Anyone ever used Vonage, Sunrocket, or another VOIP service?

[NHB_MMA]

Hey, I'm thinking of getting this service for telephone solicitation and follow ups, but the call clarity needs to be decent. I can't drum up business sounding like garbage. Has anyone used these services for home or business recently or know anyone that has and what have the experiences been like?

 

[Guest]

I have been using Vonage for about 6 months. I have local line and 800# through them and pay about $35/month for both.
If I could keep my 800# and switch I would. I experience problems about 20% of the time. Audio just cuts out in the middle of a call where the caller can not hear me--although I can hear them. I have called Vonage about 5 times about it and each time they say they have made adjustments to fix it.
Some things I do like is the call forward feature. I have all calls ring my office phone and cell phone simultaneously. So, if cable goes out, the call still goes through to my cell phone. Plus if I am out of the office I still get those calls to my 800# on my cell. I also like viewing all my call history on line.
I think it depends on your cable provider and where you live. I know some people who have not had any problems.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

I use Comcast's phone service and haven't had a problem. The only problem anyone has with VOIP is when your cable's down you don't have phone so it just depends; if you're in an area where cable's down often I'd reconsider.

I'm on their "three for $33" package so I'm getting unlimited long distance calls plus 12 calling features for $33 a month. Not bad.

 

[sman]

I have been using Vonage for about 6 months. I have local line and 800# through them and pay about $35/month for both.
If I could keep my 800# and switch I would. I experience problems about 20% of the time. Audio just cuts out in the middle of a call where the caller can not hear me--although I can hear them. I have called Vonage about 5 times about it and each time they say they have made adjustments to fix it.
Some things I do like is the call forward feature. I have all calls ring my office phone and cell phone simultaneously. So, if cable goes out, the call still goes through to my cell phone. Plus if I am out of the office I still get those calls to my 800# on my cell. I also like viewing all my call history on line.
I think it depends on your cable provider and where you live. I know some people who have not had any problems.

Kyle,

Are you saying you DO have an 800# with Vonage? I would make the switch from my land line if I could transfer my existing 800#, but they tell me I can't. Please give details.

 

[NHB_MMA]

I have been using Vonage for about 6 months. I have local line and 800# through them and pay about $35/month for both.
If I could keep my 800# and switch I would. I experience problems about 20% of the time. Audio just cuts out in the middle of a call where the caller can not hear me--although I can hear them. I have called Vonage about 5 times about it and each time they say they have made adjustments to fix it.
Some things I do like is the call forward feature. I have all calls ring my office phone and cell phone simultaneously. So, if cable goes out, the call still goes through to my cell phone. Plus if I am out of the office I still get those calls to my 800# on my cell. I also like viewing all my call history on line.
I think it depends on your cable provider and where you live. I know some people who have not had any problems.

20% seems unacceptable to me, depending on what you're doing. If you're cold calling, you're going to lose some sales.

If you're dealing with an established customer base, they'll forgive you if your phone line goes down. They might sit there and think "That guy should get a real phone", but they'll forgive you. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

I'd recommend getting your toll free number from a place like ringcentral or tollfreemax. This was the 800 number is yours and you don't have to worry about switching providers. You can set it to ring any number, like your cell so just in case you lose power and everything goes down you can still get calls from your clients.

 

[NHB_MMA]

I use Comcast's phone service and haven't had a problem. The only problem anyone has with VOIP is when your cable's down you don't have phone so it just depends; if you're in an area where cable's down often I'd reconsider.

I'm on their "three for $33" package so I'm getting unlimited long distance calls plus 12 calling features for $33 a month. Not bad.

You probably know this, but it ain't gonna be 3 for $33 once the promotional period expires.

I have relatively little problems with my cable provider. I can count the number of times my internet has been down on one hand in the last year. If I'm looking primarily at this as a cold calling vehicle and I have my cell number on my business cards, I think it's a worthwhile venture. I always tell anyone the cell is the best way to reach me anyway. So, I think it's worth it for the savings, if it works out. Seems like different people have different luck with this stuff.

 

[NHB_MMA]

Are you saying you DO have an 800# with Vonage? I would make the switch from my land line if I could transfer my existing 800#, but they tell me I can't. Please give details.

Sunrocket doesn't offer an 800 service. The most important thing with a toll-free, like John said, is making sure you own the number and can take it with you, should you decide to change carriers. Have you ever tried to switch carriers for your 800#?

The most likely scenario is just to get the VOIP and direct your 800# to it. Unless you're doing some serious volume with the toll-free, you'll probably still save money.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

I use Comcast's phone service and haven't had a problem. The only problem anyone has with VOIP is when your cable's down you don't have phone so it just depends; if you're in an area where cable's down often I'd reconsider.

I'm on their "three for $33" package so I'm getting unlimited long distance calls plus 12 calling features for $33 a month. Not bad.

You probably know this, but it ain't gonna be 3 for $33 once the promotional period expires.

I have relatively little problems with my cable provider. I can count the number of times my internet has been down on one hand in the last year. If I'm looking primarily at this as a cold calling vehicle and I have my cell number on my business cards, I think it's a worthwhile venture. I always tell anyone the cell is the best way to reach me anyway. So, I think it's worth it for the savings, if it works out. Seems like different people have different luck with this stuff.

We've been through three different promotional offers since Comcast game out with their phone service. Each year it expires and they try to charge me the regular rates I just say "then cancel everything - I'll go with Verizon or Millenimium unless you give me the current promotion."

Still chugging along:-)

 

[sman]

Are you saying you DO have an 800# with Vonage? I would make the switch from my land line if I could transfer my existing 800#, but they tell me I can't. Please give details.

Sunrocket doesn't offer an 800 service. The most important thing with a toll-free, like John said, is making sure you own the number and can take it with you, should you decide to change carriers. Have you ever tried to switch carriers for your 800#?

The most likely scenario is just to get the VOIP and direct your 800# to it. Unless you're doing some serious volume with the toll-free, you'll probably still save money.

My current 800# piggy backs one of my lines. It is thorugh my long distance carrier. I think I'll look into what John said. It would be nice if I could transfer my existing 800# to one of those services he mentioned. We'll see.