Make international calls at a local rate using business VoIP or better still call for free

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by: clickthrough
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Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2010 Time: 12:47 PM
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Saving money is top of the list for any business, particularly small businesses or start-ups. One of the biggest drains on resources can be the bill for communications - your telephony bill. Utility charges, line rental, international call charges and even local calls to satellite offices can all mount up quickly to eat into your annual profits. So wouldn't it be great if there was a business tool that could provide you with a way of maintaining those communications, staying in touch with your customers, clients and colleagues and still save money?

There is. It's called VoIP and it's the next generation in telephony.

The smart business move

VoIP (also known as Voice over Internet Protocol) uses your broadband connection to make telephone calls instead of the traditional landline system. By breaking the data down into ‘packets', VoIP can connect with a PC on the other side of the world and instantly transpose those data packets into audio signals, effectively turning your PC into a telephone. And because you're using your existing broadband connection in the same way that you would to send an email, the call doesn't actually cost you anything apart from your standard broadband charges. Effectively this can make international calls extremely cheap, even free.

For businesses, that can only be a benefit. As business changes, the idea of ‘international trading borders' has become so last century. Thanks to the Internet, your business marketplace is now a global one, not just local. Which means to stay ahead of the competition, you have to be able to communicate effectively with clients and customers all over the world.

For business users who have satellite offices abroad, VoIP has the added benefit of allowing you to communicate much more easily with your colleagues, even if they're on the other side of the world. VoIP effectively turns international Internet calls into local, cheap rate calls because it bypasses the expensive landline set-up. Phoning your office in Dubai, Sydney or Mumbai using a VoIP set-up is fundamentally the same as sending an email, and if you have the right business broadband connection, that means that call is practically cost-free.

Showing you're serious about business

It also has another advantage - it shows your customers that you're prepared for modern business. Nothing shouts go-getting, cutting edge and pro-active like using the latest technology to enhance your business performance. Using VoIP to make cheap international calls shows that you're business-savvy, you're smart and you're serious about doing business in a global arena. With the ability to conference call, your customers can talk to you whenever they want to, and they'll feel the benefits too because it won't cost them anything to check up on a delivery or make an order. If you think about how much ‘freephone' numbers benefited businesses in previous years, you can immediately see the attraction of the next generation version of that system.

So if you're serious about business, about saving money and about maintaining good business contacts with your clients and customers overseas, think about how VoIP could help you to make cheap international calls. Then go online and find the best VoIP package to suit your business needs. Your bank balance and your accountant will thank you…

About the Author

Costas Kariolis - Senior Director Online of Vonage UK. Vonage are leading VoIP (Voice over IP) providers for home & small business users. Offering unlimited and cheap calls to India and many other country landlines via an internet phone service for a set monthly fee.

For interviews, quotes, images or comments contact:
Costas Kariolis
Senior Director Online - UK & Canada
E-mail: theteam@vonage.com