VoIP, which stands for ‘Voice over Internet Protocol’, has become a big player for all kinds of companies. Many businesses now favour internet telephony over analogue lines. But what exactly is VoIP and what are the benefits for your company? You’ll read it in this article!

What is VoIP?

With VoIP, you can make phone calls without using a landline or mobile network. VoIP ensures that there is one uniform method in the world for telephone traffic - and other unified communication services - via the internet. With VoIP, you use the existing internet, so the service doesn’t need its own infrastructure. A NT1 box, ISRA point or ISDN cables are no longer necessary. VoIP uses the same UTP cables or WiFi connection as your computer, laptop or printer. And that provides a lot of benefits for many companies.

How does VoIP work?

Instead of using electromagnetic wave movements to transport voice sounds (PSTN), VoIP technology transports speech through packet-switched protocols. These digital blocks imitate the movements of speech waves. So, VoIP turns speech into small digital packages with labels; you can compare them to small envelopes. The ‘speech packages’ are provided with the shipping address and destination by the envelope. That way, the packages can find their way to the destination. It has two major advantages; a lot more information can be sent over the same infrastructure and if one of the lines malfunctions, the packages will be sent via an alternative route.

So, with VoIP telephony , voice signals are converted into digital signals. This digital data is then transmitted via the worldwide internet, through the Internet Protocol (TCP / IP). With this, a telephone call from your VoIP telephone is sent through your router, over the internet to your internet provider. They send the data through the internet to the provider of the organization you’re calling. This provider converts it back to an analog signal and sends it over the analog line to the person you’re in contact with.

What are the benefits of VoIP?

VoIP has multiple benefits. First of all, your company doesn’t have to invest money in an interoffice telephone or the maintenance costs of it. Also, you can save up to 70% on the distribution costs and different offices of your company call each other free of charge. So, VoIP is cost saving.

There are more than only financial benefits to using VoIP. With VoIP, you and your colleagues no longer have to be in the office to connect to the phone system. You can access the office directory via your smartphone, laptop or tablet and make and receive calls as if you’re in the office. This provides much more flexibility. Also, VoIP has many functionalities that the landline doesn't have. You can think of call waiting, hunt groups, fixed mobile convergence and integrating office systems like the CRM with your VoIP system. Also, VoIP offers you a virtual number, that allows you to have a local phone number, wherever you are in the world.

So, VoIP provides more flexibility and increases savings by lowering costs. Is there anything else you want for your company?

Would you like to learn more about VoIP? Check out more at De Nederlandse Provider.