- First and fore most you'll want to align your company with a VoIP provider that has been in the industry longer than VoIP. That's important, very important. Punch in "VoIP provider" and see what happens. It's like everybody and their sister decided to bring this product to market. So be sure, before you're too far into negotiations that you find out more about the company’s background how they became a VoIP provider and financials if available.
- Secondly, it's highly recommended you position yourself with a provider that can control their product. This means they own and operate their VoIP platform - the brains of the system. Essentially all of the equipment that makes VoIP possible. You risk sacrificing customer service and ongoing support by going through an organization three times removed form the actual product.
- Service Level Agreements, this is very important. Look for companies that offer you a SLA with their voice service guaranteeing the call quality. It says a lot about the company's confidence in the product when they offer to pay you if the service does not meet the metrics set forth in the service level agreement.
- Pre-sales, post-sales, and ongoing technical support are also important factors to consider when making your decision. Who, what, when and where will this support come from? Make sure you have 24x7x365 support after the implementation is complete. A good VoIP provider will perform a thorough assessment of your network before the VoIP project goes to implementation. This exhibits the VoIP providers concern for a smooth installation.
What factors should I consider?
