TeleDynamics Think Tank

Part 1 of 2: The cloud-based UC trend and its business advantages

There are many ways the IoT can leverage, and be leveraged by, VoIP systems to create a more productive workplace.

Are you hearing both sides?

By Kate Clavet, Marketing Specialist, Grandstream Networks

The very technology that makes VoIP so efficient can also indirectly cause one-way audio issues.

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), indicating that the communication travels over the internet in little packets using RTP (Real-Time Transport Protocol). Since the packets are traveling through the internet, they must pass through firewalls and network address translation (NAT). Due to the tricky nature of firewalls, a common complaint of customers and installers alike is that either the caller or callee cannot hear the other party. Although this is a common inquiry and topic for support tickets, it is also rather easy to fix.

A useful yet vastly underused functionality of SIP is what is known as presence technology. According to Salesforce, 86% of executives surveyed blamed lack of collaboration or ineffective communication for workplace failures. This is where presence can help.

It seems like everyone is talking about digital transformation these days. Technology is changing the way business is done at a mind-boggling pace, and making sure their companies are able to adapt to this change is a top priority for today’s business leaders – 81% of CEOs said keeping up with new technologies was their chief concern in a recent KPMG survey.

As a telephony dealer, you can help your customers on their digital transformation journey by intelligently leveraging their VoIP telephone system. And the good news is, it’s easier than many people think.

Last week, we touched on some of the technological advances that have allowed VoIP telephony to surpass the PSTN in both quality and reliability.

Yet, even though VoIP has been around for two decades, there are still some misconceptions about what it really is. A lot of people think of VoIP as a technology that allows placing phone calls over the internet. Although this is true, such a narrow definition encompasses only a fraction of the functionality of VoIP.

The unfortunate consequence of this misperception is that VoIP is often associated with low quality and best-effort services that offer low cost or free voice calls over the internet. Those familiar with these services have experienced the frequent disconnects, jitter and stuttering on the line characteristic of this type of service. As a result, VoIP has erroneously been associated with an unreliable user experience.

The truth is, VoIP is much more (and better) than just voice over the internet.

The most recent FCC Voice Telephone Services report, published in November 2016, states that two thirds of businesses in the United States are still using switched access telephone lines (PSTN or POTS). The reasons they haven’t yet migrated to VoIP (voice over internet protocol) are varied. One of the most prevalent myths about VoIP is that the quality is not as good or reliable as that of traditional telephone lines. The truth, however, is that VoIP technology has evolved to a point where the audio quality is generally as good if not better than analog lines.

Here we list some of the technological developments that have allowed VoIP to surpass even PSTN voice quality, some of which may surprise you!

By Colleen Schmidt, Director of Partner Success, CoreDial

Risk is something that we fear because it requires us to put ourselves out there to achieve something greater. There is always a chance you could lose something important to you, especially if you take a risk on a venture or idea you know little about or have not adequately prepared for. The same is true when it comes to taking risks for your business. As much as we would like to mitigate business risks, the fact is they are an integral part of the growth process for any business. Just ask these business risk takers: Ben Silbermann, the creator of Pinterest, risked everything by leaving a job at Google to create the virtual pinboard site. Ben would survive early disappointments and now presides over a company worth $1 billion. Or Drew Houston of DropBox, who held to his guns when Apple Founder Steve Jobs told him to join Apple or be taken over in the market and now enjoys running a $1 billion company.

For VARs, MSPs and other resellers, your risks may not be the same as the ones mentioned above, but embracing the trends in the industry is the key to long-term success. For the unified communications (UC) industry, taking a risk on hosted and cloud-based services, as well as having a technology partner you can trust, will ensure your business stays economically solvent over time and is ready to meet the changing needs of your customers. Ignoring the shifting tides in the industry will lessen the options you can bring to the table for your customers, which will eventually impact your bottom line.

Sneak preview of new enhancements coming later this year

By Kate Clavet, Marketing Specialist, Grandstream Networks

It’s becoming imperative for any business to have tools available that not only enhance their internal communication but also keep their customers coming back. With so little face time (thanks to the internet), a customer’s experience is increasingly important. Grandstream’s UCM IP PBX series is a practical way to manage your communication without compromising on features or emptying your wallet. After all, we’re always striving to improve our customer’s experience and, by extension, yours.

To maintain a high level of service, there must be tools in place that highlight efficiency and collect data so that customer service, lead follow-up, etc. can be measured. Without metrics and data for evaluation, maintaining a positive customer experience is nearly impossible. Grandstream wants to make that easier for you. In the second and third quarters of 2017, a lot of enhancements are coming your way.

Voice over IP networks can be challenging to implement efficiently and securely. This is in part because voice packets require specialized management and must be treated differently than normal data packets. Quality of Service (QoS), security and flow control are just some areas in which the required handling of voice traffic differs from conventional data traffic.

The good thing is that with the proper expertise and care, many of these issues can be successfully dealt with within the corporate network. Such networks are under the complete control of the network administration team and thus can be fully customized for the needs of the voice being transmitted.

However, what happens when voice packets are routed beyond the corporate network, either for voice calls to the PSTN or mobile network, or for employees who use internal voice network services remotely? Here we look at various network edge mechanisms that can be used to monitor and manage data traveling in and out of the LAN.