VoIP's Drawbacks - Should They Be Holding You Back?

Though VoIP is a wonderful and convenient option for business phone systems in many respects, it does still have a few problems. Discussing the issues rather than the advantages may help you decide whether or not it's worth taking the plunge and committing your office to a VoIP phone system.

The main problem with VoIP is that it's dependent on more external resources to continue operating. There is no VoIP phone that will work without both the internet and electricity, while landline phones will continue operating as long as the phone line is fine (and you have a corded phone which does not need a power source). If your internet goes down, you are basically unable to continue business while waiting for it to be repaired. Similarly, electricity is required to power the servers and keep your phones live.

For many of us, though, this is a reality of life; work cannot continue without internet access any longer. We are too dependent on the internet for research and communication; many careers are completely internet and PC based. If you can't work without your email either, it isn't a huge risk to put your phone line over your internet as well. In that case, the savings are probably worth it. If your work is mainly offline, however, or you work in an area with unreliable broadband access, you may find that it makes more sense to stick with a traditional phone line.

Sound quality is also considered by many to be a disadvantage of VoIP services. Again, however, this is completely dependent upon your individual set-up. Those with slower broadband services or lower quality wire, which limits broadband speed, will always suffer with call quality more than those with the highest quality lines and the highest allowance internet packages. In both cases, however, VoIP is still a completely viable option; occasional echoing is not going to disrupt your phone calls enough to make them inoperable.

Another disadvantage is that each and every phone needs to have a computer or at least a server running for it to work. They must all be hooked up through Ethernet ports or through a PC which is accessing the internet. Individual requirements vary but if your office doesn't have a PC for each person who needs a phone, you may be forced to buy extra hardware. Again, most offices do have a PC for each and every person, so this should not be a problem in the modern office.

Lastly, a serious disadvantage of VoIP is that it has no emergency calling function. Simply put, your VoIP phone is not in the security network and cannot be relied upon to reach emergency numbers. Emergency responders will also be completely unable to determine your location from your phone number, which they can and will do in an emergency with a regular landline phone. It's essential that every office running on VoIP has one landline phone in case of emergencies.

While VoIP has a few drawbacks, it does provide exceptional cost savings and convenience for many potential users. Consider carefully whether these disadvantages seriously harm VoIP's distinct advantages for your company.

Meghan Burton is a professional copywriter. She recommends Octavia IT Services for implementing business VoIP phone systems and IT support.