The field of business communications is undergoing a rapid change at a rate that is phenomenal. Better developments aimed at improving both the quality and price are being made almost every day. With newer developments, business communication is becoming cheaper and at the same time, its quality is being improved. The pace of development is not surprising because of the potential role that communications play in business organizations. The very functioning of any organization depends on how communication takes place between its employees and customers. Not surprisingly, success to any organization comes with its ability in choosing better options and in remodeling itself whenever market situations call it to do so. The field of business communications is no exception. Opting for better technologies like VoIP over the traditional land line and cellular phones can give business organizations an upper edge in the already saturated and highly competent market.

VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol is a form of communication in which voice is transmitted over the Internet in the form of data packets just like email. It is also known by other common names like Internet telephony or broadband telephony. VoIP can dramatically cut down telecommunications costs and at the same time boost business productivity. A VoIP business phone system can effectively replace the current communications system with minimal expenditure. VoIP also offers some features that traditional forms of communication like land line and cellular telephony cannot provide. Using VoIP in combination with software like Ventrilo, anyone can make phone calls over the Internet. This ease of operation that is comparable with traditional land line telephony makes VoIP communication an indispensable part of business organizations.

VoIP can have a significant impact on a business organization. Using software like Ventrilo along with the Internet, business organizations can cut costs and at the same time improve internal communications. Many VoIP software like Ventrilo are very easy to configure and use. Using Ventrilo, all the computers of the business organization can be connected together. Irrespective of where employees are located, either in the office or at a remote location, the business organization can always stay in contact with employees and monitor the progress. Interconnectivity with other networks is another advantageous feature of VoIP. It is also possible to communicate with land line and cellular networks. If an employee doesn’t have access to the VoIP network, he / she can still be contacted at his / her telephone or mobile number using the same VoIP network. But the greatest merit of using VoIP is that it is possible to hold internal business meetings over the Internet. Though conventional telephony may also offer similar features, VoIP excels in this aspect because of the price factor: VoIP is much cheaper than conventional telephony.

Despite many advantages of using Ventrilo and VoIP in general, there are certain considerations that have to be taken into account. These aspects include the sound quality and convenience. Way bay then, VoIP required both the persons to be in front of their computers. Added to this limitation, the sound quality was poor and conventional land line telephony outweighed VoIP in this regard. However, this is no longer the situation now. Developments in both the hardware and software fields have improved the sound quality offered by VoIP. Internet speeds have increased dramatically and at the same time better technologies like DSL have made Internet access much cheaper and accessible worldwide. This increased sound quality has compelled many companies to abandon conventional communication systems altogether in favor of VoIP. An advantage with VoIP is that it can be customized according to the needs of the organization. VoIP software like Ventrilo can be tweaked to get maximum output with minimum load on the infrastructure.

When compared with telephone networks, operating costs of VoIP are much lower. Traditional telephone companies have to compete with competitors in a market that is already saturated. Further adding to it, industry regulations are rigid and costly. In the end, conventional telephone networks are costly to operate and maintain. However on the other hand, VoIP costs much lower, making it an obvious choice for business communications. VoIP also enable a single network for both phones and business data. Maintaining a single network is cheaper than two different networks. This in turn means that more resources and infrastructure costs can be saved for utilization in other sectors of the organization.

VoIP technology is in a process of continuous evolution. New innovative developments aimed at small business organizations are in progress. VoIP is also being integrated across a number of devices like PDAs. "Hybrid" cell phones that can use both VoIP and conventional cellular phone networks depending upon availability have also come into existence. Irrespective of the size of business, VoIP is a definite option to consider in place of traditional communications if efficiency and costs are the driving forces