VoIP in a business environment can work very well. However, a lot depends on your existing network. If you have an overly secure network with a lot of traffic, expect the quality to drop. Try to keep your voice traffic on a different network than your data and remember that VoIP / SIP is not as secure as traditional telecommunications.
First, some of the benefits … VoIP systems often cost less for recurring maintenance than traditional PBX equipment and are easier to configure by applying moves, adds and changes. By the way, no configuration changes are normally required to move an extension on a VoIP network. Many VoIP systems also allow you to use the Internet for your outgoing calls, which can lower your long distance bill and crowd out the cost of a PRI or analog trunk circuits to access the public telephone network. VoIP also enables unified messaging, which integrates email, voicemail, instant messaging, and calendar.
However, there are some drawbacks … IP phones are more expensive than traditional analog phones and have more stringent requirements for the network to support them than standard email and web browsing. While VoIP systems generally have a more intuitive interface than traditional PBX equipment, in a company of 20 people you are not likely to see much turnover that I would expect.
Additional drawbacks are:
– Voice quality (not all your calls will be as clear as a traditional analog line).
– Reliability. If your Internet or system network goes down, you will be left without computers or a phone system.
– Basic features are sometimes billed on demand and may end up costing you more per user than a traditional phone system.
– Hosted VoIP solutions require you to purchase the phones (and associated routers) and then bill you every month for the service. Where a phone system (with all its equipment) can be financed between 3 and 5 years and then you are the owner of the equipment and the features and service of the system.
The best approach to determining the feasibility of such a move would be to perform a cost analysis for each option and look at the total costs and benefits of the system, up front, in the fifth year and beyond.
For a small business, these are conditions that would generally indicate a possible business case for VoIP:
– Your company has multiple sites and countries for wide area network circuits to connect those sites together, as well as PRI circuits or Centrex lines for PSTN access.
– You have a number of “remote workers” who work from remote / home offices, and the company pays for your home phone and long distance, as well as your Internet access.
– Your company spends a significant part of its technology budget on international or long distance calls.
– Your company has a high turnover and / or the staff is constantly changing offices.
– The integration of unified messaging and / or advanced calling features, such as conference calls on the go, would allow your company to conduct business much more efficiently, so much so that it would have a positive impact on your bottom line.
– Your business is preparing to move to a new facility and you would have to pay to install the cable.
Out of those, I would say that VoIP may not be your best option. One option worth considering is a gateway that serves traditional analog phones, but converts the call to VoIP when calling external numbers.
Don’t get me wrong, I love working with VoIP, but if your current system isn’t broken or costs you an arm and a leg to maintain, you may not need to upgrade.
