How to avoid the alphabet soup of business communication

In the internet-based communication tools landscape, there are many acronyms tossed around, and for decision-makers that already feel like they are in over their head, it can easily become alphabet soup. However, being able to keep the letters separate is crucial for organizations looking to improve overall operations.

Two of the biggest tools in this arena are Voice over IP (VoIP) and Session Initiated Protocol (SIP). While they operate in a similar way, they provide much different benefits for an organization. On top of that, they can be combined as part of a unified communication solution.

A recent blog post from Toll Free Forwarding examined the differences. At its core, VoIP is using the internet as the backbone for a telephone system. It filters, organizes and directs traffic from a central network. SIP is a solution where multimedia and voice messages are sent to multiple parties but the individual devices receiving the information handles the processing power.

"SIP and VoIP communications systems can be linked so that your call center can better handle inbound communication," the article reads. "Many enterprise and small business apps on mobile devices are also VoIP and SIP friendly. As you move forward with unified communication systems, you should work with your IT department to make sure your current hardware and software solutions are compatible with a SIP or VoIP setup."

With the help of an IT consulting firm that specializes in communication solutions, any company can easily deploy business VoIP systems and SIP solutions to create a powerful tool.