Tweet

Vendors Haven't Quite Nailed SMB VoIP Market

Guest post by: Ann All

Article Overview: While experts have been hailing Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) as "the next big thing" for SMBs for some time now, many SMBs don't appear to see it that way. What is slowing adoption?

Vendors Haven't Quite Nailed SMB VoIP Market

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) has been pitched as "the next big thing" for SMBs for some time now, due to its ability to cut telecommunications costs and offer more flexible communications options than traditional telecom systems.

Yet VoIP hasn't exactly taken SMBs by storm. Interest in VoIP among SMBs surveyed by Savatar Research declined from 42 percent in 2005's third quarter to 27 percent in 2006's third quarter.

A key problem, says Savatar Research President John Macario, in a September 2006 interview with IT Business Edge, SMBs and VoIP: Ready, Set ... Wait, is that "there is no national brand, no recognized set of service providers actively and aggressively targeting the SMB market."

There is no SMB equivalent of Vonage in the consumer space or Avaya in the enterprise space, Macario says. And while SMBs are most interested in the cost-cutting possibilities of VoIP, vendors "still tend to sell on features rather than economics."

AMI-Partners analyst Sanjeev Aggarwal echoed Macario's sentiments in a February 2007 interview with IT Business Edge, VoIP Making Inroads Among SMBs, noting that "vendors need to do a better job of understanding SMBs' products and services needs."

That situation is likely to improve as a slew of vendors, including Cisco, Nortel, Microsoft and Alcatel-Lucent, bring packages of VoIP services geared toward SMBs to market.

But there is still plenty of room for improvement, if Microsoft's Response Point, a VoIP system for companies with up to 50 employees, is any indication. A Microsoft partner who viewed the product at a recent conference described himself as "thoroughly unimpressed," reports CRN.

According to the article, Response Point has such "glaring omissions" as a support for remote extensions and T1 trunking.

"There's no reason for a vendor with a semi-functional VoIP product to expect any level of acceptance in the market," summed up the anonymous "unimpressed" partner.

Despite the challenges, AMI-Partners is predicting a robust compound annual growth rate of 15.6 percent for the next three years in the SMB IP communications and managed services market, reports ComputerWeekly.com.

Related Articles
  Misconceptions About VoIP
  VoIP: Trendsetter in Mobility
  FCC Formally Proposes National Broadband Plan
  Hosted VoIP- An Option
  Internet Telephony Has Changed Communications
  Factors that Help VoIP Phone Systems Remain Ahead of the Competition
  From POTS to VOIP treet mart Marketers have a powerful new weapon
  The Next Generation VoIP contact center solutions
  Vendor Relationships
  Blue Birds or Vultures?
  Vendor Improvements
  What is VoIP - Part 2 (cont.)
  iPad: A Miss for its Wi-Fi Function
  3 Simple Steps to Marketing Even If You Hate Marketing
  Contribution of Call Center Technologies
  What is VoIP - Part 1
  Making Better Decisions for Your VoIP System
  Marketing – How Do You Know What Is Working?
  10 Points to Consider in Your VoIP Choice
  SAP, ORACLE And The CLOUD….

Article Tags:



Related Forum Posts
Forum design - EvanCarmichael.com - Just wanted to say the new look forum is great! Seem a lot easier to use and more modern! Welldone Havent been here for a while, when was it updated?
Re: New McDonalds McCafe concept... - You mean I can get my breakfast burritos and a great cup of coffee all at one location??? Sounds fabu!! Havent seen it yet in Port Hope (or Toronto for that matter) but I think I would try it out. I'm sick of paying $5. for a latte..... J
Re: How should i promote a new website? - ignore this message IF it's already been stated. I haven't had a chance to read all the replies and i have to jet from the office... I suggest marketing where ever your Target Market congregates. If it's a forum of concerned parents - go there. Strike up a deal with the forum owner (JV) and have him promote it to the list of members (Integration Marketing). If you want to go with Forums then i would partner with a parent who is a frequent poster/moderator on a particular Target Market Forum and have him/her add your link to their signature. That was just a thought but it's not as intense once you get buy in from the Forum owner or high ranked poster/moderator. Hope that sparks some new ideas.
Re: Ideas For Business - Hello Lucy, you may consider this list for Ideas for Business: (Top 23 list) Rank Company 1 Google 2 Genentech 3 Wegmans Food Markets 4 Container Store 5 Whole Foods Market 6 Network Appliance 7 S.C. Johnson & Son 8 Boston Consulting Grp. 9 Methodist Hospital Sys. 10 W.L. Gore & Associates 11 Cisco Systems 12 David Weekley Homes 13 Nugget Market 14 Qualcomm 15 American Century Invest. 16 Starbucks Coffee 17 Quicken Loans 18 Station Casinos 19 Alston & Bird 20 QuikTrip 21 Griffin Hospital 22 Valero Energy 23 Vision Service Plan
Re: Do Women Play the Stock Market? - I also play Stock Market.....


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Are You Fulfilled

Purchasing Real Estate using the SBA 504 Loan

Getting The Media Attention You Deserve

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.