by Kali Korilynn

Created on: November 04, 2010

There is a lot of hype about VoIP services these days.  You see the commercials, hear the advertisements, and they all talk about how many services and features are available with VoIP services.  So what exactly are all of those features?

Basic Features of VoIP Services

Free Second Line – Most VoIP services will give their customers a free second line with no extra cost to them.

Unlimited Local and Long Distance – Unlike the traditional phone service, VoIP services offer their customers unlimited local and long distance calling plans. 

Overseas Calling – Some VoIP services will give overseas calling for free to specific countries.  Check with your specific provider for information regarding what countries are actually covered.

Caller ID – Customers of VoIP services will have free incoming caller ID, but they can also have the option of customizing how their outgoing caller ID looks as well.

Call Forwarding – With VoIP services you can reroute your calls however you see fit.  If you want them to go to your cell phone, another line, or straight to a voicemail service, you will be able to set that up with your service provider.

Other Features – Some other features included with VoIP services as part of their basic plan is: Call Return, Call Blocking, Call Recording, Do Not Disturb, Three-Way Calling, Voicemail, Voicemail to Email, Voicemail to Text Message, Voicemail to Email, Web-Based Control Panel, Free Network Calling, and more.

Along with basic features that any home user can utilize, there are also features that come standard for businesses.

Business Features with VoIP Services

Some of the basic features that come with VoIP services for business plans are:

Auto Attendant – Instead of having someone answer every incoming phone call, you can use the auto attendant feature to answer phone calls reroute calls to other departments.

Extensions – With business plans you will have the opportunity to have several extensions and assign them to individuals or departments in your company.  This can be very beneficial for larger corporations that have too many departments for one line.

Company Directory – Along with your extensions comes the option of a company directory.  That way your customers or potential customers can find the person they are looking for without having to be rerouted to an operator.

Day/Night Scheduling – With your business VoIP services you will be able to schedule day and night plans.  That means that during the day your customers can hear one message, while at night or even on holidays they will hear a different message.

Hold Music – Instead of your customers or business associates hearing nothing but silence, with VoIP services you can actually assign hold music to your line so that your customers are not left sitting in the dark.

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