Ostratto - Blog | Ostratto #VOIP

Supercharging your Business with VOIP

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 12:03:00 +0000

Instead of using traditional phone lines, a VoIP phone system uses the Internet Protocol to make and receive calls. With the growth of broadband, VoIP has emerged as the clear choice for phone service for both individuals and companies.

VoIP stands for voice-over-internet protocol. It is a technology that enables internet-connected devices to make and receive phone calls over the internet. Many organisations choose VoIP, especially when dealing with a high number of conversations and data storage.

How does it work?

Now you know we like to keep it simple here at Ostratto, so, if you aren't too interested in how the sausage is made you can skip to the next section.

Voice over IP is a technology that turns your voice into a digital signal, compresses it, and delivers it over the internet. To function, VoIP often requires an internet connection. Aside from that, the VoIP functionality is contingent on the quality and speed of the internet connection. This implies that VoIP phones perform best when such internet connection is fast and consistent. When both the caller and the recipient are using VoIP equipment, the call signals go fully digitally, with no signal translation.

How VoIP operates is dependent on the devices and extensions used to make these sorts of calls. It is critical to understand how they are employed and how they enhance voice quality and communication performance.

Credit: Unsplash

Pros and Cons of Voice over IP

Pros

Remote work friendly. Employees can work from any location thanks to VoIP. They can connect in from any computer, use any IP phone, and telecommute instead of creating a new satellite offices and adopting costs such as paying rent and utilities.
Cost. Calls using VoIP are often packaged in bundles providing unlimited (and sometimes internationally) minutes. With no physical PBX equipment costs and often no physical handset costs, the entry cost is minimal. Perfect for small businesses.
Quality. VoIP uses wideband codecs, which have a larger audio bit depths and so provide better voice quality. Narrowband codecs are used in traditional phone line networks, which generally result in lower-quality calls.
Feature-rich. VoIP, with its sophisticated capabilities like auto attendant and call transferring, allows even a one-person team to present the appearance of a larger organisation.
Availability. One distinguished aspect of a cloud-based VoIP service is the advanced availability offered by the cloud. Not only can you generally expect the likes of 99.999% uptime, redundancy features such as emergency forwarding to mobile phone numbers are often baked-in. This means users missing calls becomes a problem of the past.

Cons

Internet-dependant. The quality and dependability of your sound will be determined by your internet connection and network settings. You must rely on an internet service for VoIP communication, whereas traditional PBX systems use the PBX network. Should the internet connection go down in an office or satellite location, calls cannot be received by users. Data service is required on the go too.
Recurring cost. For as long as a cloud-based VoIP system is required, a monthly or annual cost will always need to be paid, and this is usually user-based licencing. As the business grows, so do the costs of the phone system whereas traditional systems can expand at a lower cost. That being said, many VoIP vendors have overcome this by offering volume pricing. And over the long run all businesses will see a cost saving.
Latency and jitter can be an issue. Jitter and latency are other call quality issues you may experience with your cloud-based phone calls. It’s just a natural function of wireless networks. Between your internal network, ISP, and VoIP service provider there are many servers in between which data needs to travel through. Jitter can result in choppy audio or calls that are delayed or dropped. The variance in ping responses that measures jitter. Latency can result in callers experiencing a brief delay or echo in a conversation. In most cases, it’s not noticeable, but in severe circumstances, it can be problematic.

Features that can be expected

And onto how cloud-based VoIP can really do bits for your business. Here's a list of common features you will see advertised within phone system feature-sets.

Auto-attendant/receptionist. An automated attendant is a top feature for companies. Using call routing rules, this functionality answers all incoming calls and forwards them to the appropriate extension.
Call Queuing. A call queuing tool will assist you in queuing your customers’ phone calls. You can often also set up notifications to remind your callers your callers of their turn and the wait time.
Call Recording/Monitoring. These two great features can empower your business by checking the consistency of your customer service on calls and limiting the deterioration of your company’s efficiency. They can also be used in a legal setting as evidence of claims.
Voicemail/call forwarding. Because often smaller businesses can't be available all hours of a day, there will be times when a call can't be answered. Call forwarding is a common corporate telephony tool that ensures that your customers’ calls are never missed. Inbound calls can be diverted to another extension, phone number, or a voicemail function.
Conferencing. Conference calls are ideal for remote teams because they allow them to collaborate even when they are physically apart. Some managers and owners may organise this sort of call on a frequent basis, whether it's keeping teams updated or checking in with customers.
Data analytics. VoIP Data Analytics are a sophisticated data report framework, generally included with most VoIP phone systems. It is useful for businesses that deal with a variety of outgoing and incoming clients calls on a regular basis. Informations such as missed calls and overall wait times help improve customer service quality.
Business Tool Integrations. In our opinion, one of the top VoIP benefits is the ability to connect data with external business tools such as ticketing systems or email, keeping conversation records consolidated and teams connected. These integrations are very useful for remote teams. Many modern business phone networks integrate with Customer Relationship Management (CRM) programmes such as Zoho CRM. This guarantees that all transcripts of interactions are connected, forming a wealth of information. Sales app integration is a one-of-a-kind solution that enables users to automate their sales funnel, get closer to prospects, and complete more transactions. Sweet!

Is VoIP necessary?

For years, businesses have been debating whether or not to move to cloud-based VoIP. Some businesses made the changeover in the early days of technology, while others waited until prices dropped and quality, dependability, and availability of knowledge were ironed out.

Now, as these aspects have been ironed out, BT have announced they will be switching off the PTSN network in 2025. This means that not only is cloud-based VoIP the logical choice for businesses, it will soon be the only choice.

Price of VoIP

In general, with cloud-based VoIP, you can expect costs between £10 and £20 per 'seat' per month. A seat is essentially a user of the system.

Often suppliers offer monthly or annual payment options and generally expect a commitment of at least a year, with discounts provided on longer term contracts.

In Summary

Voice over IP is a fantastic and obvious method to run your business telephone communications. The significance of VoIP in telecommuting cannot be overstated. The current state of affairs necessitates a more advanced and adaptable work culture which means many business owners are concerned about their employees’ ability to work efficiently from home.

To make the best selection, you should first comprehend the benefits of VoIP, then examine the features and functionalities you require, and last compare all of your options until you find one that meets the bill. This is where we come in.

We offer a range of telephony options from different vendors, meaning we can suggest the most suitable option for businesses from an unbiased position.

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4 old practices that won’t work after COVID

Tue, 10 Nov 2020 13:15:10 +0000

It’s not news that COVID-19 suddenly, unexpectedly, and dramatically turned the business world on its head. Business-as-usual changed all at once, without the benefit of robust planning we’re (hopefully) accustomed to in business. Those changes happened to keep employees safe while making sure work continued.

What’s also clear is that when the pandemic is under control and we find our “new normal,” it won’t look like what we had before. Businesses have adapted, employees have changed, and attitudes about working are different. We’ve found new ways to do business successfully, and in many areas, there’ll be no turning back.

Here are four old business practices that won’t work anymore post-COVID-19.

1. Employees working onsite only

Before COVID, the vast majority of businesses were uncomfortable with employees working remotely. In fact, 80% of US companies had no remote work program at all.

Employers pretty much suffered from inertia—after all, workers always came into the office to work. Without ever trying remote work, most leaders lacked the imagination to understand the potential of working from home. They worried that employees working away from the office wouldn’t be as productive. They claimed many jobs were “impossible to do remotely.”

Then COVID-19 came around, however, and jobs that were previously “impossible to do remotely” suddenly found their remote possibilities. What’s more, they achieved good results too. A study by Harvard Business School and New York University found that people who work remotely spend 48.5 more minutes per day than they did pre-virus. And this makes sense - when a long commute is off the table employees don't mind staying on to get jobs finished.

Other surveys found that:

44% of executives today feel employees have become more productive working remotely
41% of employees feel the same way

While many jobs require employees to work onsite, many others can support a remote workforce. Businesses will still need those work-from-home employees post-COVID-19, and they will be forced to continue supporting remote work.

2. Micromanaging as a management style

With many employees working remotely, management styles need to adjust. Monitoring employees that work in another location requires shifting your methods as well as your expectations.

It's not realistic to assume an employee is working based on how much time they spend at their desk. Even when you’re at the same location and can see an employee sitting across the room, you don’t know how productive they’re being.

Evaluate their performance, instead, based on the outcome. How is their work? Are they meeting their goals? What’s the quality of their work? These are the real measurements of productivity output that remote working highlights perfectly.

3. Using too many collaboration apps

It’s easy to see how it happened. CV-19 struck and companies quickly sent their employees home to safety. They hurriedly adopted remote work solutions for messaging, video, and calling—all the tools they needed to keep communication open so that work would continue to get done.

In rushing to choose new solutions, many businesses ended up with multiple overlapping apps. Having two or more apps that provide video calling, for instance, is not sustainable long term and can become confusing for the average user. App overload causes employee fatigue and wastes a significant amount of time.

Seventy percent of workers say having disparate work apps makes it challenging to get their work done. More than two-thirds report wasting up to an hour of work time per day just navigating between various apps. Sixty-eight percent of workers find themselves toggling between different apps up to 10 times in a single hour.

Too many apps can also mean running the risk of employees switching to other unauthorized tools that can pose a security risk. We've written about the risks of 'shadow IT' before.

Employees will only willingly utilise technology that’s easy to use, it’s more efficient to provide them with one platform they understand well and are comfortable with.

4. Keeping employees in the dark

It's key to remember that teams appreciate transparency, especially during uncertain times. They want to understand what’s going on with the business, management expectations, and their position. They want to be confident that the strong company culture they know isn’t changing.

No longer are employees in the office to hear news around the water cooler, chat casually with the boss, or celebrate wins in real time. But these are still valid communications needs, and employers must make sure they still happen in some form.

Communication and transparency are critical—even more so now with COVID-19.

Post-COVID tools to support remote work

When we (eventually) shift into a post-pandemic period, businesses will face a new work-life paradigm that looks nothing like before. From remote and hybrid work arrangements to new forms of communication, leaders will need to rethink those practices to stay competitive.

Having the right tools to support remote work will be one of the key differentiators. As work moves beyond the walls of the traditional office, employees everywhere will need technology that facilitates collaboration and drives teamwork. Tools like unified communications make collaboration effortless by combining team messaging, video conferencing, and cloud phone into a single platform, allowing employees to choose how they want to collaborate and when.

By supporting tomorrow’s work-from-anywhere workplace—and shedding old, archaic practices that no longer make business sense—businesses will be ready to drive success far beyond the pandemic.

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Written in collaboration with RingCentral©.

5 Lessons We’ve Learned About Remote Work

Thu, 27 Aug 2020 10:16:21 +0000

If one was to capture 2020 in a single word, “unprecedented” would be a fairly solid pick. The rippling effects of the coronavirus pandemic have transformed all aspects of life, with how we work being one of the most salient.

Case in point: at the start of the year, 4.7 million Americans (3.4% of the working population) worked remotely. Just three months later, at the height of lockdown, 34% of Americans who previously went into the office every day were now working from home.

The Overnight Shift to WFH

This unprecedented shift is remarkable for its incredible pace, not so much the direction. Even before the pandemic accelerated the move from the office, remote work was on an upward trajectory with 159% growth since 2005. It’s estimated that by 2025, the majority of the workforce (at least 70%) will work remotely for at least one full business week each month.

At all levels of the corporate hierarchy, from admins up to CEO's, 2020 has represented a massive work-from-home experiment. As much of a rollercoaster as these last few months have been, the rapid shift to WFH offers a unique glimpse into the future of work, and to better prepare companies and their employees for life after the office.

The overnight shift to WFH marks the first time many employees have had to find ongoing and sustainable ways to work together while apart - and as a whole, teams are not doing too badly: according to a global survey of office employees during the pandemic, 68% said they’ve been “very successful” working from home. Employees are equally satisfied with their work activity performance at home compared to the office, and 70% of leaders say their teams are performing the same or better from home.

The Future of Remote Work

These positive assessments of remote work are quite remarkable given that workplaces were forced to transform themselves overnight and without much warning. Sentiments about working from home have likely improved as teams adapted to working remotely and refined the processes and tools by which they do so.

Given that remote work is here to stay, it’s worth looking at the experiences of the last few months to evaluate what we’ve learned about remote work so far as well as find ways to make remote work even better moving forward.

Without further ado, here are five lessons we’ve learned about remote work in 2020.

1. It can be hard for employees to disconnect

Fear that employees would slack off was once many managers’ primary objection to working from home. As it turns out, the opposite is true. Since the start of lockdowns, employees at home averaged 48.5 more minutes of work every day.

But that may not be the win it appears to be. Nearly half of workers also report feeling more burnt out. To combat this, businesses need to make it a priority to help employees maintain work-life balance, even when the lines between home and office are blurred.

2. Projects can easily get lost or buried

It’s easy to take for granted the built-in ways with which employees share information in office settings. An ability to quickly touch base in-person (on the way back from making a coffee) helped employees prioritise their projects and provided a unified sense of momentum. When everyone works separately, projects can all too easily become lost or buried.

The solution lies in increased visibility. To prevent key projects from falling off, all people involved need ways to easily access and share key documents and information, as well as project management and collaboration tools that make it easy to track progress.

3. Remote employee silos happen without communication

Whether within a team or across departments, silos occur when colleagues don’t communicate with each other about what they’re working on. And when the left hand doesn’t know what the right is doing, it can be costly for businesses.

Silos often result in duplicated work, blind spots, and other major business risks - and they’re more likely to occur when visibility is lacking, such as when everyone is working from home. Effective communication and collaboration, however, can help cure employee silos both formal (status meetings, progress reports) and informal (making it easy for workers to discuss work on the fly).

RingCentral offers a constant communication channel(s).

4. WFH improves many aspects of work but makes others harder

WFH does not have a universal effect on work - in fact, it improves some aspects of working while making others more of a challenge.

According to the Global Work from Home Experience Survey, homebound employees have a significantly easier time managing distractions and disruptions, and doing the sort of deep-thinking work that relies on this increased focus. But with fewer opportunities to interact organically, collaboration and a sense of connection drops off.

To get the most out of working from home, businesses need to find ways to continue to protect employees’ ability to work without distraction when it makes sense - but to also better enable seamless connectivity between workers and teams for tasks that require it.

5. It’s difficult (but possible) to recreate the organic collaboration that happens in the office

When it comes to teamwork when working from home, it’s not all bad news. Though remote work has been seen to fare worse than office environments when it comes to needs like getting timely information and collaborating with others, the results aren’t actually bad at all: six in 10 employees, a majority of workers, rate their ability to perform these activities from home positively.

This suggests that organic collaboration is possible when teams work remotely - but workers might need a little more help to do so. Setting up virtual “drop-in” office hours for managers, regular face-to-face team chats, and finding other ways to electronically recreate the easy communication that occurs in the workplace are key to fostering organic collaboration at home.

Communication and collaboration in the WFH era

What these lessons have in common is the theme of communication and collaboration. In a WFH world, the right tech becomes more than a communication tool - it’s the foundation upon which all work happens. This underscores the need for technology that’s accessible, seamless, and doesn’t create new challenges when it comes to helping employees connect with one another to get the job done.

A unified communications solution such as RingCentral helps to relieve many of the pain points employees encounter while they work from home. RingCentral combines team messaging, video conferencing, and cloud phone into a single platform, allowing employees to choose how, where, and when they want to collaborate. By breaking down the barriers to workplace communications, remote teams can master collaboration regardless of where they work and take productivity to new heights.

Combine it with our other favourite product, G Suite, and enjoy your new super powers.

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Datasheet

Written in collaboration with RingCentral©.

5 Reasons Everyone Should Have the RingCentral G Suite Add-on

Wed, 05 Aug 2020 11:19:39 +0000

When it comes to tech companies that have had a large impact on how we work smart, it’s hard to dispute that Google has been a strong contender. In the 22 years since the company was founded, Google has changed how people (and businesses) use the Internet in countless ways.

A suite of powerful tools that includes Gmail (email), shared calendars, documents, and other functions, Google’s offerings for business, collectively called G Suite, have had a massive upward trajectory. In the 4.5 years since November 2015 (back when G Suite was still called Google Apps for Work), paid user base has tripled to 6 million paid accounts. There’s a good chance you and other businesses your company does business with are among them.

But as with any tool you’re using to support collaboration and productivity, you may wonder if there are ways you can use it better in order to make communications more efficient.

Installing RingCentral’s G Suite Add-on is one way to accelerate the collaborative benefits you’re already gaining from using G Suite. Here are five ways the RingCentral G Suite Add-on will make your life easier.

The ultimate power couple.

1. Message or call colleagues directly from Gmail

Email has long been a primary communication tool within workplaces for many good reasons. To name a few, email creates a lasting record of what has been said, and can be sent from any connected device at any time. But email is not without limitation. In fact, email can be a source of hassle among businesses.

Emails are easily ignored. O ne survey found 60.8% of workers to be guilty of not responding to emails occasionally, often or always—and they’re rife with the potential for miscommunication due to lack of tone and context.

That’s why it's good practice to switch to a different medium of talking if you're not making progress after a bit of back and forth.

The RingCentral G Suite Add-on allows you to message or call colleagues directly from Gmail, making it easy to hop on a call or video chat without added coordination for those times when email conversation just isn’t cutting it.

2. Schedule meetings directly in Calendar

Scheduling meetings can be an absolute farce over email. First, you have to find an agreeable time, then create a calendar entry, and then figure out how to correctly export your meeting call-in details from your conferencing app to your invite. Get that last part wrong and you’ll also waste a ton of time when the meeting begins and everyone has trouble accessing it.

Installing the RingCentral G Suite Add-on eliminates this complexity altogether by allowing you to create a meeting, and fully populate your invite with details such as meeting ID and password, directly from Google Calendar with just a click. Sweet!

3. See your colleagues’ current status

In an office scenario, it’s easy to swing by someone’s desk for an impromptu chat when the need arises. When everyone’s working from home, it’s harder to gauge availability.

When your collaboration efforts require a deeper conversation—for example, an audio call or face-to-face video chat—you can lose powerful momentum simply trying to coordinate a time for that remote conversation to happen.

Though it may not be possible to use a closed door or other visual cues to determine the right time for on-the-fly chats in remote work scenarios, the RingCentral G Suite Add-on provides the next best thing: it allows you to instantly see when all of your RingCentral contacts are available, away, offline or in 'do not disturb' mode.

4. Start an email from a RingCentral contact card

The seamlessness of RingCentral and G Suite flows in two directions—and connecting the two also helps you to extend the usefulness of RingCentral. For example, sometimes email makes the most sense for communicating, such when you need to follow up with materials after a meeting. RingCentral’s G Suite Add-on simplifies this too by allowing you to send an email directly from a user’s RingCentral contact card.

5. View call history

While the number of options for communicating online is undoubtedly a boon for collaboration, it’s a nightmare for staying organised. Communicating across email, video, phone and SMS makes it difficult to remember what conversation occurred when, which can have impact on accountability (and efficiency!) RingCentral’s G Suite Add-on automatically creates a log of all your calls, making it easy to determine when that important conversation occurred.

Work Efficiently with RingCentral + G Suite

Collaboration tools are essential in the workplace—especially as more people work from home. But they also add complexity, as employees are forced to turn to multiple apps to meet their communication needs. RingCentral helps G Suite users get more out of their existing tools, and do so more efficiently, by connecting key functionalities so that users don’t have to change apps to communicate.

With the RingCentral app, the G Suite add-on creates a single record of information, combining team messaging, video conferencing, and cloud phone into a single platform for all workplace collaboration. As with all RingCentral apps and integrations, the G Suite add-on is free for all users.

You just need RingCentral and Google's G Suite to get started - both of which we can help you get started with today.

Try Today

Read the eBook

Datasheet

Written in collaboration with RingCentral©.

Three Social Experiments You Can Try Today with Video Meetings

Fri, 10 Apr 2020 18:07:57 +0000

I'm not going to preach. You're no first timer when it comes to video meetings and working remotely. You jump into the advanced settings and customise things based on what you need. You know how to get the lighting just right, how to manage a call and how to read video-only body language. What's left for you to know?

You may be very well acquainted with meetings but in a time when video meetings are the only method of 'face-to-face' communication it's actually super-important to try and keep them fresh, engaging and useful.

If you’re working remotely (or just using video conferencing software to connect with your team) and want to make things a little more interesting, here are three social experiments to try.

1. Easter eggs

You might recognise this idea from movies and video games.

Producers will place an object, cameo, or reference just outside the viewer’s peripheral. Most of the time we're so focused on the core of the scene that we miss these little things.

But if you’re in on the joke, you’ll get a unique—and fun—experience. For example, if you always take calls in your office, you could trade out a picture on the wall behind you each time you take a call with someone. See how long it takes for them to notice. Or move your desk closer and closer to a background object with each call.

Make little changes and you’ll see who is really paying attention. If you have a recurring meeting with a teammate, you could turn this into a game and see who notices the difference first!

2. Always on

A few of our partners in their businesses have started leaving a RingCentral Video screen on all day.

All they do is share the meeting’s ID or link with each other, and use this as a chance to pop in on each other throughout the day.

Essentially, it creates an online version of that random walk-by that you experience in an office environment.

Leave your video on while you work and see if it helps you connect with your team throughout the day, have a casual conversation, or even share lunch together—all while working remotely.

3. Video-only days

If you need a bit of practice getting used to video meetings, this is a great way to start building that up.

Can you survive all day with only video calls? Try it!

Give your thumbs a rest and tap the video icon for your meetings each and every time.

Maybe you start a trend - Video Fridays - and see how it influences your day and productivity. Try to notice things like patterns in your communication and how quickly decisions get made in video calls compared to just messaging or audio calls.

Need help getting online with remote working during these challenging times? Just give us a holla.

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Written in collaboration with RingCentral.

5 Tips to Balance Working From Home and Parenting

Fri, 27 Mar 2020 12:44:04 +0000

The average office-based worker may find the transition to working from home to be challenging enough. You’re surrounded by potential distractions, tempted by your fridge and comfy bed, and loneliness creeping in. Then you throw children into the mix, and it’s a whole new level of chaos.

Parents, if you find yourself suddenly at home with your laptop, your child(ren), and a calendar full of video meetings, take a deep breath and face the day with gusto. Here's five tips to help you maximise your productivity as a remote worker while also keeping your young ones happy (and quiet) during your workday.

1. Create a separate work space.

If your home is also your workplace, try and keep your work in a separate room. This will allow for a psychological, as well as a physical, division between your personal and work lives. This will also make it much easier for you to leave work “at work” at the end of the day so you can focus on your family.

If you’re not the primary caregiver on any given day and someone else is on hand playing that role, SHUT THE DOOR (if possible)! Retreat to your separate room and set up your remote office. Enjoy the distant hum of someone else attending to your children’s needs, and delight in the fact that you can simply pop in your earphones and get some quality work done!

2. Plan your day carefully.

If you know your children are going to be at home when you’re working, be realistic about what you can get done - and when. Plot each workday out in advance and stick to it. Otherwise, you might start to feel like you’re going to lose it with multiple deadlines looming.

If you share your childcare with a partner or a childcare provider, plan to do your best work when your children are being looked after or entertained out of sight. If you can schedule some downtime throughout the day to spend with your kiddies, all the better. You might just go back to work feeling refreshed, while your children may also feel happy enough to give you some quiet time to get your work done (maybe).

3. Schedule some time for yourself.

Working from home while trying to balance childcare and family time can be exhausting. Make sure you give yourself some time to unwind. Sometimes this may mean scheduling a free block of time on your calendar so you remember to follow through, but that’s ok—this mental break is crucial for your sanity.

Tip: Try to incorporate movement into your break to boost your energy and ward off the dreaded afternoon slump—do some yoga, walk the dog, or, better yet, play with the kids. They’ll love being with you, and you’ll feel better about focusing on work for the rest of the afternoon. As a bonus, perhaps they’ll be ready for a nap afterward!

4. Be upfront about your predicament.

No doubt many of you have been in the cringeworthy position of doing your best to conduct a work call with your little people wreaking havoc in the background. Some of you may have hit the next level of embarrassment—joining a video meeting only to have your children take the stage.

The best thing you can do in these situations is to be upfront and honest about your tricky predicament. You’ll find that most people on your call have also been there or will at least understand it’s not the easiest situation to be in. And as your son's or daughter's starts taking their crayons to your laptop screen while singing their ABCs at the top of their lungs, you might just find your rapport with colleagues or customers gets a little bit stronger. We’re all human, after all!

When all else fails and you feel like you’re really not going to have a constructive call, you can use a team messaging app, such as RingCentral, to let your colleagues know in real time that now is not the best time.

5. Be prepared for anything.

As you’re well aware, anything can happen when children are thrown into what should be a professional and organised setting. Whatever it is that keeps your children distracted, keep it on hand as an emergency back-up: a tablet loaded with your their favourite games (I know the parenting gods will not be happy, but needs must), cartoons paused on your TV, sticker books, and lots of (healthy) snacks. Preparation is key!

Of course, none of the above matters unless you have the right technology. Click here to learn more about how Ostratto makes business collaboration effortless using the fantastic technology available today.

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Written in collaboration with RingCentral.

Jargon Busting: VoIP

Wed, 05 Feb 2020 21:25:19 +0000

If you do look to update your communications system, you’ll be faced with a mountain of jargon. Telecoms is a technical field, and as such it has its own lexicon. You might even have spotted a few technical terms in this guide already. To make sure you know where you stand, let’s define and explain as many as we can.

The following glossary covers the most common words, acronyms, and phrases you may come across. It is related both to VoIP and to the traditional alternatives which it can replace. As ever, if you have any questions please reach out.

Bandwidth

The capacity of a network to transmit data from one point to another in a given time period. It is often measured in 1000 bits per second (kbps). The higher the amount of available bandwidth, the more VoIP calls a network can support. If your internet connection has very limited bandwidth, the quality of a call will be lower.

Codecs

Codecs can be either hardware devices or software-based processes. They’re used to compress, encode and decompress data. In the case of VoIP, codecs convert audio voice signals into digital data packets. They then compress the data for transmission and re-convert it at the ‘other end’ of a call.

DSL

DSL stands for ‘Digital Subscriber Line’. It refers to the traditional phone technology that lets a broadband connection be carried over existing phone lines. All the while still allowing analogue phone signals to travel along the same copper lines.

IVR

IVR or Interactive Voice Response is a feature of traditional telephony. It’s the interactive service that lets callers use menus and handles call transfers. Think ‘press one for the accounts department’ etc.

Latency

The time taken for the transmission of data. The higher the latency, the greater the delay between the start of a transmission and data being received at the other end. High latency can be an issue for VoIP. Voice delay is noticeable with a latency above around 150 milliseconds. Considerably more than that and a conversation will be difficult.

PBX

PBX stands for Private Branch Exchange. It’s the name given to a private telephone network used within a business or organisation. It’s your PBX which lets you press a button on a desk phone to reach someone else in your office.

RTP

The Real Time Transport Protocol. An internet protocol that often transmits the data packets related to VoIP calls. It also carries audio or video streams for other forms of multimedia communication. Secure Real Time Transport Protocol – The encrypted (and so, secure) variant of the RTP.

SIP Trunking

A way of delivering voice communication over the internet. It’s in many ways an alternative to VoIP. It typically involves connecting a PBX to the internet. This gives added control to a user but does require a fair bit more equipment to get up and running than a VoIP phone system.

Softphone

The name given to software or apps used to make VoIP calls. In the case that you use your computer or tablet and not a VoIP phone. Most ‘softphones’ have an interface that looks like a phone handset when it appears on your screen. It will have a keypad, display and be workable via touchscreen or computer keyboard.

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What is VoIP?

Wed, 05 Feb 2020 20:22:16 +0000

We've recently covered why having a landline number is good for business and we did tout VoIP as being the way forward. VoIP is one of those technologies that you've maybe been hearing and reading about for many years now. It’s gotten to the point that you rarely see a discussion of how VoIP works or even what it is anymore. So let’s take a step back, walk through the basics, and answer the question: how does VoIP work and what can it do for your business?

What is it?

VoIP is Voice Over Internet Protocol, or in more common terms: phone service over the Internet.

If you have a reasonable quality Internet connection you can get phone service delivered through your Internet connection instead of from your local phone company. This opens up quite a few possibilities for your new or existing business and trust us, it's actually nowhere near as technical as it might sound and nowadays it's very cost-effective. A comprehensive discussion of the technical details of VoIP can get very complicated, so here’s an explanation for us non-techies.

VoIP takes a standard analog phone call - the type most homes and businesses still make today over the public phone network, and converts that analog call into digital packets. Then, rather than traveling over the standard phone network, those packets are transmitted across the internet to the other parties on the call. Voice packets of a VoIP calls travel over the internet just like any other type of digital data, such as an email message or a file being uploaded to your Google Drive.

Now, for the common user, a VoIP phone system is mostly indistinguishable from a usual phone system however they are in-fact fundamentally different in the way they operate 'behind-the-scenes'.

What does it do?

VoIP systems provide users an escape from being tied to a desk because their office phone numbers will no longer be limited to any particular phone. For example, most modern VoIP providers offer an app enabling users to make business calls on their desktop, laptop or mobile device using nothing but an internet connection, a microphone and speaker setup or headset, and the app itself. Calls you make or receive from anywhere, too, will use the same number. That ensures you present a professional image to clients or customers wherever you speak to them from.

A modern VoIP systems will grow as fast as your business can - this is referred to as scalability. With traditional telephony, expanding a business's system can be a major undertaking - cables to run potentially, more networking equipment required and new phone devices. Things can be much simpler with VoIP. A system can be expanded to include new workstations or phones with ease and new features can be added with a 'flick of a switch'.

In other words, a VoIP system can act as a full-scale cloud communications platform, allowing your team to easily manage calls and other communications features, including auto attendants with recorded greetings, advanced call routing and forwarding services, virtual voicemail, and even online faxing.

Businesses can drastically reduce costs in a variety of areas. Initial hardware and setup expenses are often much lower. Call charges, too, can be a lot lower. That’s in addition to the added accessibility and agility which a VoIP system provides.

Left: your callers, right: your devices. Thanks RingCentral!

How does it work?

Now bare with me here, it could get rocky. I'll cover the principles and then if there's any bits you aren't sure on just drop me a line and I can explain further.

With a regular phone call, a specific physical path is provided by a phone company. That path goes between yourself and the number that you call. That system also utilises the traditional telephony infrastructure, which means the network of phone lines crossing the country - usually provided by BT in our country.

With VoIP, calls are transmitted differently. The audio at your end of a call (your voice) is converted into digital packets. It's easiest to think of them as being like envelopes of data. In the same way as traditional envelopes contain what you've written.

The conversion of audio voice signals into digital packets is handled by what is known as 'codecs'. Codecs can be either hardware devices or software-based processes. They compress the voice signals and then encode them as digital data. To continue our analogy, they take what you say and pop it into the digital envelopes.

The data packets are then transmitted via IP. This can be either across a Local Area Network (LAN, like in your home or office) or online (over the world wide web). They're often transmitted via the Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP). Or, if not, via the Secure Real-Time Transport Protocol. The latter is simply an encrypted version of the former. This stage of the process is like a postman picking up your envelopes and taking them to the destination.

The data packets reach their destination almost instantly. They then need to be decoded and decompressed. This is handled by codecs. They take the digital data and convert it back to audio signals. The recipient of your call heard your voice as they would down a normal phone line. The codecs at their end of the transmission open the envelopes for them to read.

Away from the technicalities, the process of making a VoIP call doesn't have to be much different to a standard phone call. To make the calls, you can either use hardware or a software-based VoIP phone.

The former is very much like a traditional desk phone. It will look almost identical and can be used in all the same ways. That doesn't only mean making calls. Most VoIP phones also let you use voicemail, make internal calls, and call transfer tasks. If no one told you, you might not know you weren't using a regular phone.

Software-based VoIP phones are often called 'softphones'. They're apps or programs installed on a mobile device or computer. The interfaces of those apps or programs replace a traditional phone handset. They're often designed to look similar and can be used either via a touchscreen or keyboard. Calls through these phones typically use a headset and microphone.

A 'softphone' curtesy of RingCentral

Getting started with VoIP

So...that’s everything you need to know about VoIP (for now).

All of that may have been enough to convince you that VoIP is the way to go. If so, you’ll be wondering how to switch to the more modern system. Well here's another advantage - it’s super easy to do so. Your first step is always to contact a trustworthy provider who can talk you through the rest of the process. That's where we come in.

I hope it's been an interesting read and it hopefully wasn't too technical - again, if any of it was, just drop me a line and I can explain with some pretty pictures maybe.

Get Started with VOIP

Why every Business needs a Landline Number

Wed, 04 Dec 2019 08:39:09 +0000

When building a business, there are so many different things to take into account: funding, IT, office space, staff, marketing, accounts... It’s no wonder that simple things like telephone numbers can often be overlooked and most people settle for using their existing mobile phone. While it makes sense to use your mobile phone and it can be scary to make a change, owning a business in the 21st century may require an upgrade - adopting a non-geographic phone number for your business is key to presenting your venture as professional and trustworthy.

The alternative to personal cellphones and traditional landlines is called VoIP, or 'Voice over IP'.

Now, without getting too complicated, there a few different variations of VoIP, one that is installed in an office, and one that runs in the Cloud. The one that runs in the cloud is what we will be exploring in this article but they both offer the same benefits: they give your company a more professional feel and a competitive edge. Having an area-based number makes your business look established and trustworthy - the type of business other businesses want to work with.

If you’re looking into separating your personal phone from work, or you think your mobile number doesn't look professional enough, but you aren’t sure of your options, look no further.

The Traditional Way: Get a Separate Line

If you’ve decided to stop using your personal phone for your business, the traditional way to get a new number was to simply get a separate line.

That means contacting the phone company, asking them to run a new line to your house (which usually includes a setup fee), and then paying extra every month for the new line—you’ll pay £20-30 per month on the low end for a residential line and in the £60 range per month for a business line. This is still an option, but the problem is that now your business phone number is tied to your house or office location, and can only be answered if you’re physically there. Even if you’re able to get a cheap landline, this option lacks convenience.

Since it’s 2019 and more people have cell phones without even owning a landline, your second option is to simply get a second phone and carry that around with you. Tons of small business owners do this, carrying around two iPhones and constantly switching between them. This solution works, and allows you to answer the business phone line from anywhere, but it’s not the cheapest and it's not the most convenient. The cost of an expensive phone plus the money for the extra line adds up really fast—for instance, a £900 iPhone plus around £30 per month for an extra line ends up being over £1200 a year. Plus, to the outside world you still look like a one-man-band using a mobile number for the business.

The Better Way: VoIP
Now that we’re in the days of always-connected internet access from every device, you don’t need to use the traditional phone networks anymore. We can make phone calls over the internet that are not only cheaper and unlimited, but actually sound clearer than a traditional phone, so you can better understand what your customers are saying which in turn will provide a more efficient service.

An office-based VoIP can be provided via powered phones that sit on a desk, but Cloud-based VoIP can be used as an app on your current phone that allows you to place and receive calls from any existing phone, and all for a fraction of the cost. You can make and receive calls from a mobile, tablet or any PC that you log on to - all synchronised and all the same professional-looking number to the outside world.

Need more than one phone line for your business? It’s not a problem with VoIP, you just upgrade your plan and add extra users and numbers to your system.

And if you’re upgrading your business from a traditional landline or cell phone number, you can usually port your current number to the VoIP system so your existing contacts will be able to reach you without issue.

VoIP Has Huge Advantages Over Traditional Phones

The cost is the biggest reason that people choose to switch to VoIP, but it’s not the only thing to consider - there are also great features that will save you time and money, and simply aren’t possible with the traditional phone line options available for small businesses.

Large corporations have the budget to setup and maintain a complex PBX system with a receptionist and extensions for each desk. But you don’t need to bother with all that by using VoIP, which has those features and a lot more, built right in to a low monthly fee.

Call Forwarding can ring on all your devices, can ring on multiple phones at once, and you can set rules to forward calls only during certain hours.
Auto-Receptionists make your business sound more professional with prompts such as 'press 1 for sales' etc.
Automatic Call Recording can record all inbound and outbound calls.
Extensions let you use a single main number to reach everybody (with direct lines for each person).
Conferencing allows you to give your clients a number to call in so everybody can be on the same conference line easily.
Powerful Voicemail will send you emails with the voicemail, and can even transcribe them to text.
Non-geographic numbers allow you to pick whichever area code your business needs, without actually needing to be based in that area.
And dozens of other features and integrations into the rest of your business.

So, in short, cloud-based VoIP can give your business a national presence, helping you to appear well-established. They’re also portable – if you move offices and change phones, you won’t need to change your number – and they can be redirected onto different phone lines, for example your mobile, if needs be.

jons carpentry

jonscarpenty@yahoo.com

07891 789 178

- or -

Jon's Carpentry

enquiries@jons-carpentry.co.uk

0117 313 4800

Which one looks more legitimate and established to you?

Ostratto - Blog | Ostratto #VOIP

Supercharging your Business with VOIP

How does it work?

​​Pros and Cons of Voice over IP

Features that can be expected

Is VoIP necessary?

Price of VoIP

In Summary

4 old practices that won’t work after COVID

5 Lessons We’ve Learned About Remote Work

5 Reasons Everyone Should Have the RingCentral G Suite Add-on

Three Social Experiments You Can Try Today with Video Meetings

5 Tips to Balance Working From Home and Parenting

Jargon Busting: VoIP

What is VoIP?

Why every Business needs a Landline Number

Pros and Cons of Voice over IP