Each day we design new telephone system solutions for our customers. One question most commonly asked is, "If we have IP phones, we can make all of our calls for free, right?” These are mostly small to medium sized customers who have not been exposed to the advantages of voice over IP yet. Since we get this question so often, I thought it would be a good idea to bring it up in our blog.

There are definitely some opportunities to save some money and improve communications for businesses by using VoIP. There are probably some network savings for your company if you have multiple locations. We are in the process of implementing a system now that will span 14 locations. The network savings in this case will pay for the telephone system quickly.

There are also mobility features that can improve communications between your customers and your employees. This generally results in happier customers. Happier customers often spend more money, which could make you happier.

Another great application for VoIP is disaster recovery. If you have a system that supports VoIP, you can use VPN phones or “soft” phones from any remote location that has access to the Internet. Your employees can log into the telephone system to make and take calls as if they were sitting at their desks. If for some reason your building is not accessible or if you have employees that can’t get into the office due to snow storms, ice storms, or those pesky pandemics, they may continue to work virtually with this application.

So, can you make most of your calls free with VoIP? Probably not. But you should still explore the benefits of VoIP for your business. You may be surprised at what it can do for you.