Cloud technology is starting to have a major impact on the communications sector. Klaris Chua, a cloud communications expert, wrote a detailed overview of the trends in cloud communications in Martech Advisor. Most of her discussions focused on the implications of cloud solutions for email and interconnected apps. However, there is a growing demand for cloud VoIP services too. Cloud communications could be preferable to traditional mobile calls. Here are some benefits that need to be assessed.
Cloud Technology Creates Centralized Communications Platforms for Groups
Chua made an interesting observation in her post. She said that the emergence of new cloud communication technology has started to have a dampening effect on email. Email is quick and efficient for communications. Nobody disputes that. However, it is also an impersonal form of communicating. It also isn’t very practical for having group conversations. One of the issues is that it is very easy for people in the chain to accidentally delete the email on their own end, which means that they will not be able to contribute to the rest of the conversation. It can also be a huge hassle for people to read through a long email chain, especially when dozens of other people are contributing to it. Important messages can be lost in the process, especially if some people are replying frequently with off-topic messages. Chua points out that people are beginning to use cloud-based communications platforms instead. This allows them to have messaging platforms that are specific to their group. This is a much more feasible way for them to share group content without risking it all getting lost in the process. This is a valid argument. However, Chua misses a much bigger change that cloud communications are bringing. Cloud technology is going to likely have an even bigger effect on mobile communications than email. The reality is that calling someone on your mobile device is far less feasible than even using email. It makes a lot more sense to use a cloud communications service that helps you talk to many people at once. According to Ooma, this is one of the reasons businesses are turning to cloud systems cloud systems like these.
Cloud Technology Lower the Cost of Communicating
Brian Martucci of Money Crashers wrote an insightful post on the cost benefits of using cloud technology to communicate. The usage costs are one of the benefits. However, there are several other reasons that they are preferable. These benefits include:
- There are very limited hardware requirements, which makes them more affordable to set up.
- They tend to have very flexible subscription models.
- They are fully compatible with mobile devices, while also offering cheaper options than traditional phone calls. In other words, you can use your mobile device to connect to the cloud and call people for much lower rates than you would with a traditional phone call.
- The infrastructure of maintaining these systems if much less complicated, which saves a lot of money on administrative costs for customers and operators alike.
- You can make calls overseas for a much lower rate.
There are plenty of reasons that they are preferable.
Cloud VoIP is Overcoming Some of its Historical Limitations
When Martucci first published his article on Money Crashers, there were also some drawbacks of using VoIP. However, those drawbacks have become less pronounced in recent years. He pointed out that the barriers to using cloud VoIP services for global connectivity were a bit high. It was still possible to use them, but there servicing issues that often led to calls being disrupted. Fortunately, technology has progressed considerably. People can use cloud VoIP to make more reliable calls to their counterparts in other parts of the world. This has become very important as more businesses go international and onboard remote workers in other countries. There are still some challenges with connecting overseas, but they are not a lot worse than it would be to use a traditional business phone conference.
Cloud VoIP is Becoming a Preferable Alternative to Mobile Calling
Mobile calling was a big deal when it first came around. Today, it is slowly being phased out. People still rely on mobile devices for many reasons, but they aren’t using them as much for phone calls. This is largely because cloud VoIP is proving to be a better alternative.