BT’s announcement, which states that by 2025 all of their customers will be using IP Voice, undoubtedly shows why IT is increasingly beginning to shun traditional ISDN channels and the demand for SIP is steadily growing.
SIP Trunking isn’t the new tech on the block anymore, but its expansion has reached a tipping point, with growing confidence in its capabilities and the ever expanding list of benefits making a compelling business case.
High speed internet is an essential component for ensuring a stable SIPconnected network. Significant improvements in broadband speeds, in particular upstream speeds, have been a real catalyst in kick starting the SIP market.
The announcement from BT is one of the many reasons why as a consumer of ISDN services there has never been a better time to move to SIP.
So why should you make the move?
“What we have works fine already”
There should rarely be an excuse to replace systems without a good business case. And it may be that your existing telecoms system is performing perfectly. But adequate performance may mask the potential major cost savings a move could bring. Traditional ISDN lines are, in the main, secure and reliable. However they are also an outdated technology that has since been superseded by a more cost-effective and flexible digital alternative - SIP trunking.
SIP trunking is effectively future-proof, using the internet to route incoming and outgoing calls. This significantly reduces routing, maintenance and rental costs associated with traditional ISDN, which are then passed directly to your business.
“We don’t understand the alternatives”
When it comes to traditional ISDN lines, the principles behind the technology are relatively simple to understand. Your internal PBX switchboard is connected to multiple ISDN lines which carry calls one at a time. If your call volume increases and you add more ISDN accordingly. However this can be a costly and time consuming process.
With SIP trunking, you are also able to manage an increase in call volume by increasing the number of available lines. However, as SIP uses your existing broadband connections to route calls, this is a much simpler process and in the majority of instances, if you need more call handling capacity, your provider can add additional SIP trunks to your package almost immediately. Not only is this process much quicker, it is also far cheaper than with an equivalent ISDN solution. Becoming complacent with your existing solutions could be costing your business considerably. There is no reason why you shouldn’t want to stay-up-to-date with the latest alternatives to legacy technologies - especially when they can offer significant cost savings.
“It’s too much hassle to change”
Sometimes, just the thought of changing provider can be enough to make you want to stay put. When faced with the prospect of a departing customer, what kind of profit-making business would seek to make the changeover process easy?
However, this reason alone, shouldn’t be enough for you to not try and quantify the cost benefits of leaving your current provider and switching to a better alternative, such as an IP telephony solution like SIP trunking. In fact, you will probably find moving to a solution like SIP easier than anticipated, as unlike previous experiences of ISDN-based installations, there is no need for physical phone lines to be installed, so the overhaul should cause minimal disruption to your day-to-day business operations.
“It costs too much to change”
To get the most from SIP-based telecoms, your business will definitely need to invest. This could be in the form of a brand new IP-enabled PBX system for handling calls, or remedial work to prepare your existing system for the use of SIP.
However, the investment will soon pay itself thanks to:
- Free calls to local geographic numbers within the UK.
- Reduced line rental costs.
- Reduced maintenance and support costs.
- Future-proof technology - will not have to be replaced when ISDN is inevitably retired.
- Not a case of “if”, but “when”
ISDN is a dying technology, so your business will need to make the transition to IP-based telephony as some point in the near future anyway. Ensure you are always getting the best deal, whatever the technology - always bear in mind that:
- You may not always get the best prices and service from your current supplier - always shop around before committing to a new contract.
- Your existing system works, but newer technologies can offer great savings as well as other non-financial benefits.
- You don’t have to understand every aspect of IP-based telephony - but you do need to choose a partner who does.
Don’t be put off by the work you think may be required to deploy a new phone system - the process to move to an IP-based phone system may actually surprise you and the savings will far outweigh the time and effort spent.
Contact Exchange Communications to find out more about SIP trunking today on 0800 008 7600 or visit www.exchangecommunications.co.uk
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