Business VoIP – Data and Telephone Networks and Services Become One

Integrating existing equipment with the end result of increasing efficiency and productivity has been a trend in business for hundreds of years. Getting rid of excess and using existing hardware to handle more tasks is always good for a business and promotes its growth. A VoIP service allows companies to combine two critical aspects of their daily operation by integrating voice and data services on the same network. Leveraging high-speed Internet connections for this, VoIP creates a hybrid network, and offers innovative and practical features to the end user.Gone, are the days when the telephone gets plugged into the “phone jack” and the computer, into the “data jack”VoIP uses an the data network (LAN) and Internet connection to operate the telephone system. In fact, IP phones get connected directly to the LAN or even daisy chained to a computer, not to a phone jack. This connection of telephone hardware to a computer system naturally allows the opportunity for a mixture of the two. This can lead to dramatic cost savings by eliminating cabling, contractor expenditures and even office space previously dedicated to supporting a separate phone network.Further, a single high speed Internet connection to the outside world can support both data needs (web surfing, email, IM, etc.) and business VoIP. With a business voip service, there is no need for a local loop or POTS lines (traditional telephone lines) from the telephone company.Voicemail to Email- Listening to Messages on the ComputerThe IP foundation of business VoIP also allows for a new bread of hybrid feature which can dramatically improve productivity and communication. One of these is Voicemail to Email. Voicemail can be sent to an email address of one’s choosing. Rather than having to log into a voice mailbox every so often to check messages, these can be sent to a work email address, where they can be played from any computer that has access to email. VoIP allows all different types of messages- voice, email, etc.-to be gathered into one central location, reducing the time needed to review them and allowing employees’ access to their voicemail from anywhere they can check email.Using a Cell Phone without Using a Cell’s MinutesSmartphones like the Blackberry have revolutionized the way business is conducted. Accessing email via these phones has created a virtual office that extends anywhere a cell phone is taken. VoIP broadens this revolution in dramatic new ways. Being conducted over the Internet, VoIP systems can extend the office phone network to Smartphones just like email. VoIP users can download an application to their mobile phones that allows them to access their office phone network as if it was their desk phone. Users can place and receive phone calls from their cell phones, and appear as if they are in the office- the caller ID will show the employee’s office phone number, rather than their private mobile phone number. And the deal breaker is that through VoIP, the office phone network is accessed via the Smartphone’s Wi-Fi connection. So, calls made this way from a cell phone are NOT using the cellular plan’s minutes! VoIP has transformed cell phones into portable desk phones, allowing employees to make calls and receive voicemail just as if they were at their desk.Business VoIP services, like OnSIP by Junction Networks, are blurring long standing lines between old school telephone services and next generation communications services which offer mobility, networks convergence and many more business benefits.