Essential Steps to Creating Your Own VoIP Phone System

VoIP lets businesses communicate via voice, video conference, and messaging on a single platform. It also allows them to reduce operating costs, boost productivity and improve business performance. Setting up a VoIP system can seem daunting, but it's more complex than it might appear. Follow these essential steps to get up and running in no time.

Determine Your Needs

The first step is to determine your business communication needs. This includes the number of calls, team members you anticipate, and desired features. Next, consider how much data you will need. Each minute of a VoIP call uses less than half a megabyte of data, far less than popular streaming applications like Spotify and YouTube. VoIP telephony offers a scalable solution that can easily expand and contract with your company's growth or contraction. It allows you to upgrade your hardware equipment without paying for additional phone lines. It also allows you to reduce costs by switching from costly analog phones to softphones and ditching expensive international calling rates and line rental fees. However, you will need a good internet connection to ensure quality calls.

Determine Your Internet Connection

VoIP systems use internet connections to transmit data, so your business needs a reliable connection for call clarity. Choosing the right link depends on your capacity, internet speed, and device type.

Most VoIP providers use cloud-based software so you can manage your phone system through a desktop or mobile app. Depending on the provider, desk phones and headsets can work with VoIP systems, or you might need to purchase or adapt existing hardware. A VoIP phone system uses digital signals to connect two parties, saving you hundreds of dollars in line rental and international calling charges. It also has many modern features, including HD audio, video conferencing, native integrations, and more. If you want to increase productivity and reduce costs, consider a cloud-based VoIP solution.

Port Your Numbers

As a small business, freelancer or early-stage startup, your phone number is the brand that clients and customers associate with you. Changing your number is expensive and disruptive, especially if you want to maintain an existing customer base. VoIP works over your internet connection, so it's important to check that you have enough capacity and speed to support the influx of traffic. If you need to, consider upgrading your router to one optimized for VoIP. Some providers, like Dialpad, offer a software-only solution that eliminates the need for hardware phones. Users connect to the system through a softphone app on their laptop, desktop, or mobile device. This approach offers greater mobility and scalability while minimizing costs. Unlike traditional phone systems, this option also requires less maintenance.

Install Your Phones

For VoIP to work properly, your internet connection must be fast enough to handle peak traffic. Jitter and packet loss are big issues affecting call quality, so using a wired internet connection like fiber or cable rather than Wi-Fi is best. You could create a VoIP phones (guide by Ooma). Also, you can consult them if you are still figuring out what to do. Choose a VoIP provider that offers third-party integrations to boost productivity, customer engagement, and efficiency. You can also choose to go with softphones, mobile apps that work on most Android and iOS phones. These enable telecommuters to work anywhere without changing their phone numbers. Some providers even offer VoIP headsets to allow employees to move around the office hands-free while on calls.

Test Your Network Strength

Test your internet connection's bandwidth, speed, and jitter to ensure your business VoIP system is ready for call volume. Jitter measures time differences between sent and received packets, negatively impacting VoIP call quality. If the results don't meet industry standards, consider upgrading your plan or switching to a wireless option. Once you've established your budget, tested your network, and chosen a provider that matches your requirements, it's time to start setting up your new VoIP system. For device-based systems, order VoIP-compatible phones and connect them to your network via an ethernet cable (depending on the type of phone you choose). Once the phones arrive, assign them to employees within the VoIP provider's admin portal using their MAC address.