Road Warriors use VOIP and Internet Telephony for Cost Savings and Productivity

Road Warriors use VOIP and Internet Telephony for Cost Savings and Productivity

“Road Warriors” are those professionals who spend more time on the road than in the office, and they need a cost-effective, convenient way to stay in touch with customers and co-workers while they are traveling.

Hotels often charge for each call made and many don’t support basic telephony features like conference calling or even speakerphone. Mobile phones, are also a useful too but one can encounter dead zones and costly roaming and long distance charges. How can road warriors use readily available technology to communicate better?

Road Warriors today can leverage Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)—a process that converts voice into digital data packets and transmits it over the Internet—to cost-effectively bring the quality and functionality of their copper landline on the road. Internet telephony is a VoIP application that enables mobile professionals to use their laptop, a broadband connection, a softphone and a communications headset or other audio input device to place local and long-distance phone calls over the Internet.

Using VoIP or Internet Telephony, road warriors can simply and cost-effectively enjoy telephony service with features that significantly increase productivity on the road. Travelers can take advantage of flat fee Internet access or Wi-Fi that is offered in most hotel rooms, airports and even coffee shops—and make nearly unlimited calls from their laptop without incurring long-distance charges. Softphone and other software applications give travelers virtual desktop phone functionality, including the ability to conduct conference calls, transfer calls within the corporate PBX system, and receive calls forwarded from the corporate PBX system. Users can enjoy even greater mobility by pairing wireless headsets with Bluetooth-enabled laptops, tablets and other devices for wireless conversations.

In the past 6 months I have made more calls off my iPad than using my corporate desk telephone. My iPad has become my corporate cordless telephone and using Wi-Fi I can be in the basement or on the back deck in my home, at a hotel, at a customer site, Starbucks, a bank and even on a BC Ferry enjoying the simple convenience of the application loaded on my iPhone and iPad and laptop.