A lot of people know the benefits of VOIP and may be considering getting one for themselves. However, they haven’t taken the necessary steps yet because they are not sure what to choose: should it be consumer VOIP or business VOIP.
Is There Really a Difference?
The truth is there is not—in terms of concepts and a little bit of infrastructure, anyway. The main objective of VOIP stays the same. Both consumers and business owners would like to save on communication costs, especially in long-distance fees. Moreover, VOIP can be had in different ways, such as cable, Internet, and mobile.
Nevertheless, based on statistics, there are more business VOIP subscribers than consumer VOIP for 2 reasons:
1) Consumers already have other options for communication.
The main logic is this: why would they spend more money when they can simply use free tools such as Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger, Skype, and even Facebook to communicate to their loved ones? There are also plenty of cheap mobile plans to choose from.
2)Their needs are entirely different from those of business owners.
Typical VOIP users will find no use of 1800 or toll-free numbers. They also don’t require auto attendants, as well as web or telephone conferencing options, though call forwarding or voice mail features can be helpful to them.
Meanwhile, it’s possible for business owners to rely on consumer VOIP, especially if they’re starting out and they don’t want to shell out more money for capital. Nevertheless, the following pointers may eventually convince you to acquire business VOIP ASAP:
1)There are several business-oriented features you can take advantage of.
We already mentioned some of them. The bottom line is they allow you to run your business more efficiently. Also, with business VOIP, global expansion is achievable.
2)You can guarantee better-quality audio and video.
VOIP providers should provide an SLA or service-level agreement, which specifically defines the kind of service they offer. However, they give more emphasis on business VOIP because it demands more on infrastructure. Business owners should rarely experience downtime, and quality of both audio and video should be spectacular. Otherwise, they run the risk of losing valuable leads or existing customers.
Don’t hesitate to call your VOIP provider if you need more information about consumer or business VOIP. This way, you can choose the most ideal option for you.
