numbers given to every device connected to the internet. This IP address helps to identify the device, and this identity is used by the data packages to reach the device through VoIP.

If this sounds gibberish to you, here’s a simpler version of the working of VoIP.

Your voice signals are divided into small packages, much like postcards. These packages have the address of the device you are calling, just like the postcards have an address to which they are supposed to be delivered. The devices also have the same address etched on them, known as an IP address. The way a postman delivers the postcard to the mentioned address, similarly these voice signals are delivered through the internet to the devices having IP addresses similar to the data packages of the signals.

Now that you have an idea about how VoIP works, it’s time to uncover the secret behind its rise and why businesses are shifting from traditional calling methods to VoIP. Here are 4 reasons why you should replace traditional calling with VoIP for your business.

Reasons to switch to VoIP over traditional calling for your business

It is cost-effective

The biggest reason behind the success of VoIP is the fact that it is extremely budget-friendly. Traditional calling methods such as telephones require businesses to spend on the hardware, installation, and maintenance as well. Even the cost of calling is higher as compared to VoIP. VoIP is cost-effective because you don’t have to spend money separately on phone bills. You can just use your internet and enjoy free VoIP calls. Apart from that, VoIP installations are a lot quicker, and they can also handle multiple lines, which makes them the obvious choice for brands.

It is scalable

Today, the world is extremely fast-paced and more so for businesses, and that’s why as a brand you are not sure when you would need to expand your operations. In that scenario, scaling with traditional calling methods could be a tough task as you would need a team and new hardware to set up more lines and even a lot of time for installation. VoIP, on the other hand, is easily scalable. With things like SIP, which is a cloud-based phone system, you can control everything within a few clicks. VoIP also allows you to make more adjustments based on your brands’ needs. Ease of scalability is also a huge reason for brands to shift to VoIP.

It is mobile and flexible

One of the constraints that traditional telephone calling systems come with is they are not flexible. Employees need to be at the place where these phones are installed. However, in times when remote work is the need of the hour, these systems become redundant. VoIP offers the freedom of working from anywhere with the help of SIP-enabled devices. Even shifting to a new office or expanding your branches is extremely effortless with VoIP. VoIP cloud-based systems allow you to control your remote branches’ communication from one place using the admin portal. With VoIP, you don’t have to ask your employees to come to work. You also have the option of taking work to them and offering them flexibility and freedom.

It is feature-rich

The world of business is evolving, and your brand should also do the same to survive. However,  it won’t be possible with traditional calling methods. Old phones can only be used for a single purpose as compared to VoIP that is packed with multiple features such as call forwarding, IVR, ring group, music on hold, call recordings, firewall, auto-provisioning, and many more. Using VoIP doesn’t just make your calling efficient but also improves the quality of the services you offer.

VoIP is a new rage, and the world is adopting it. As per Statista, in 2017, it was predicted that the European mobile VoIP market would be worth $14 billion. Now, after 4 years, a lot has changed, and the scope of VoIP has increased exponentially. Just this is a reason enough to opt for VoIP, or your business might be left behind by the ever-evolving competitors.

Numerous business VoIP providers can help you start your VoIP journey and make the best of technology. So, get on the VoIP bandwagon to take your business to the next level. Avail of the Airtel Office Internet and be assured of smooth VoIP along with several other additional features. Check out the options now!