Internet telephone systems are calling

Greg Anderson had his fill of doing double duty as telecom administrator and information technology guru at PIAB Inc., a vacuum technology firm with 50 employees in Hingham.

So Anderson turned to voice over Internet protocol, also known as Internet telephony, to merge his jobs.

Using a combination of voice over IP phones, which connect to a company's data network, and specialized servers, a voice over IP system sends calls as data packets over the Internet, circumventing circuit-switched networks and, often, the hassles of dealing with phone companies. Internet phone systems also feature enhanced tools that let companies offer better customer service through improved call routing and resource management.

Internet telephony was first adopted by companies big enough to justify the initial cost of installing the technology. Multinational companies with many locations could also quickly realize savings from the switch to Internet phones. But, increasingly, Internet telephony is being used by small businesses attracted by the savings and unique benefits.

For Anderson, the benefits are plenty -- well worth the almost $100,000 cost for the hardware and software from Avaya, a provider of business communications services. He says PIAB has seen a 25 percent reduction in costs from the move to Internet telephony. The company also has benefited from a variety of enhanced voice system features.

''I used to deal with multiple phone vendors in each of our employees' calling areas," Anderson says. Now, remote and local employees use the company's data network to route calls through headquarters.

New users and office moves used to require an on-site call from a phone company technician. Now, Anderson simply moves the Internet phone, which looks similar to a traditional phone, and makes a few changes in the management software -- a process that takes only a few minutes.

Traveling employees use soft-phones -- headsets that plug into their laptops -- to access the Internet telephony system, saving on the high cost of hotel and cellphone charges. They can make and receive calls via a single phone number linked to a company directory.

William Stofega, senior analyst for voice over IP services at IDC Research in Framingham, says the cost savings on toll calls aren't the only allure.

''The feature sets are also very interesting -- they allow small businesses to gain access to tools they probably didn't have with legacy telephone systems."

Stofega points to the merging of voice mail and e-mail. ''Voice over IP allows for a central repository for both -- you can have your e-mail read to you over the phone or your voice mail sent as an e-mail attachment."

Gary Woods, president at Crosspoint Engineering, a process and controls firm in Westwood, says the bells and whistles are what attracted him to the $20,000 voice over IP system from Shoretel for his 29-person company.

With salespeople in the field, his company relies on the find-me feature, which forwards calls to cellphones or other numbers the user specifies. ''There are no missed phone calls, no missed opportunities," Woods says.

Woods says his voice over IP system integrates with Microsoft Outlook so he can click on a contact name and the phone system will automatically dial that person.

''I don't have to spend my time looking up numbers anymore," he says.

Though education still needs to be done in the small-business environment, Stofega says he sees a serious shift in interest. ''Small businesses aren't going to go out and buy a traditional PBX anymore. They are going to start to ask: What can voice over IP do for me?"

Here's help for small businesses

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