Happy New Year!
We know that you?ve got plans for tonight that probably don?t have anything to do with work. However, if you want to get 2008 off to the right start, you need to have some goals in mind for kicking off the New Year. There are plenty of different areas of business around which you might make your resolutions. You can set financial goals, commit to being a greener company and plan for a better work-life balance in the year to come.
But if you?re only going to make one New Year?s resolution for the business this year, you might want to consider making it in the area of VoIP. Why is this area so important? VoIP is all about communication and communication is the foundation of your business. Without it, you aren?t going to have much business at all. By improving your work in this area, you can better the company?s bottom line, productivity and efficiency.
Here are some examples of VoIP resolutions for small business owners and employees:
Learn to troubleshoot. If VoIP is the communication cornerstone of your company, you need to know how to fix problems when they come up. Yes, you might have a tech guy but having a good phone system is also your responsibility.
Do more cold calling. VoIP allows for a better way of approaching new customers with your business. If you want to grow your business, cold calling should be a key part of your schedule. After all, phone calls are the new black.
Close your doors. Many small businesses find that they can save money by getting rid of the office and using VoIP to create a telecommuting community. Learn more here.
Learn one new thing about your VoIP system each month. There are many different things that you can do with VoIP. Commit to learning new applications and tools to make use of its power. You?ll know at least twelve new things by the end of the year which is sure to make your business better.
Beef up on security. VoIP is a high-risk area for hacking and security breaches this year so make sure that you?re ahead of the cybercriminals.
Appreciate the value of VoIP as a gift in your life. Sometimes the best thing for a business is to learn to appreciate what you?ve already got. A good VoIP system is something worth being thankful about.
These are just a few of the things that you might commit to doing in the New Year to make your VoIP system work better for your business. Improving communication really is a timeless goal to keep in mind. And once you?ve made the commitment to it, you can relax. Go out and enjoy the town tonight; a fresh year of work is about to begin!
Question of the Day: How can a VoIP resolution improve your specific business this year?
As the end of 2007 comes to a close, everyone is compiling their lists. For the average person, this is just a list of things accomplished in the past year and things to do in 2008. However, for reporters and online journalists, these lists are reviews about what happened in the year that?s ending and predictions of trends for the year to come. In the world of technology, VoIP and the communications tools that are associated with it are making everyone?s lists.
Here are some examples of the top technology lists that VoIP either made the cut for or got focused on at the end of this year:
o The Top 10 Hot Business Technology Trends for 2008 by VoIP News. Of course, it?s no surprise that this place put VoIP on the list since that?s what they?re all about. But they made some really great points about related trends that you should check out including advances in unified communications, managed mobility and the increasing importance of telepresence to the office.
o The Top 25 VoIP Innovations of 2007. This one is also by VoIP News and provides an overview of the year that?s worth remembering.
o What Will 2008 Hold for VoIP? This one isn?t a ?top #? list but it makes some predictions about what?s going to happen in 2008 with various companies and trends.
o Top 10 VoIP Leaders for 2007. Fierce VoIP put together their opinions on the top ten companies that provided VoIP services in the past year.
o Top 25 VoIP Definitions for 2007. This list is all about learning the language of VoIP.
o McAfee?s Top 10 Security Threats Predictions for 2008. We all know that VoIP is considered a high risk area this year.
o Gartner?s Top 10 Strategic Technologies included VoIP?s close cousin, unified communications.
o Top Trends in Networking for 2008. Network instruments cutely calls it "collaborate and listen" but unified communications also made this list.
o 5 Wireless Trends to Watch in 2008. This one mentions another technology that?s important to phone communications: the development of Fixed Mobile Convergence.
For my part, I think that 2007 was an interesting year for VoIP in business. We saw many major companies start taking the development and expansion of their VoIP for business more seriously. As for 2008, I think the people who are predicting a more unified form of communications are right on track although I don?t think we know yet quite what that?s going to look like. It just seems to make sense to streamline things even more to fully access the powers of collaboration and productivity that VoIP has started to give us. And I think the buzz word is going to be mobile, mobile, mobile.
Question of the Day: What do you think is the biggest change we?ll see in VoIP in 2008?
Christmas is supposed to be the season of giving. We all know that this idealistic vision for the holiday doesn?t always get accomplished in the real world. Sure, we end up getting gifts for our co-workers and employees, our loved ones and those that we feel obligated to pretend to love. But amidst the bustle of trying to keep our businesses active during December and meet all of our additional holiday commitments, we often lose the spirit of sharing that the season is supposed to be about. Despite this, we usually find in retrospect that we were able to give some gifts without even realizing it by doing the things that we normally do on a daily basis.
This year, let?s not wait for retrospect. Looking forward, here are the people that you are gifting when your business uses VoIP services:
o New customers. VoIP makes calling you easy, especially if you?re using VoIP widgets to facilitate those calls. Potential customers who have a question can easily get in touch with you, get the question answered and be satisfied with their customer service experience before they?ve even become your customer.
o Existing customers and clients. VoIP increases productivity around the office which means that everyone working in the business is better able to do their jobs. This results in benefits to the client. Your clients may not realize that they?re getting a gift from you when you use VoIP but they sure appreciate the benefits when they?re work is done more quickly and efficiently than before.
o Your VoIP provider. You help keep them in business, simple as that.
o Residential VoIP customers. If you?re using a VoIP calling service like Jajah that?s free for residential accounts, then you support those free calls when you purchase a business account. That means you benefit people that don?t even know you exist. That?s the kind of giving that Christmas charity is all about!
o The employees in the business. When you decrease calling costs, you free up money that can go to other things that benefit your employees. When you increase efficiency in the business, you create bigger profits which means raises and other benefits for the employees.
o You. Hey, there?s nothing wrong with stuffing your own stocking with the things that you really want. You get a lower phone bill, more business and happier employees.
Happy Holidays!!
Question of the Day: Who else does your business VoIP benefit?
Earlier this month, I wrote an article about how service-based businesses can use click-to-call widgets to turn their site?s browsing customers into buying customers. You can read the complete article here but a major point was that these widgets are more likely to benefit service-based businesses than product-based businesses. I cited several reasons for this but the underlying belief was that people who are interested in purchasing a service are going to have more questions about the purchase than are people who are purchasing a product from an online store. Although I do believe that there is validity to this argument, I have also had the opportunity to see the other side of the story more in-depth.
After the article was published, it was read by Dan Obregon, the marketing communications manager for eStara. This company was one of the ones I listed in the article as being a voice communications provider that lets its customers make use of click-to-call widgets. Mr. Obregon wrote to me and gave me some things to think about. In a nutshell, he described the ways that product-based businesses can also benefit from the use of these widgets.
Mr. Obregon made two important points about the way that product-based businesses may benefit from this service. The first was that there are people out there who are purchasing products online that may wish to speak to someone before committing to the purchase. The second was that there are benefits beyond just connecting calls that the click-to-call widgets offer to the business itself. These were strong points that definitely made me see the reasons that a product-based business might consider using these widgets.
On the customer?s end, the benefit is the ability to speak with a customer service representative about a product. I had made the point that people often already know what they want when they do online shopping. Mr. Obregon noted that while this may be true for low-priced items such as books and CDs, it?s not necessarily true of higher-priced items. People who are making a complex or expensive purchase online may have questions that they want answered before they are willing to actually buy the product. Although it would be possible to send an email to a ?help desk?, the instant gratification of having the question answered via a click-to-call conversation could clinch the sale. Mr. Obregon points out that eStara has functions which allow the website to tailor help services to the purchases so that customers with lower-end purchases will be directed to FAQ sections whereas customers spending a lot of money will be offered a click-to-call widget.
On the business end, there are additional benefits to using the click-to-call widget. What Mr. Obregon pointed out that I hadn?t taken into careful consideration was that the widget isn?t just about connecting the call. It?s about connecting the call through the Internet which allows a business to make use of powerful tools that aren?t necessarily visible to the customer. For example, it can be used to track real-time data and the sources of calls in order to better direct advertising and marketing efforts. In terms of the eStara system, Mr. Obregon says that their Click to Call system lets users trace the call back to not only the search engine that referred the call but to the actual keywords that drove the call to happen. (Learn more about eStara?s call tracking here). These tools are what give online voice communications so much potential power.
I do believe that there are significant ways in which the service-based business can better benefit from click-to-call widgets than can the product-based business. Proportionally, I maintain that individuals are more likely to have questions that they want immediate answers to when dealing with a service purchase rather than a product purchase. However, I can see the benefit to the buyer of higher-end items of having a click-to-call option available. Moreover, the benefits to the business itself may be worth the cost of incorporating the widgets into the website.
Question of the Day: So which type of business do you think benefits more from click-to-call?
Thanks for the follow up, Kathryn. However, my point was not so much that product-based businesses benefit more or less than service-based businesses, but that any business looking to deploy click to call (whether product or service based) should look at solutions that offer more than just a simple call connection.
Thanks!
Dan
Could you dismantle your office and run your entire business from home?
You probably know that an increasing number of people are doing all or most of their work from their remote home office. But did you realize that many small businesses are taking this a step further and eliminating the business office altogether? Advances in technology, including the ability to stay connected by voice at a low cost, have made it possible for many small businesses to run efficiently without an office. Everything that needs to be done can be accomplished over the phone and the Internet without hindering the growth of the business.
The Internet, laptops and increased broadband speeds in the home laid the foundation for eliminating the small business office. However, these things alone were not sufficient to allow most businesses to get rid of the main office completely. While they made it possible for many employees to work from home, some folks still needed to come to the office to keep things running smoothly. Advances in voice communications and additional advances in unified communications have now made it possible for many small businesses to make the leap.
One of the cornerstones of business that formerly made it impossible for businesses to make this leap is the importance of human interaction to a business. Although employees can work well on their own from home, they can?t fully understand the goals of a business without actual interaction with the people setting those goals. Face-to-face meetings simply can?t be replaced with instant message communication. However, since voice communications are now being run through the Internet using VoIP, it has become possible to combine phone calls with video interaction and typed communication to create a virtual conference room that takes the place of the face-to-face meeting requirement. The personal touch is still there even if everyone in the office is speaking from their home computer.
Without the need for the office to create this personal interaction, many small businesses are finding that there really is no need for the office at all. In fact, they?re finding that the cost of keeping an office space open is hindering the business from growth. Paying the lease on the office space, the cost of utilities, the water cooler service, the maintenance and repair people, and the fees for office supplies eats up a lot of a business?s profits. Additionally, employees paid by the hour can be increasing your costs. When a small business pays employees to come sit in an office space from 9-5, they may lose money. In comparison, at-home employees can be paid by project or output to increase efficiency and reduce employee costs. The employee may even earn more hourly plus be able to take advantage of tax breaks for at-home freelancers, making everyone in the business a little bit happier.
To dismantle your business and run it entirely from home, you need to put a few things in place. First of all, you need a terrific VoIP system that your employees will be able to utilize from home. Many businesses have used Skype for this purpose but new players in the business VoIP market may provide better solutions for your business. You?ll want to make sure that your VoIP service can be integrated with video communications, online conferencing tools and a shared database of information. Furthermore, you?ll want to consider integrating mobile phone technology with your VoIP service so that you can be better assured that you?ll be able to stay in touch with your employees.
Once you have the right tools, you simply need to establish business practices that properly utilize these tools. Set up a weekly meeting or even a daily briefing during which each employee is required to be online, using voice and video communications to give the feel of an on-site business. Establish a required communications practice to keep business running smoothly. For example, outline your expectations of the hours during which you expect employees to be available by phone and a set of professional consequences for failure to do so. In order to make the switch from business office to home office without losing professionalism, you?ll need to transition in a professional manner. Using professional technology can help you do that.
Question of the Day: What drawbacks do you see to eliminating the office and moving your headquarters into your home?
I have used a home office for over ten years, as well as maintaining an official office site. The biggest problem is that your work is always there. The desk is always calling you over to do paperwork, answer the phone at odd hours. You are on 24 -7.
I work at home. I find that running a small business from my home is preferable to an office. I find it less distracting from a leveled point of view. That is there is no one at the top dictating her needs to me and leaving my desires out of the equation. In a nut shell I get to work on my book without interruption. There is a down side however. I find myself working for longer hours. I often awaken at three Am or five Am and work until five or six AM. This is hard on the mind and body, but its my work and I love it. I do not at present take advantage of the Volp, but I am getting there. I have the hook ups to fit my needs right now. The items I need to produce a book of quality are within my grasp. I can see that more clearly in a home office as opposed to enduring a fruitless endeavour for someone else. I use my computer, my cell phone, my printer all in one, as well as my land phone. At&t has been more than helpful to me on these fronts. I know that with the help of modern day soft ware, advanced VOLP technology and the energy one only acquires for her own work, I will produce a book everyone will be proud of.
There are two big trends in business coming together right now: phone calls are getting increasingly important and a large number of employees are telecommuting. The merging of these two trends is giving businesses of all sizes the need for more efficient voice communications systems that keep their remote employees, their on-site employees and their international customer base connected at all times. This is being exhibited in the increased interest in business VoIP and is showing immediate development in the area of Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC).
Summary of Fixed Mobile Convergence:
Put simply, Fixed Mobile Convergence is the practice of integrating wired and wireless communications into one streamlined system. This is achieved by combining VoIP, cell phone and landline technologies. What it means for businesses is that a client can call one number and reach the same company or individual whether the person answering the phone is at her usual desk, her home office desk or on her mobile phone somewhere. See this recent Network World article for a more detailed description of FMC for business.
Examples of FMC in the marketplace:
A number of major voice communications providers are beginning to look seriously at integrating FMC into what they currently offer to business customers. For example, Sprint Nextel offers both wireless integration (for integrating landlines and cell phones) and mobile extension (for integrating VoIP phones and cell phones) to its business voice customers. In terms of products (rather than services) Nortel and Qualcomm have recently announced that their partnership produced innovative technology to improve FMC for businesses and Nokia Siemens has made similar progress.
What this means for small businesses:
Small businesses are better able to keep up with the changing trends when their calls are streamlined in this manner. The costs of international calls are lower which means that businesses can afford to engage in global interaction with a variety of customers. It also means that they can make use of the skill set of a diverse group of employees who aren?t required to work in the business?s home office. Businesses can engage in cold calling, stay in touch with customers and have teleconferences while employees work from multiple sites or remote locations.
Question of the Day: In what ways could your business take advantage of a seamless transition between your wired and wireless phone communications?
Cold calling. The phrase might make you shudder but it?s something that every business can benefit from when used correctly. The best way to grow any business is to make sure that other people know the business exists. You can do this with online and in-print advertising but if you?re going to reach a maximum number of people, you?ll also need to make some calls. Luckily, cold calling is easier than ever today because of the way that VoIP enhances your ability to call the right people. This maximizes the benefits of cold calling while reducing the drawbacks. In other words, new technology has made it possible to get more customers than hang-ups when doing modern cold calling.
The key to using VoIP calling to make cold calling work for you is to use it in combination with the other technology tools that are at your fingertips when using VoIP. You can use the Internet to find the customers who are most likely going to have an interest in hearing from you. You can then place the call using VoIP without having to leave your computer screen. Furthermore, you can use additional database and unified communications tools to track your success. This allows you to alter your approach to calling in order to maximize your success.
One of the best places to begin looking online for cold calling is in your professional social networks. Head to a site like LinkedIn to locate the people who are in your target group. If you?re uncomfortable with the idea of cold calling, you can even broach the potential customer first using the online communication tools (such as messages on social networking sites) to begin the conversation. Move the interaction quickly from online to a phone conversation by placing a call through the site. You?ve already got the person?s interest and now just need to seal the deal with that initial phone call.
Most online voice communications systems also have additional features that can maximize your cold calling results. For example, you can pre-record a message to leave automatically on someone?s answering machine if he/she doesn?t answer. You can then set your computer to notify you with a reminder to follow-up on any messages that you have left. This is an example of how the integration of online tools and voice calling features can maximize your calling productivity. This further means that you can reduce the amount of time that you spend on cold calling while still getting the results that you desire.
Question of the Day: Which VoIP features are you most likely to use for improving the productivity of your cold calling?
Have you ever hit the ?click-to-be-called? widget on another business?s website? If so, it?s likely that you were using a VoIP system to continue your online communications. For service-based businesses, this tool can be the difference between a potential customer who becomes your client and the guy online who just saw you in passing. Although the system works for product-based companies as well, it?s particularly useful for the service-based company which usually requires at least a few minutes of interactive conversation to turn the interested browser into a service buyer. After all, most people aren?t just going to add a housecleaning or home remodeling service to an online shopping cart.
The click-to-call (or click-to-be-called) widget is getting more common but most people who use it don?t realize that they?re making use of VoIP calling systems. Ask the average person how those calls get connected and they?ll assume something like that an employee paid to watch instant messages got pinged with a request to call you. In reality, what happens is that the customer clicks on the widget, your phone is dialed and connected, their phone is then dialed and connected and you complete the call. It all takes place through the computer and doesn?t require anyone in your office to do any more than simply answer the phones when they ring.
The main place that we?re starting to see these widgets crop up is on social networking profiles. Applications designed for use on Facebook and other sites (such as LinkedIn) allow the widget to be placed on your business profile so that anyone who has found your information through that site can connect to you immediately. Just a few examples of voice communications companies that offer such a widget are Jajah/Jangl, CCube, TringMe, Ifbyphone, eStara and Jaxtr. As more small businesses recognize the benefits of this type of widget, it?s likely that larger companies with a focus on business VoIP will also begin adding the widgets to their standard features.
Despite the fact that social networking sites are the most common place to see these widgets, they aren?t limited to this virtual location. Service-based businesses can increase the number of buyers they have by adding these buttons to their websites. Product-based businesses may also see some growth in their business as a result of placing such a widget on their sites but the growth is significantly higher for service-based businesses. The reason for that is not just the nature of the business but also the nature of the customer.
The customer who is doing online shopping for products normally doesn?t have a lot of questions about the product. They want to impulsively add it to their carts and continue online shopping. In contrast, the service shopper is probably online to do some comparison shopping but will ultimately need to get some specific questions answered about the service before making the purchase. By providing those customers with an easy way to get in touch with your business and get those questions answered immediately, you increase the likelihood that the comparison browsing turns into a sale.
Question of the Day: Would you make use of a free calling system for VoIP widgets even if you already had a business VoIP system in place for your other calls?
We agree that Click to Call is particularly useful for service-based businesses where transactions take place offline. However, the true benefits of Click to Call go way beyond just a simple call connection via VoIP. Businesses that leverage enterprise-level Click to Call services are able to leverage real-time data to quantify where calls are being driven from and prove ROI on their online advertising spend. Using eStara Click to Call, businesses can track calls back to the referring search engine and keyword that delivered the call.
Plus, more sophisticated implementations allow for companies to leverage eStara?s business rules engine to engage customers based on the context of their online session. For example, to minimize service costs, if a customer is shopping online and has a book in their shopping cart, the company can present them with lower-cost service options such as FAQs or email, but once their shopping cart reaches a certain threshold or if they add a high-ticket item such as a TV or computer, they will be presented with a Click to Call option.
Furthermore, eStara Click to Call helps maintain the context of the online session when a customer moves from the Web to the Call Center. Because it is IP-based the session data from the caller?s online session is transferred to the call center agent instantly. So once the call is connected they?re able to see what items you have in your shopping cart, and what issues may have prompted you to call.
In the fashion world, the latest craze is always called ?the new black? because this classic color is recognized as always being in style. In recent seasons, the phrase ?black is the new black? came into fashion because the world saw a revival of the hottest color on store racks and designer?s models. In the world of business, it?s the phone call that is the new black. This traditional method of getting and staying in touch with clients may have gone out of style for a little while but it?s been the staple of most small businesses for years. More importantly, it?s back in the spotlight as the phone makes a comeback in the business world.
Speaking with people over the phone has been the way that people have done business for as long as modern business practices have been around. Through cold calling, businesses let new clients know that they exist and are interested in working with them. Through daily calls, businesses stay in touch with their existing clients and get their needs met so that they can continue to work together. Phone calls are used to get immediate answers, remedy emergency problems and further business. So why is that so many people doing business today are hesitant to make the phone call their first means of communication?
The reason for that hesitancy is because we saw phone calls drop out of style for a little while as other forms of communication came to the office space. Why try to perfectly time your calls to an international location when you can just send an email and get a response when you return to the office the next day? Why risk getting involved in a long conversation with an annoying client when you can get the answer to your one question through a simple text message? Businesses have seen the benefits of these other communication technologies and so have let the phone call slip out of fashion.
But in the end, the phone is making a comeback. Perhaps this is due in part to the fact that people have a genuine need for one-on-one conversation. The interaction that happens when you actually speak to someone differs greatly from the information exchange that takes place via instant message, e-mail or text message. People are hungry for that vocal interaction. We?re seeing this in everything from VoIP incorporation in businesses and social networking platforms to the addition of voice features to instant messaging programs. People want to talk to each other. And if your business is going to keep up with the times, you may have to return to that good old-fashioned practice of picking up the phone and calling your clients.
In the world of fashion, there will always be new trends that catch our eyes. New fabrics, new colors, and new combinations of accessories will dot our wardrobes for a season or two. But when we need to rely on something that can take us anywhere, we will always go back to black. Likewise, we may see new communications technology such as instant messaging gain increasing importance in the way that we do business. But it will only be trendy for a season or two. Talking about business will always come back to its old place on the phone. As voice communications tools like VoIP become increasingly important, the type of phone may change but its importance is only becoming a more rooted part of doing business.
Question of the Day: Some people love the fact that phone communication is making a comeback. Others would rather leave their communicating to non-voice technology. Which camp do you fall into and how do you think it?s good for your business?
It?s only been two months since iBasis launched Pingo, a VoIP product designed for small businesses, and they?re already announcing upgrades to the product. Like with any VoIP services, there are pros and cons to using Pingo but these additional services help weight things on the positive side for the company. The fact that they?re being released so soon after the launch itself indicates that the company may be rapidly assessing user feedback and incorporating updated services to accommodate their buyer?s desires. However, this may not be enough to make the system right for businesses that are truly committed to using VoIP.
The main draw to using Pingo in comparison with other VoIP services is that it lets you be non-committal to VoIP. In other words, if you?re just testing the waters with VoIP, Pingo provides a low-cost option for trying it out. The company requires no contract so you can just ?pay as you go?. One of the major new features that was announced is a voice alert that lets you know when your account is running low so that you can replenish your Pingo funds and keep the system running without problems.
The easy-to-set-up system requires no external hardware and no additional download software to maintain. However, for businesses that want to be in charge of their VoIP, this limited access to the VoIP system can be considered a drawback instead of a benefit. The new features are good for people who are just testing out VoIP. However, regularly having to replenish your account could become a problem for your business. Just imagine getting busy with calls and then realizing that you need to go through the hassle of making sure your account has funds to keep those calls connected.
Pingo is still a relatively young VoIP system playing in the small and mid-sized business market. Given that fact, the company has been able to offer a number of benefits to businesses with less than 1,000 employees. However, as VoIP becomes more of a stable part of the office and less of a novelty, the company may have to make additional changes to stay in the game.
Question of the Day: Do you believe that it?s the pros or the cons that outweigh the Pingo equation?
Your business can benefit from the effective development of the right rumors. Just take a look at the history behind Google?s Android and you?ll see how a company can blend just the right amount of hype and mystery to create a stir that gets some serious attention. From the time that rumors about this open source mobile phone platform were first leaked, Google?s little-by-little approach to providing information about the product has kept people interested in its release. Google is keeping that approach going to this day with the current VoIP-on-Android rumors that are going around.
Here?s a little bit of history about Android to catch you up to speed:
Back in 2005, Google acquired Android, a small company known for developing software for mobile phones. This sparked some rumors in the media that Google was actively working on entering the mobile phone market. However, since Google has been known to acquire more than one business that it seems to be doing little with and no developments were seen, the rumors started to die off.
Then, about a year ago, the media got hold of some news that Google was again looking into the mobile phone market. This sparked a series of rumors about the possible Google phone. (Alternatively it was called a Googlephone or Gphone but changing the name didn?t prod Google to give out any more details.) Investigative reporters did some digging and came up with information that Google had filed some patents in this area but that?s all that remained known at the time.
Then, in November of this year, Google officially announced what it was doing. Google hadn?t created a phone, per se. Instead, the company had created an open source mobile phone platform that could be used on different phones by multiple carriers. At the same time, it announced a challenge to developers to create applications for the operating system. The idea behind the phone is that it will be able to allow for more creativity and innovation in the types of applications that it uses. Phones using this OS are expected out next year.
But that?s not the end of the story.
Google wouldn?t be too good at using developing rumors to maintain consumer interest if they let things die off there. Enter the VoIP rumor. It was noticed by savvy people in the tech industry that Google?s Android is lacking the SIP and IMS stacks that phones traditionally use to bring VoIP to mobile phones. This got the speculation mill churning again. People began discussing whether this meant that Google had no interest in VoIP for its mobile phones or it meant that they had some other sort of approach to mobile VoIP planned. This speculation continues as people try to guess what Google?s phone is going to look like when it?s released.
You can learn something from Google?s approach to releasing information about Android. The secret seems to lie in announcing big plans in advance of their release date and then providing bits of information in staggered format to ensure that loss of interest doesn?t occur. Of course, you?ll also have to make sure that you provide an end product that is worthy of the hype that you have built up. So far, Google?s Android seems to be meeting that criteria. Its open source approach is innovative enough to potentially shake up the wireless world.
VoIP-on-Android
What those of us watching VoIP growth and development are hoping is that Google can surprise us again when it puts VoIP on Android. Up until now, mobile VoIP has been a fairly simple phone function that not many carriers assist you in utilizing. Although it is growing in use, it remains a simple technology. If Google?s developers are able to create an innovative way to alter mobile VoIP, we could start seeing some changes that we currently can?t even imagine. Hopefully the hype about Google isn?t giving us more hope about the system than we should be counting on.
Question of the Day: What do you think is behind Android?s notable absence of SIP/IMS stacks?
