3 Vital Things to Consider When Planning for VoIP

When implementing voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), technical teams often overlook key elements. Without proper planning, these issues can come back to haunt a business. To ensure your business enjoys a painless transition with VoIP, we put together three vital things to include in your plans for a successful deployment of your VoIP phone system:

1. Compatibility With Current Infrastructure
   The first step in any VoIP installation is ensuring the current infrastructure in place can handle a VoIP telephone system. By examining your current phone system dial plan and ensuring all extensions and patterns are functional, you’ll save yourself the potential headache of installing a non-functioning system. To be completely safe, consider a VoIP test. These tests can measure bandwidth, latency, jitter, and the port status of your network.
2. End User Training
   It’s important that every user is educated on how VoIP works. Luckily, with minimal training, VoIP is easy to understand. However, the success of your VoIP implementation is reliant on the users’ acceptance to this new technology. Keep in mind that a little training can go a long way toward modifying less-than-excited attitudes. It’s natural to face a little resistance when new processes are put in place but taking the time to highlight the advantages of VoIP will help promote a smooth transition that doesn’t cost your company time and money.
3. 911 Emergency Services Location Reporting
   There could be legal implications if you don’t have accurate location reporting with emergency calls, which is why you should address location reporting immediately. There are many options at varying price points to choose from. The most common solutions are a PSTN line with a voice gateway at each site, a Cisco Emergency Responder (CER) or similar application, or a carrier-provided 911 services system. Have your decision made before you implement.

VoIP can help save your business money while providing it with added features that you wouldn’t normally find in a typical analog phone. By keeping these three things in mind before deploying VoIP, you can ensure the time and money you expected to save with VoIP is gained by your business.