Over the past few weeks we’ve looked at different ways to structure multisite VoIP deployments. The truth is, each business is unique and sometimes a customized architecture is needed. In this article we look at a hybrid solution. A hybrid call processing deployment allows you to craft a solution that is perfectly tailored to a specific customer’s needs.

Last week, we discussed centralized call processing and its benefits and potential pitfalls. In this article, we’ll examine another type of telephony infrastructure design for multisite enterprises: distributed call processing.

Implementing telephony solutions in an enterprise environment can be daunting. The level of difficulty and complexity usually escalates with the number of end users. Implementing a telephony solution in a multisite environment takes the complexity to a different level altogether.

In this article we offer up some tips for streamlining the implementation of a multisite VoIP deployment so the company can derive the maximum benefit from the solution.

If you work with educational institutions, you should know about Yealink and its communications solutions specifically tailored to the needs of the education sector. When you take advantage of Yealink’s Education Reseller Program, you will be able to deliver a robust and reliable solution at a highly competitive price point.

In this article, we review Yealink’s education solutions and what makes this manufacturer a great choice for learning institutions.

We speak a lot about unified communications and how network convergence allows it. Getting your customers migrated to VoIP is the first step to introducing them to unified communications (UC). Once that is established, they will be much more likely to embrace UC if you can show them the business problems it can help solve.

In this article, we look at some of the key drivers of demand for UC, which you can keep in mind when selling systems upgrades to your customers.

By Phil Bowers, Senior Marketing Manager, Grandstream

A new trend is beginning to develop within the business communications industry. Being driven largely by enterprises looking to streamline internal networks by eliminating wiring, voice over Wi-Fi (VoWi-Fi) could be the next major advancement within the VoIP industry. It features the same exact backend hosted, cloud, or SIP trunk services as any wired voice-over-IP (VoIP) network, but with the connections being extended to endpoints through an immersive Wi-Fi network rather than an endless maze of Ethernet cabling.

Here at Grandstream, we are leading the Wi-Fi voice trend through a variety of initiatives and solutions designed to allow businesses to build powerful VoWi-Fi networks that increase productivity, streamline installation and management, and offer eco-friendly benefits. This article will introduce the Wi-Fi voice trend, cover the reasons many businesses are adopting Wi-Fi voice networks, combat a major Wi-Fi voice concern, and highlight the Wi-Fi voice solutions we offer at Grandstream.

As unwanted and unexpected as they are, crises do happen, and being unprepared only makes them worse. In a 2017 PwC survey, 65 percent of respondents reported experiencing at least one crisis in the past four years. Despite their prevalence, a 2013 study by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer found that more than 40% of respondents had no type of plan in place for dealing with a crisis.

Regardless of your customer’s current state of readiness, you can help them improve their security measures and crisis response even more with applications that run on their data network. And, if they have an on-premise IP PBX, they already have an arsenal of tools available in their existing system.

Part 2 of 2: Cloud communications offer many advantages, but some businesses benefit less than others

In Part 1 of this series, we reviewed some advantages of cloud-based unified communications (UC). Among other things, we emphasized the ease of use, streamlined functionality, and cost savings of this platform as compared with a similar on-site deployment. However, there are situations where cloud-based UC is less advantageous. In this article, we look at the prerequisites for using UC over the cloud as well as some specific examples.

An SD-WAN can be up to 2.5 times less expensive than traditional WAN architecture.

One of the most challenging situations for networking professionals over the years has been how to interconnect remote sites and branch offices so users at all locations can enjoy the same quality of network and telephony services in a secure and timely manner. One way to do this is to duplicate all services at each location. However, this can become administratively unwieldly, not to mention prohibitively expensive.

The solution is the use of wide area networks (WANs), where centralized services like voice and data reside at headquarters and can be provided to the remote users as if they were all physically located inside the headquarters’ LAN (local area network). In this article, we look at the different ways to deploy WAN, as well as the problems solved and business benefits to be gained by using software-defined WANs (SD-WANs).

When providing services for your customers, it’s all about convenience. Imagine a customer trying to find out some information about your service from your website. Her question is very specific and can’t be answered by the FAQs you have on the site. She spots a button on the bottom right of the screen that says “Can’t find what you’re looking for? Talk to a rep now!” She clicks it and is immediately connected via voice to a customer representative and gets her question answered on the spot. Now that’s service!

This is just one of the functionalities that Web Real-Time Communications (WebRTC) provides. A survey conducted by The SIP School found that 88% of professionals have either never heard of WebRTC or only have a cursory understanding of it. Here we present a few facts that will help you better understand how it can benefit your business.