With the rate at which the VoIP industry is expanding, there is no doubt that everyone has heard of the term softphone in recent years. Even though most people might not even know what it is, they are certainly aware of the word. They might even be using one already without realizing it. So What is a Softphone Exactly? A softphone (software telephone) is a software program for making phone calls over the Internet using a computer, tablet or smartphone rather than using dedicated hardware. It is often designed to look and behave like a traditional telephone, with a display panel and buttons for the user to interact with, much like a standard phone interface. Most softphones work in conjunction with a headset and microphone that is connected to the computer. Softphone applications can be downloaded from a wide variety of providers and are available for a range of operating systems such as Windows,…
Call centers are at the front line of customer service and are expected to run at peak efficiency while maintaining a high call volume. There are many challenges in managing and operating a call center, one of them being securing inbound calling services that meet both current and future needs. Voice support serves as the backbone for the call center, and it is short-sighted for a brand to risk their reputation by exposing consumers to a substandard voice product. Management is constantly concerned with basic communication issues. Are callers getting a busy signal? Are calls being dropped? Is the voice quality satisfactory? At the same time, the concurrent call requirements have to be managed, to ensure sufficient capacity without wasting money on excess channels. Furthermore, in recent years, organizations have seen their customer base contact them not only through more media channels but also from diverse locations around the globe.…
Well-designed software and plentiful features are essential to having the best softphone: effective and useful. This is especially true of the user interface (UI), where all the necessary functions must be displayed front and center, smoothly integrating voice operations with the workflow processes. In many cases, the softphone is designed to resemble a traditional telephone, with a display panel and buttons for user control, very much like a standard phone interface. Over and above the importance of the user interface, there are a number of factors to consider when choosing the right product. We will discuss these factors in order to assist you in making an informed decision in selecting the best softphone. Cost There is a wide range of both free and paid softphones. In many cases, vendors offer a free, limited-feature version of their paid products. If you wish to use the free version, then you should carefully evaluate this…
The VoIP industry is booming, and this has created a significant demand for DID (Direct Inbound Dialing) services and choosing a DID provider has become harder. Very often, these services are essential to the basic premise of the business or enterprise; incoming calls should reach their required destination efficiently with the proper quality and expected reliability. In all likelihood, voice support serves as the backbone for your business, and it is short-sighted to risk your reputation by exposing employees and consumers to a substandard voice product. Selecting a provider that satisfies your requirements for coverage, quality, scalability, and pricing is a complex issue, and some of the essential criteria to consider during this decision process are: Global Coverage Ensure that your DID provider includes the geographic coverage of numbers that you require for your business, including toll-free, local, mobile, national and SMS-enabled numbers. In addition, the provider should be actively…
It would seem quite strange if, by now, you haven’t heard the term VoIP or VoIP technology before, considering it has been named nothing less than the most successful technology of the last decade! If you indeed aren’t familiar with it, chances are big you’re already using it without knowing. And if you are aware of the term, but don’t know what it is or what it means, you’re in the right place. Meaning Voice over Internet Protocol, VoIP is a revolutionary technology that delivers voice communications and multimedia sessions over Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as the Internet. In more simple words, it is an alternative and cheaper way of making and receiving phone calls. Other terms such as Internet telephony, broadband telephony, and broadband phone service specifically refer to the supply of voice, fax SMS, voice-messaging and other communication services over the Internet, instead of via the PSTN (public switched telephone network). How does VoIP…
Are you interested in the VoIP industry and want to learn more about VoIP? There are plenty of VoIP books out there that come in all sizes and some more technical than others. There are volumes that provide a simple straightforward review of VoIP, others cover the use of VoIP for both home and business networks, and a few of them even discuss security issues relating to voice and data networks. There is also a good deal of guides that explain how to evaluate, select, and install VoIP systems. But if you’re not crazy about looking and analyzing through hundreds of technical large VoIP books before finding the one you need, check out the list of our 10 favorite VoIP books for consumers. The Best 10 Books on VoIP VoIP For Dummies: By Timothy V. Kelly Low-cost and written in a clear and engaging way, VoIP For Dummies is one of…
Most businesses today have several incoming telephone numbers, each one used for a different purpose or department such as customer service, sales, marketing etc. Some companies even have the ability to assign a personal phone number to each employee without requiring multiple physical phone lines, making it possible for telephone traffic to be split up and managed more easily. This powerful framework is only achievable using Direct Inward Dialling (DID). DID, also known in Europe as DDI (Direct Dial-in), is a service offered by telephone companies, that allows organizations, who operate a private branch exchange (PBX) system, to have multiple telephone numbers lines connected to one or more analog or digital physical circuits to their PBX. The system sends the dialed telephone number to the PBX so that an outside caller can have direct access to the PBX extension, possibly avoiding an auto-attendant. In a business with DID, the telephone…
According to Technavio’s analysts, the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Trunking market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 18.23% by 2021. SIP Trunking is an Internet-based service that allows businesses to extend VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) telephony beyond the organization’s firewall without the need for an IP-PSTN gateway. It allows VoIP users to stay connected in local and long-distance calls to and from endpoints in the traditional phone network. The report ‘Global Session Initiation Protocol Trunking Market 2017-2021’, was based on detailed and reliable data gathered from an extensive research and an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. It provides a complete market and vendor landscape as well as a SWOT analysis of the key vendors and major factors that influence the market such as drivers, opportunities, and challenges. Session Initiation Protocol Trunking Market Driver: – The increasing adoption of cloud-based solutions is…
Since VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technology has been commercially available, most of the marketing and promotion surrounding its features have been aimed at front-office staff and managers. However, back-office workers also greatly benefit from the VoIP business system, and although it’s not often stressed, it is also a solid selling point for VoIP. Back-office workers are the network engineers who design, install, support and maintain information-technology environments inside a business. So what exactly are the benefits for them and how do these advantages contribute to their efficiency and that of the business? Design Advantages When moving into a new facility the first thing technology engineers consider is the cable plant design. VoIP technology offers many options when designing and budgeting the process, such as letting you run one line to the phone. With a computer jack plugged in the VoIP phone, the connection to the computer is established, effectively reducing…
VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technology and VoIP services has allowed telephone operators to provide low-cost communications services in an ever-changing and developing global market. With VoIP technology, your voice can now be converted into a digital signal that travels over the Internet, which enables you to make phone calls directly from a computer, a smartphone, or a traditional phone connected to a special adapter. The introduction of mass-market VoIP services that use existing broadband Internet access, through which subscribers place and receive telephone calls in the same way as they would via the public switched telephone network (PSTN), began in 2004. Now, after 13 years, there are a number of successful VoIP businesses such as Vonage, Comcast, Time Warner, Charter, 8×8, Jive, MITEL, Broadvoice, OnSIP, Nextiva, and new companies are entering the market each day. VoIP services are targeted for individuals and businesses that want to stay connected with other people, families or…

