What to Look For in a SIP Provider?

Why Do You Need a SIP Provider?

Are you currently trying to find a SIP provider because your business is growing? A SIP provider can enable efficient communications among customers, suppliers, employees and other stakeholders. 

As TechRadar recently reported, “Businesses need to adopt the new communications and connectivity services that will support the fluid workforce. These need to be able to scale up or down as demand dictates and do so rapidly to be as cost-effective as possible. Today, that means communications services in the cloud. We call them the four Cs: Conferencing, Contact Centres, e-Commerce and Unified Communications.

“Interest in and demand for cloud-based numbers and SIP trunks was high even before COVID-19 forced change upon us, and the growth of cloud-based conferencing services and contact centers means that demand is set to increase.”

Just to offer a quick, basic overview, SIP Trunking is a method to connect both Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phones and analog telephones to the Internet. Rather than having a traditional connection to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), a SIP provider will allow your phone calls to use the same connection as your broadband Internet service.  

With SIP trunking, you eliminate a communications provider and help your company save up to 70% on your phone service. Of course, to leverage this communication protocol, you will need to do some research on SIP providers. 

These partners will be in charge of maintaining their own connections to the PSTN and will be responsible for routing your voice calls to this system if necessary. With today’s hybrid workforces, organizations are looking for the best SIP trunk provider for one or more of the reasons listed below:

Reason #1: Your company wants to save on telecom costs 

Corporate IT leaders and managers already know there are many financial benefits behind investing in SIP trunking. Some experts suggest that SIP could cut 50% of business expenses  compared to Private Rate Interface (PRI) telephony. 

SIP trunk installation doesn’t require a high upfront investment. The savings it generates over time are significant for any company and will translate into faster ROI.

Reason #2: You need to boost communication flexibility and scalability

According to your specific growth needs and pace, a top SIP trunk provider will offer a service focused on allowing your company quickly adapt and scale up or down. 

They will give you the ability to directly manage, maintain and support your system from an online control panel. For instance, if you need to quickly add a new phone number, you could easily acquire it straight from your portal without depending on a technician, choosing from a comprehensive number inventory classified per state and area code. You should also be able to add channels to an unlimited SIP trunk just as straightforwardly.

Another plus is that your company could carry over its old phone numbers (whether local or toll-free) and use them with a newly acquired SIP service. Be aware: Many providers in the market will force you to stick to their preferred internet provider. However, the best SIP trunk providers will be carrier agnostic so you can choose the best carrier for your needs.

A premium SIP trunk provider makes the process of adding powerful features a breeze—more on these functionalities in the following section.

Reason #3: You are looking to enhance communication security and stability

If you believe traditional or IP phone lines are no longer the safest way for your business to communicate, finding a top SIP trunk provider will give you a secure alternative. They can help you keep an eye in real-time for international call fraud by generating a timely alert and executing actions to block any possible threat.

Guaranteed redundancy will protect your business against downtime due to power outages or other types of failures since SIP can work with various Internet providers.

Related: Everything You Need to Know About SIP Protocol

What to Look for in The Best SIP Trunk Provider

You can likely identify with one or more of the reasons above to switch your traditional analog telephony to SIP trunking. If your business already uses a broadband Internet connection, SIP trunks may be a good fit for you.  

The following are characteristics to look for in a reputable SIP trunk provider:

1. Impeccable track record: SIP Trunking has been around since 1996, which means you can find SIP providers with a solid history of deploying systems with quality and high standards. Partner with a company you can trust will be there 10 years down the road.

2. Cost-effectiveness: SIP providers have a wide variety of pricing plans, ranging from $0 to around $50 per line/per month. In general, the more you pay, the more services you receive, but you don’t always get the best service. Make sure your SIP provider covers all the requirements you are looking for at the right price.

3. Nearby geographic location: SIP Trunking is an Internet-based service, so you can actually choose a provider from anywhere in the world. While it is possible to use a global provider, there are advantages to using a nearby vendor with qualified personnel available to assist you onsite should any issues arise.

4. Multiple services available: Many broadband Internet providers also offer SIP services. Check with your current ISP and prospective SIP suppliers to see if they offer combined services that could save you even more money and streamline provider management.

5. Quality hardware: SIP providers must have high-quality servers and a reliable connection in their location. Additionally, if your business has a legacy PBX, you will need an Integrated Access Device (IAD) to establish the system link. Ensure your SIP provider uses high-quality hardware from a reputable manufacturer.

6. Quality of service: In order to match the quality of traditional voice service, your SIP provider must be able to meet specific standards for timely and accurate phone call delivery. Quality SIP providers make their connectivity data public. Choose a partner with a packet loss of less than 1% and a latency of fewer than 150 milliseconds.

7. Additional features: Does your business need to use encryption, fax machines or other hardware to connect to your phone service? Your SIP provider should support whatever additional hardware and features your business needs to operate. Here’s a list of what you can expect from market leaders:

• Direct Inward Dials or DIDs
• Local and Toll-Free Numbers
• Outbound International Service
• FAX over IP Service
• Toll fraud protection
• E911
• Real-time call data records
• Tier-1 redundant network

8. Customer Service: The best SIP trunk providers will provide you with straightforward setup instructions, as well as add the benefit of expert customer service pros who will help with troubleshooting or other technical issues.

SIP.US is a business-class SIP trunk service provider for IP-PBX systems and analog/digital telephone adapters. Our SIP trunks operate on your own broadband Internet connection, and we offer unlimited rate plans. Our easy setup, Tier-1 network, and powerful self-service SIP control panel have made us the leading on-demand SIP provider. Start now by requesting your free, no obligation trial, which comes with 60 minutes of free calling to the US and Canada. Sign up now.