Most of us can sense that cell phones are shifting the way we work and live dramatically in modern years. Our smartphones have become not merely an electronic device, but a digital extension of ourselves where we connect and communicate. As more people describe a smartphone as an “indispensable” tool for work, the demand for Softphone arises.

“The majority (79 percent) of respondents cited the smartphone as the phone they used the most to conduct business, as compared to an office phone or home phone.” – According to a survey from PCWorld

What is Softphone?

Softphone is a software program that allows you to make phone calls over the Internet via your computer or cell phone rather than dedicated hardware like a traditional telephone.

Digium Switchvox Softphone for iPhone & Android

Digium’s Switchvox Softphone is an all-in-one communication solution designed for iPhone and Android. It covers all enterprise-class Unified Communications (UC) features you can expect from Switchvox, except, this time, you enjoy them on the go! Let’s take a peek at some of its popular features every road warrior can’t live without!

Simple Setup Process – Configuring the Switchvox Softphone for your cell phone is easy! Get ready to start making calls within seconds.

Advanced Call Control – Stay connected wherever, whenever you go with the power of Switchvox Softphone! The advanced call features include:

• 3-way conference
• Call recording
• Transfer, ignore or send to voicemail
• Status – Set your Status and decide how your calls are handled and what voicemail greeting is played.
• Favorites – set up favorites contacts and see their phone state and their Status.

Apple CallKit – Enjoy the full advantage of Apple CallKit! The Switchvox Software uses the latest iOS technologies to improve battery life and allow more accurate alerts/notifications. Your Softphone calls will display the same way as native iOS calls even when the app is closed or the phone is locked.

Private Number – Keep your private number private and safe. Callers will only see your desk phone number.

That’s not all! There are more unique features such as Extension-to-extension calls, Real-time Status/ User Presence, Wi-Fi, 4G or LTE connectivity await your exploration!

Not sure where to start? Click here to check out Digium’s Switchvox Softphone Start Guide or simply raise your phone to give our VoIP experts a call at 800-398-8647 to discuss your specific needs!

Had enough of the poor audio quality and choppy video? Nothing frustrates your customers or salespeople more than poor phone quality. Businesses in all walks of life depend on a phone system that simply works smoothly every single time and that highly relies on whether you have strong QoS or not. That is why it’s important to learn about what QoS is and how it works! Let’s get to it!

What is QoS?

QoS stands for Quality of Service. As the name implies, QoS is a way of providing better overall performance for selected traffic types on telephone networks.

Basically, it’s a method to ensure that your communication system has the ability to provide high-quality service. See the definition from Microsoft:

Quality of Service (QoS) for networks is an industry-wide set of standards and mechanisms for ensuring high-quality performance for critical applications. – TechNet, Microsoft

 

How Innovative VoIP QoS Boosts Your Network

There are two types of speeds: Burst Speeds and Streaming Speed

Burst Speeds, also known as speed test speed, helps you download small files quickly and it only lasts a few seconds; Streaming Speed, on the other side, helps you work on long-term tasks such as voice and streaming videos. Traditional firewalls lack the ability to recognize different types of speeds and the tasks you are doing on the networks, so they are not able to understand who needs access to certain services at certain times and how much. That’s where an innovative VoIP QoS product, like SimpleWan’s solution, comes into play!

The SimpleWan solution acts like a sensor that is aware of the differences between streaming speeds and bursting speeds, the various devices that are on your networks, as well as the needs from all users and tasks.

The intelligent solution makes smart real-time decisions to prioritize your tasks and assign just the right amount of space for each task. Once the task is complete, it opens up space again to all users to ensure that all users get equal access to the network connection. The consistency of network access is so important nowadays when there are so many different devices connected at the same time!

QoS has become a must when it comes to providing the best overall telephony service quality. Now that you have learned about QoS. Time to break up with your poor phone service!

Learn more about VoIP routers with QoS on our website or simply give our VoIP experts a ring at 1-800-398-8647 today to learn  how your business can utilize QoS!

Compete with Amazon…Are you kidding me?

For a lot of online retailers including many of our VoIP resellers, Amazon, a $470 billion e-commerce and cloud computing giant, is extremely difficult to compete with. Actually, VoIP Supply is in the same boat with many of you; we have to compete with Amazon for certain products, and we understand how frustrating it can be! Therefore, we want to share some tips that we found effective to help you get your share back from Amazon!

1. Point out the Violators

Many manufacturers have a strict Minimum Advertised Pricing (MAP) that resellers and distributors have to follow. It is the lowest price a business can sell the product online or in advertisement. Follow these steps to protect your margin:

1. Check with your partner, like VoIP Supply  to learn what brands have  MAP
2. Watch for violations on Amazon
3. Report those who are breaking  MAP a partner like VoIP Supply so that they can help escalate it to the brand

This way, you can avoid starting an unnecessary price war and gain your margin back!

Check out the list below for some of the VoIP manufacturers that have a MAP:

• Grandstream
• Sangoma
• Yealink
• Jabra/VXi
• Digium
• Patton
• Polycom

2. Boast your Excellent Customer Service

Go extra miles for your customer to locate a one-of-a-kind product. Provide multiple channels for customers to reach you at their convenience: Phone, Email, Chat, Social Media, etc. Or even make the process of returning products easy.

All these will help you deliver excellent customer experience and win the deals! Amazon has a large customer base so sometimes it’s hard for them to customize their service for certain customers, but you can. That’s what makes you different.

3. Exceed Customer Expectation with Convenience

Live up to customer expectations. When it comes to convenience, there are a number of tools you can use to gear yourself up to be Amazon-equivalent. One easy way to do this is to find a right partner.

If you are a VoIP reseller looking for an opportunity to better serve your customers and exceed their expectation, consider VoIP Supply’s Partner Program. Utilize our relationship with multiple service providers and our dedicated VoIP Supply team as your extension to keep your customers engaged at all times! Fill out the form below to consult with our VoIP experts:

4. More than just Price and Speed

Yes, Amazon might be an e-commerce monster with low prices and fast shipping speed. But, some customers care more than just that! Ask yourself some questions first: Do you serve a specific market segment? Do you sell unique products? Create a distinguish product that is not in the category where Amazon dominates to make yourself stand out in the crowd.  

5. Create a Fantastic Browsing Experience

Amazon’s catalog is huge but they are not experts for everything. For customers who already knew what they are looking for will prefer visiting a website that only shows what they need.

As a small retail business with specific product lines, you should have the ability to design your online/ offline spaces to display your products in an effective way to engage with your customers better than Amazon. Create a fantastic browsing experience is a must for attracting more customers to your site!

6. Build Loyal Customers

Shoppers on Amazon are mostly looking for low prices and fast shipping so building a community is not a necessary strategy for Amazon. However, a small business like you can and should build a community with loyal customers!

Once your customers feel comfortable the way they shop on your site, the chances for them to return again are very high. Take this opportunity to build your own unique customer community and let your customers spread the word. Great word-of-mouth marketing is a most effective way to grow your business!

There you have it! Are you competing with Amazon? What are your effective strategies? Utilize the comment box below to share with us!