Don’t Sign Your VoIP Contract Yet: Expert VoIP Tips

Your company is getting a VoIP phone system or at least considering it—congrats! You will love all of the added features, convenience and savings associated with a VoIP phone system. Before you sign a contract with your business VoIP provider, make sure that you have considered the following items. This isn’t a list of what features you could benefit from nor will it persuade you to switch it VoIP. This list is intended to help you avoid any pitfalls along the way.

• Get Lots of Quotes: Talk with various vendors and request quotes. Understanding what the “going rate” is will both help keep your phone systems vendor competitive, as well as help you when you go to negotiate your contract.
• What features does your company need?: Knowing what sorts of added features would benefit your company will help you determine what sort of package is best.  Don’t fall for unnecessary “free” features. If you do not need video conferencing, accepting video conference as alternative to a lower monthly rate is not beneficial to your company. If your employees don’t use it, then you don’t want it.
• Vendor Customer Service: Consider your phone system as a long term financial investment. If you do not find your phone systems provider helpful, then this relationship is already off to a rough start. Problems will come up, make sure your provider is available to help when you need it most.
• Know the ins and outs of your system: After installation, it is advisable to know where things are located (helps when finding loose cords), basic system functions (how to restart it, etc.), and the procedure/passwords in case of interrupted service.
•  Training: Understanding how the system’s features work is important. If your employees don’t know how to use the system, your company is just throwing away money.
• Alternative Power: VoIP service is dependent on electrical power to operate- what is the backup plan for when there is a power outage? An alternative power supply or spare landline needs to be in place.
• Emergency 911 Calls: VoIP has no fixed geographic location, consequently, when making a 911 call, your location will not be sent to the dispatcher. Either activate E911 or have an emergency landline phone available for emergencies.

This list provides you with expert tips and things to not forget when signing up for VoIP.  Having an alternative power supply does not seem critical at first but what happens if you lose power? Do you lose business? Maybe having a spare landline solves both problems of power outage and emergency 911 calls or maybe a cell phone is enough. Thinking of these things ahead of time will save you from future headaches. Understanding the needs of your business is the first thing you should do before switching to VoIP. The more research you do upfront, the more money you can save by switching to VoIP.

Monique L. Myers is a writer, surf instructor and an art enthusiast based in San Diego, California. She writes extensively for Resource Nation and VoIP Service, online resources that provide expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs.