Lower costs, easier scaling, and the ability to let your employees work from wherever are just some of the benefits of switching from on-premises telephony to cloud telephony. But there’s even more good news for businesses ready to modernize their phone systems: getting started with VoIP (voice over internet protocol) technology is fast and easy. With VoIP, the phone system is hosted in the cloud, so your teams simply need to download a VoIP app to their devices to get started.
In fact, a lot of your business’s experience using VoIP services depends on what features your provider’s app includes. Let’s look at what some of the best VoIP apps offer so you know what’s possible with cloud phone services.
VoIP Apps Explained
A VoIP app is the interface your teams will use when accessing your business’s communications software.
It’s an application that you download on a smartphone, tablet, or computer. Your business can also provide employees with a dedicated VoIP phone (also known as a cloud phone). A VoIP phone looks like a normal analog business phone but only needs to be connected to the internet to work – no phone wires required.
Should Your Business Use a Free VoIP App?
Free internet-based phone services like Google Duo and WhatsApp are intended for personal calling. For business calls, you’ll need the security and functionality that comes with a modern cloud telephony solution.
But, most VoIP and cloud-based communications services do come with a free app. Once you sign up for cloud phone services, your users can download a full-featured VoIP app at no cost.
Options for VoIP Calling
When comparing VoIP phone services for your business, you have a couple of options.
- You can get hosted VoIP services, which will let your users make and receive calls over the internet.
- If your business needs other communications tools like chat, file sharing, and video conferencing, you can get a unified communications solution, which combines VoIP calling and other business communications tools in one platform.
Now that you know the basics of VoIP software, let’s look at some of the best VoIP apps for business use.
5 of the Best VoIP Apps for Businesses
Here are some of the top communications solutions businesses today are using. They all come with free VoIP apps, and they’re all cloud-based.
1. Intermedia Unite
If you want a comprehensive solution that lets your users access all of their communications tools from one interface, you’ll have a solid experience with Intermedia Unite, Intermedia’s unified communications solution.
What it comes with:
- Business phone with unlimited domestic calling, high-definition voice, and dozens of useful features including virtual fax, voicemail, and presence indicators
- Video conferencing with 720p HD audio-video, interactive presentation tools, and screen sharing
- Team chat for secure, real-time internal communications – a must-have tool for remote teams
- File management with real-time backup and restore
- Integration with contact center software, CRMs (customer relationship management), and other business apps
2. Ooma Office
Ooma is another popular VoIP app that unifies all your communication tools. You can install the software yourself and set up your phone solution in minutes.
What it comes with:
- Voice services with important business features like extension dialing, conferencing, and virtual receptionist
- Video conferencing is available if you choose Ooma Office Pro
- With the pro version, your business can also access advanced features like voicemail transcription
3. CloudTalk
Cloud Talk is a good VoIP app for sales and customer service teams operating remotely. Agents can work from anywhere, including internationally, and your business can maintain a local presence with national phone numbers.
What it comes with:
- Data reporting for metrics, including total calls, missed calls, and average call duration
- Native integrations with Helpdesks, CRMs, and more
- SMS messaging and templates agents can use
- Helpful features for agents, such as voicemail, agent scripting, and call conferencing.
4. OpenPhone
For startups on a tight budget, OpenPhone might be a good fit. Your team can make unlimited VoIP calls and pricing is affordable. However, this VoIP app doesn’t come with other communications tools like video conferencing and file sharing.
What it comes with:
- Interactive voice response (IVR) and call recording features
- Voicemail transcriptions
- Integrations with CRMs, Slack, Zapier, and email
5. Vonage
Because this VoIP provider services both consumers and businesses, it’s a well-known name. Vonage does offer a good product – users get unlimited VoIP calling and an intuitive app for both mobile devices and desktops. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that many features come at an extra cost, so this option can get expensive.
What it comes with:
- Unlimited team messaging for easy collaboration
- Option for video conferencing
- Toll-free numbers and call recording (at an extra cost)
- Easy integrations with popular business apps
What to Look for When Choosing a VoIP App
To find the right VoIP app for your business, consider features and cost – does the service you’re exploring have the functionality your organization needs at a price you can afford? Will it be easy to scale your service as your business grows? Do you need a basic VoIP app, or a unified communication solution with VoIP, video conferencing, chat, and more?
But, that’s not all you should look at. To keep your business safe, ensure compliance, and to empower your teams with a reliable tool, here’s what else you should look for when comparing the best VoIP apps:
- Uptime – look for five nines (99.999%)
- Security – comprehensive physical and network security and third-party audits to validate controls
- Compliance – data replication at the server and client level and specific compliance solutions for different industries
- Support – expert support 24 hours a day, every day of the year, and access to senior technicians
- Onboarding – free cloud migration and a fully supported onboarding process
With Intermedia, you get all of these essentials, as well as an industry-leading unified communications solution with VoIP, video, chat, and file sharing. You can also integrate Intermedia Unite with Intermedia Contact Center for an end-to-end business communications system from a provider that knows how to put the customer first – we’ve been recognized by J.D. Power for offering an outstanding customer service experience for six years straight.
And, we make getting started with cloud communications hassle-free. Contact us today for a free quote.
Mark Sher
Mark Sher, a 30-year telecom and cloud communications executive, is the SVP of Product Marketing for Intermedia Cloud Communications, a leading provider of UCaaS, CCaaS, and business cloud application solutions to partners and the businesses they serve. In his role, Mark has global responsibility for all direct and indirect product marketing at Intermedia including product launches, product messaging and positioning, competitive intelligence, analyst relations, and cross-channel pricing.
July 26, 2022
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