Most web workers rely heavily on their phones to get things done. Whether you need a local number to provide to far-flung colleagues and clients, want the predictability of a flat-rate pricing plan, or just have the desire to try something different and more web-savvy, you can take many paths to a dial tone.
The most obvious choice is voice over IP (VoIP). Most services offer perks like the ability to pay for a year’s worth of service at a predictable price, calling anywhere you like for that one rate, and assorted features like multiple phone numbers, an 800-number, forwarding your number to ring wherever you may be, and so on. In addition, most of the VoIP services allow you to use a regular old telephone to connect, giving you the feeling of an old fashioned phone service and all the space age mumbo-jumbo hidden behind the scenes.
We all know about certain providers who are currently embroiled in major league legal wrangles, but in addition to the big players, there are plenty of other options in the VOIP market. Packet8 and SunRocket are better known competitors to Vonage, and you can find a bewildering array of other providers in both the U.S. and Canada, and world-wide.
In addition to the independent VoIP companies, most broadband providers also offer digital telephone services. You’ll need to check with your local provider to see if they can offer you an area code outside the local calling area or the other services that the independent providers can give you, but consolidating your services into one big DSL or digital cable bill could be a streamlined way to handle things. For either an independent or a broadband service, you need to have broadband anyway, so you can kill two birds with one stone.
Depending on your needs, PC-to-PC may be a viable choice for you. While you do have to be near your computer to use these services, you’re probably attached to your computer pretty consistently while you’re working anyway. All of the free IM providers allow you to call other users of the service — just offer up your computer’s internal mic or the web cam mic to your IM client and soon you’ll be yakking away. Of course, your clients and colleagues a) need to be on the same IM client, and b) need to be equipped with headsets or similar microphone/audio hardware, and this may be a barrier.
PC-to-phone is another solid path to inexpensive audio communication. You can Skype out, Yahoo Phone Out, and so on. These services are low-cost and offer decent quality, but you’ll want to make sure about the pricing arrangements before you go overboard with the conversation. You will need to be wedded to your computer, the person on the receiving end of your calls need not be. While these may be good options for phoning out, your clients and colleagues my not be able to call you quite as easily.
Of course, there’s the old standby: the cell phone. Depending on where you are relative to your carrier’s cell towers, the quality and reliability can meet or exceed that offered by VoIP or other services. You can acquire a number in your colleagues’ or customer’s area code for the illusion of access and intimacy, and having a reliable number that always gets you whether you’re in your office or at the coffee shop can be a major asset. Plus it allows you to write off your acquisition of the latest and greatest phone, or at least to feel more justified in that acquisition.
What service to pick? It all depends on your requirements, where your clients are, and how accessible you really want or need to be.
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