Saving Money on Calling Costs Via VOIP Phones
As a relatively new small business owner working from home, one of the money saving technologies I have been looking into is (Voice Over Internet Protocol) VoIP telephony. A broadband or VoIP phone is like a regular phone except it uses high speed Internet to make calls at a fraction of the cost. A number of companies – small and large – are now using this technology to significantly lower communication costs.
Now the retail/consumer market has the same technology available and providers
are promising 50%+ in cost savings when compared to the established providers. One company that was recommended to me by a fellow small business owner was Phone Power. What differentiates them to Skype, Vonage and other providers is that you can keep your existing number and they provide a good combination of fully supported business and residential calling plans - at a significant discount over the traditional providers.
To start using the VOIP phone service with them all I need to do is get a VoIP adapter (free) and setup it up from my high speed internet connection to any regular phone handset. 
This setup is neatly captured in the graphic here and should take no more than a few minutes to get started. You get all the usual call service like Call waiting, Call Forwarding and Voicemail in one of their cheap monthly plans. VOIP telephony is best suited for you or your business if you can relate to any of the following needs:
- You already have a high speed internet connection and would like to lower your phone bills, without sacrificing call quality and portability
- Want to reduce costs on expensive long distance phone or international calls costs
- I like the convenience of taking my number with me as I travel anywhere in the world and want to continue using useful calling features such as conference calling, voice mail and caller ID
- Live outside the U.S. but need a local US number for my business or leisure travels.
With the advent of high speed internet in most metro areas and the near perfect sound quality available through VOIP technology it is only a matter of time before all households and business move to this platform for their telephony needs (even Walmart is selling VOIP options like the Magic Jack). So rather than wait for the savings, get on the new phone revolution band wagon and try the Phone Power Digital Phone Service.
Related
~ Forget buying a Laptop or Notebook - I am getting a Netbook
~ Frugality,Thrift and Saving - The New Norm
~ Tax Breaks in Obama's $15 billion Small Business Plan
~ How to Succeed in Business
~ Top ten myths about buying a franchise - Part 1
Liked what you read? Then consider subscribing (free) to get the latest articles delivered directly via RSS or Email
July 8, 2009 11:50 PM
Andy,
I really enjoy your articles but todays was different regarding comparing telephone cost via VOIP phones. At the end of the
article today there is a slight reference to VOIP phone options sold at Walmart like the Magic Jack. However, there was no
comparison of the VOIP phone service called "Phone Power" (which claimed to be the cheapest) to the "Magic Jack"
phone service which is substantially cheaper! In fact, I don't know of any phone service more reasonable!
First I too think that people spend way too much money on their monthly phone bills! I only hope that you will let them know
about "Magic Jack", this in my opinion is the best option in the market place today, its a no brainier! I started using my
Magic Jack last summer, the telephone cost is $19.95 a year which is approximately $1.66 a month!! With Magic Jack
there are no taxes!!!
Most phone service provider's taxes are near 20% to 25% of the monthly phone bill. Even the ad that compares the VOIP Phone
Power in the article included taxes and fees of $3.44 a month plus their monthly base bill of $19.95 for a total of $23.39,
or $280..68 a year.
Magic Jack is easy to install, it too works through your internet, it is a small device that is plugged into your USB port on
the computer and you simply plug your phone into the Magic Jack. Essentially all of your phone calls are free through-out
the U.S. and Canada. International calls are extremely reasonable as well. You would refer to Magic Jack's charges for the country
you would be calling. Most of what I gleamed were around 2 cents a minute.
There is no charge for information calls to 411. If your computer is turned off then in-coming calls go directly to the
voice mail on your computer (thats actually your email address). Your phone will ring while your computer is on and
you can see who the caller is on your monitor screen, it also gives you the option to accept the call or ignore it. If you
choose to ignore it then it will go directly to your voice mail. One of the most significant things about Magic Jack is that
it is portable and you can take it with and plug it into another computer's USB port while traveling nationally or internationally
still enjoying the luxury of free phone calls.
The first year's cost is $39.95 that includes your first year of service and the cost of shipping and handling for the magic jack.
You can purchase the Magic Jack almost anywhere these days, I purchased mine at Radio Shack, but now CVS, Walgreens,
Walmart, Best Buy and other companies are carrying the product.
I have turned many of my friends on to Magic Jack and they all love it. Some are using the Magic Jack in their business offices
and purchased a second one for their homes. One note to mention is that I did keep my AT&T home phone with the minimum
service which is $3.50 a month plus taxes. AT&T allows you to make 30 calls a month with this service and I don't use it at all.
The reason I keep it is that although Magic Jack can call 911, if for some reason your computer crashes or your electricity stops
you will still have access to 911. Of course if you use a cell phone then you don't need to keep your home phone.
Magic Jack can also be used with any phone, headset and microphones. Magic Jack includes a phone book that you can customize
allowing you to simply click on a person's name and the call goes through immediately. It has an easy menu which includes questions and answers and more importantly 24 hour technical support!
One more thing for the people that really want to economize, you can purchase multi year's Magic Jack's service instead of by the
year and save even more money.
I know I said a lot but if you compare the prices monthly X 12 of the phone companies that were listed today, you will see that
the savings is phenomenal and in this sluggish and sobering economy thats a lot of money that could be used for a lot of
other things! MAGIC JACK...NOW THAT'S REAL PHONE POWER!!!