Voice for the Angels

If your small business or large enterprise has implemented VoIP by installing a SIP IP PBX such as Asterisk, 3CX or SIPX, there’s a good chance that you have already realized cost savings when compared to a traditional PBX. But, to get the maximum return from your investment, it’s not enough just to use an IP-PBX.  You must also purchase your VoIP services wisely.

This is true because most VoIP service providers bundle many service components into their monthly charge in a way that maximizes their profit. Very often, significant savings can be realized by buying unbundled service. That means purchasing only the services that you need. To determine if your IP PBX situation fits into this category, follow these four simple steps:

1. Know the terminology. Most VoIP providers will sell you a VoIP line – which they commonly refer to as a SIP trunk. Although the definition of a SIP trunk varies from provider to provider, the underlying service can be broken down into four separate categories or sub-components: a local number with the capability to receive inbound calls (this is usually called a DID), outbound call termination (also called long distance or toll calling), caller name display for inbound calls (also called CNAM) and emergency 911 service. In the VoIP world, these are all separate services and can be purchased separately.

2. Know what you are paying for. It is common for a VoIP service provider to sell a SIP trunk as the equivalent of one traditional POTS (plain old telephone service) line. That means that all of the components of the SIP trunk are included in a single monthly charge, and are not broken out as line items. If your provider follows this model, get to know exactly what charges are included in your monthly bill.   When you subtract the cost of the DID, CNAM and 911 components, your cost for outbound termination will probably be $.02 per minute, which is high.

3. Understand what you need. Most IP PBX administrators can realize cost savings by purchasing VoIP services individually. This is because the combined usage of all PBX users is less than the combined plan allowance for the total number of SIP trunks being purchased. For example, consider the situation where you are paying a SIP trunk provider $19.99 per line, and you have 5 workers. Your monthly bill will be $99.95 before any applicable taxes of other charges. However, it’s likely that not every user of the system uses or needs each of the four sub-components in the same amount. It is likely that all users could share a single line with CNAM and emergency 911 service, allowing you to reduce the cost of SIP trunks by 80%. Then inbound and outbound calling services could be purchased individually at better rates.

4. Find wholesale VoIP providers that sell unbundled service.   A simple Google search will let you find VoIP providers that sell the sub-components a la carte. By purchasing only the amounts that you need of each category, you can save money on your total monthly expenditure. For example, you can purchase DIDs from online providers such as DIDx.  Similarly, outbound call termination and CNAM can be purchased from wholesale VoIP providers such as EZ Call. You can also by toll-free origination and international termination separately.  By learning what makes these wholesale VoIP providers different from bundled SIP trunk providers, you can reduce your total monthly spend on telephone service.

Jason Fanning is an online marketing associate for grnVoIP.com.
Visit the grnVoIP website for more information about wholesale VoIP termination service.

Asterisk $16.54 Asterisk

Inter-asterisk Exchange $102.59 Inter-asterisk Exchange

Sip $84.63 This groundbreaking bestseller offers the most comprehensive and current understanding of the revolutionary protocol for call signaling and IP Telephony. The third edition has been expanded with new chapters on NAT traversal, SIP security, and more.

Asterisk Cookbook $29.78 Asterisk Cookbook contains recipes for getting more out of Asterisk–an open source PBX telephony system than runs on Linux. This Cookbook covers installing, configuring, and integrating Asterisk with existing phone systems, without the need for additional hardware.

Sip & Solve $5.99 Sip & Solve

Sip Security $107.65 Sip Security

SIP Trunking $55.57 SIP Trunking

Asterisk for Dummies $18.25 Bridge data and voice with Asterisk! Create and maintain an economical Asterisk phone system from scratch Asterisk is the open-source PBX software that offers you the chance to save real money on your voice communications. Invest in this book and save a lot of headaches, too! Here’s how to choose the right hardware, install the software, handle all the necessary programming to set up the system, and keep it running smoothly. Discover how to Tie together standard voice and VoIP Use AsteriskNOW’s GUI interface Install cards and telephony devices Build dialplans for incoming and outgoing calls Manage call flow

Asterisk Telephony Solutions $40.75 Thousands of companies have already implemented Asterisk, but it has been supported by poor documentation. This is the first and only book to offer the detailed, real-world information that working professionals need to install, configure, and manage Asterisk successfully.

Sip & Solve: Hard Crosswords $5.99 Sip & Solve: Hard Crosswords

The Case of the Missing S.I.P. $8.96 The Case of the Missing S.I.P.

Travel Temptations Sip California $10.02 Travel Temptations Sip California

Sip ‘N Sew $13.25 Sip ‘N Sew

SIP DECT Phone Corded $79.99 SIP DECT Phone Corded

Sip Demystified $47.45 State-of-the-art SIP primerSIP (Session Initiation Protocol) is the open standard that will make IP telephony an irresistible force in communications, doing for converged services what http does for the Web. SIP Demystified – authored by Gonzalo Camarillo, one of the contributors to SIP development in the IETF–gives you the tools to keep your company and career competitive. This guide tells you why the standard is needed, what architectures it supports, and how it interacts with other protocols. As a bonus, you even get a context-setting background in data networking. Perfect if you”re moving from switched voice into a data networking environment, here’’s everything you need to understand: * Where, why, and how SIP is used* What SIP can do and deliver* SIP’’s fit with other standards and systems* How to plan implementations of SIP-enabled services* How to size up and choose from available SIP products

An Energy Drink for the Soul The First Sip $9.75 An Energy Drink for the Soul The First Sip

An Energy Drink for the Soul: The 1st Sip $7.99 An Energy Drink for the Soul: The 1st Sip

Security for SIP-Based VoIP Networks $61.59 Security for SIP-Based VoIP Networks