The main benefits fall in two categories:

• Cost Savings
• Larger-Company Features

Cost Savings – VoIP phone service allows you to achieve cost savings by making long distance calls very affordable. With current long distance prices, this may not seem like a big issue, but if you will be doing any international business the call savings may be compelling. I recommend checking out Skype for these types of services, as they offer easy use and extremely cheap calling. Some people think of Skype as just a consumer tool, but it offers a business control panel and the ability to call and receive calls on a landline phone.

In addition to cheap calling rates, VoIP makes it possible to add a phone number at very little cost. You can get a dedicated business number for much less than a regular phone line. For basic service, Skype is again an excellent option. You can get a regular number for as little as $60 per year (and in any area code you like).

Larger-Company Features – If you are more concerned about convenience or the image your business presents than cost, then some of the business features enabled by VoIP phones may be right up your alley.

Using a service such as RingCentral, you can get a business number that is forwarded to any phone you wish. Their intelligent call routing can forward certain callers to voicemail, others to your cell phone, and unkown numbers to a landline, or however you prefer. Faxes sent to the number are automatically delivered to your email, and voicemails can be delivered there as well. All this makes for a more convenient business life.

VoIP also has the ability to make your business look larger. Business VoIP services often include an auto-attendant – computerized recording that can answer calls and route them to various destinations based on extension dialed or the caller’s number. You can have music on hold, a dial by name directory, and call logs that make your one person operation sound like there is a whole office helping out. A few providers that offer this full suite of services include RingCentral, Phone.com, and Nextiva.