5 Tips to Grow your VoIP Reseller Business

August 2, 2016 by Jeff Quinn

Everyone is always looking for ways to grow their VoIP reseller business and the industry can be a very competitive field. We have been in the VoIP business for awhile and have seen plenty of changes. Here are 5 tips we want to pass on to you make sure you’re doing everything you can to grow!

Pro Tip #1: Partner with manufacturers who offer top tier support

You want to partner with manufacturers and tier 1 distributors who offer the same customer service and support as you do with your customers. Although, price can be a heavy factor, try to weigh all the other value add aspects a partner can bring to you. Get a good idea of their whole process. Here are some questions I would ask:

What percentages of packages ship same day?
Do you handle the returns or will I be dealing directly with a manufacturer?
How is technical support handled?
What is the return time of a voicemail or email to my account manager?
Will I have a dedicated account representative?

Pro Tip #2: Take advantage of all marketing materials and educational documents available to you

Ideally you would like to work with a partner that has marketing materials for you to use and the ability to co-brand. These documents can be great to bring on a face-to-face meeting or have them downloadable on your website as a lead generation tool.

When you start to bring the value of educating clients and providing them with information it will grow the relationship you’re creating.

Pro Tip #3: Partner with other businesses to grow your reach

Not everyone is competition. In your region or territory you may do certain things very well, but there might be another business that does another piece of that business better. When you can combine forces by offering more of a solution sale, the customer will get the “warm & fuzzy” feeling. In the meantime, you’re growing your business!

Sharing knowledge is a great way to create business partners. You may share something with someone who is also in the VoIP field to help them out. By doing this you create a relationship that could lead to bigger things down the road.

Pro Tip #4: Don’t be afraid to expand what you offer

If you notice a need for certain hardware or even service in your area, it may be time to get trained and start expanding your offer. If you’re just offering hardware at the moment you may want to look into offering VoIP Service. Within our CloudSpan MarketPlace we have partnered with multiple service providers, so we can meet the needs of many customers (we are always looking for partners!).

VoIP hardware is not just phones. There is IP cameras, IP paging, headsets, and even networking equipment.

Pro Tip #5: Get to know your account manager

When choosing a partner make sure your account manager is someone you can trust. You may be putting a lot in their hands when it comes to your customers. They play an important role and you want to make sure it is a good fit for both of you.

Your account manager will most likely be someone you speak with on a regular basis and want to make sure they are providing the customer service you expect.

Hopefully, these few tips may trigger something to help you grow your business in the future. Comment below and let us know what other tips you have for growing your business.

Digium is excited to announce the release of new Digium phones, the D6x series

August 1, 2016 by Jeff Quinn

We are excited to announce the release of Digium’s new line of colored screen phones. The newest line of Digium phones include the D60, D62 and D65. These Digium phones are designed for seamless integration for effortless setup with Switchvox and Asterisk.

The new phones increase workplace efficiency with built-in applications such as voicemail, call log, contacts, phone status, user presence, parking and queue metrics. (more…)

Why Do You Need Session Border Controllers (SBCs)?

July 29, 2016 by Ying-Hui Chen

A Session Border Controller (SBC) is a purpose-built application that monitors and controls a VoIP network system when a call is generated, conducted and ended. To help you understand why you need SBCs, let’s take a glance at the two main functions of a SBC – Security and Interoperability.

(more…)

Introducing Switchvox 6.3

July 28, 2016 by Jeff Quinn

digium-switchvox-6

Digium pedals forward with Switchvox 6.3 release

Switchvox 6.3 is the most recent update to their Unified Communications platform. Here are some of the changes and updates to help your system run smoother.

Multicast for Digium Phones

There is now the ability to manage prioritized multicast addresses, and set up Digium phones to listen to those addresses.

“Multicast transmissions can be handled separately from Switchvox; Digium Phones will listen for those transmissions. Or, you can use a Switchvox SIP extension with a separate third-party multicast device as that extension’s end-point. In that scenario, a Switchvox user can dial that extension to speak and transmit audio to the appropriate phones.”

Multiple Parking Lots

Switchvox admins have the ability to create more than one call parking extension and also name them. You can access your settings to adjust how long the call should be parked for and then where it is sent to after that time period.

Name this Switchvox

When handling multiple on-site Switchvox systems you now have the ability to name each system. You can access this feature by going to Tools > IP Configuration > Advanced Options. The name will be displayed under the Welcome dropdown.

Particular issues/bugs that have been resolved

Firmware for Polycom has been updated for Switchvox Phone Feature Packs.

When using the Salesforce.com plugin caller ID information will be saved and not lost when the call is ended.

The Swichboard Layouts features has an increased maximum-character limit which allows layouts with a large number of contacts within tags widgets and contacts.

The silence at the end of voicemails is no longer automatically deleted. You can adjust this by going to Tools > Voicemail settings.

The audio on multimedia chat using screen sharing has been improved.

If you’re interested in updating your system please contact our solution specialists at 1-800-398-8647 or [email protected].

What is the Max Wattage Consumption for Polycom VVX310 and VVX410?

July 27, 2016 by Ying-Hui Chen

Our tech support team at VoIP Supply offers great pre- and post-sales support plus provisioning, consultations, configuration, and installation help. We get a lot of VoIP hardware and software questions and would like to share the solutions with everyone.

In previous Mom’s calling Q&A series, we have discussed: How to Set Pin Number for a Route on a Grandstream System. Today, we have more new real questions and answers from VoIP users just like you.

What is the Max Wattage Consumption for Polycom VVX310 and 410?

Q: Could you please tell me what the max Wattage consumption is for both Polycom VVX310 and VVX410 please? I need to connect approximately 50 phones up via PoE. Do you have a switch recommendations to accommodate this scenario?

A: VVX 310 PoE is either 24 v or 48 v and VVX410 PoE is 48v.

0.25a=12watts x 50 nodes = 600 watts Each port on the switch should be 48 v. I would suggest the Cisco 300 which can support up to 52 ports.

Q: Do you know if all of the ports are PoE and what that max wattage is?

A: Yes, you can get two flavors, PoE (48 port) 2 Combo mini-GBIC or non-PoE (48 port) 2 combo mini-GBIC.

Power consumption with PoE (74 w PoE – Supported = 48 ports). Each switch port of 48v = 12 watts. 12 x 48 PoE = 576w. So 576w would be for only 48 phones. I stand corrected below.

110V = 873.05W = Total

220V = 843.57W = Total (worst case wattage if needed)

Stay Tuned

Come back for more VoIP questions and answers next time! If you have VoIP questions to ask us, please submit a technical support ticket or contact our VoIP experts today at (866) 582-8591.

Attend the Sangoma Roadshow and Get Your Free s500 Phone – Event Ended!

July 25, 2016 by Ying-Hui Chen

Sangoma Roadshow in August
Are you interested in learning about the latest IP telephony products and solutions from Sangoma? Or are you looking for resources to learn more about the advantages of partnering with Sangoma? There’s no time like the present! (more…)

The Latest and Greatest in VoIP DECT 6.0 Phones

by Jeff Quinn

It seems that more and more VoIP manufacturers are producing DECT 6.0 VoIP phones. Below is a short run down of a couple of the new and best DECT 6.0 phones on the market today.

Panasonic KX-TGP600

This Panasonic DECT system consists of the KX-TGP600G Base station and the KX-TPA60 wireless handset. The KX-TGP600 has the ability to handle up 8 handsets and 8 simultaneous calls. This system has a typical range of up to 400 feet but can be increased with the Panasonic KX-A406 DECT repeater with an average range of 160 feet. The panasonic DECT system can handle up to 6 repeaters for one base station. (more…)

Refurbished IP Phones: Refresh and Rocking!

July 21, 2016 by Youleidy Vega

As a company who values sustainability and takes reusing and recycling very seriously, VoIP Supply created Refresh – a creative way to offer a low cost alternative to new VoIP equipment that also helps us in our fight towards being a sustainable company.

Refresh products are our line of refurbished IP hardware that includes a vast selection of products such as phones, switches, gateways and TDM cards. All products undergo a thorough 10-step reconditioning process that assures the product is inspected, tested, updated to the latest firmware and cleaned before it is repackaged. Better yet, all Refresh products come with a full six month warranty that can be extended to 12 months for minimal fee.

Take a look at these products that are part of our Refresh inventory. They look and work just like their new counterparts.

The Snom 870 is a Refurbished IP Phone designed for the high-end professional boasting a 4.3 inch color touchscreen display. It is a 12-line SIP phone with Gigabit capabilities that also supports Power over the Ethernet (PoE). It allows you to make conference calls with up to five people (5-way local conferencing) with its user-friendly interface.

You won’t have to worry about not hearing or not being heard; the Snom 870 features Klavoice wide-band audio for maximum clarity during calls.

If you need a simpler 2-line VoIP phone then the Polycom VVX201 is one to consider. This entry-level phone offers great HD sound quality with the basic features you need to successfully carry out clear and effective communications. It features dual 10/100 Ethernet ports and is suitable for any home or office environment.

We also carry refurbished conference phones. Check out the Polycom Soundstation IP 6000 – a PoE capable conference phone that prevents user fatigue by providing clear conversations so that you don’t have to work hard to figure out the words that are being said. It features high-fidelity audio from 220 Hz to 14 Khz, which helps capture both the lows and highs of human voice providing conference calls that sound as natural as face to face conversations.

Refresh products are a cost effective way to arm your business or office with VoIP hardware that is friendly to the pocket, reliable, and sustainable. All Refresh products come with allt he original contents that a brand new product would bring. For Refresh phones, this includes manuals, handset cord, base stand, RJ45 cable.

Why Build an In-house VoIP Call Center?

by Ying-Hui Chen

Compared to a third party contact center, an in-house VoIP call center is able to generate customized calls and the ability to serve your customers promptly. However, establishing an in-house call center can be a nerve-racking task for many small businesses, like yourself.

Whether you are struggling with a tight budget or a narrow office space, in this new era of VoIP Cloud Service, these apprehensions can no longer hinder you from accomplishing your goal – building a well-functioning call center. (more…)

How to Set the Screensaver Wait Time on the Polycom VVX400

by Steve Lopian

Having a screensaver on your VoIP phone is just one more way to customize your work space. This can also be a nice thing to have activated if you are away for an extended period of time, as it can disguise any information that may be displayed on your phone’s home screen when you are not at your desk.

Having your screen saver activated can also be a good indicator to coworkers that you have been away from your desk for a while. Maybe you have the day off, you’re in a meeting, on the road, or simply on your lunch break. No matter what the reason is, it seems that more often than not, most people have an active screen saver.