Starting A VoIP Business From Scratch

Apr 28
07:51

2010

Matthew N. Larson

Matthew N. Larson

  • Share this article on Facebook
  • Share this article on Twitter
  • Share this article on Linkedin

Becoming a branded VoIP reseller is always the easier option when you want to get into the VoIP industry. However, there are some entrepreneurs who'd want to build their VoIP from scratch. Here's a basic guide to doing this.

mediaimage

It may not be a popular option but there are still those entrepreneurs who are interested in becoming their own VoIP – meaning,Starting A VoIP Business From Scratch Articles they want to build their VoIP from scratch. I have to tell you that this is no easy feat. You will need about 100X the amount you need to get started as a VoIP reseller. Plus, you need a great amount of time, skill and patience just to keep going. You can expect not to earn anything back for a couple of years. In addition, you have the additional costs of consistent software and hardware upgrades, as needed based on the current technology standards and your number of end-users. 

The easier and faster option is to just become a branded VoIP reseller. You can still get the quality that you’d want in the services that you offer if you choose a great wholesale VoIP provider. This way, you can execute your marketing plan right away and work towards earning a decent profit, without worrying about technical aspect of the VoIP industry.

But, if you are still bent on going at this on your own, these are what you’ll need.

1.     trunking sources, at least two

2.      A system to manage your  trunks when it comes to handling routing fail-over capacities and rating, and tracking destination-specific trunk failures

3.      A system to manage user connections

4.      A system that auto-configures ATAs for residential clients

5.      Servers for Class 5 features

6.      Servers and management systems for voice mail services and other call features

7.      Web interfaces where you end users can manage their features, access their account details and more

8.      Database servers

9.      Full-featured web servers

10.  Switching systems that can be controlled via database or direct web APIs

11.  Customer and technical support for end-users and resellers

12.  A Billing platform that can manage recurring billing and fraud monitoring

 

To get all these systems going, you need major investment in hardware:

1.      2 servers just for databases

2.      2 web servers

3.      2 session border controllers

4.      2 class 4 switch servers

5.      2 servers for voicemail

6.      A redundant network-accessible mass storage system for voicemail

These hardware requirements are only suitable for a maximum of 2,000 end-users. If you want to expand your user base, your hardware needs and costs multiply. At the same time, in order to provide better quality service, you need top-end equipment that can efficiently handle immense load.

Likewise, even if you consider the free software available, this might still not be the better route. You need expensive professional help to get these free software working for you, just the way you need them to be. For instance, free PBX software doesn’t work for residential users. You need to invest in software development and maintenance.

As many have found it, it is not that easy to build your VoIP from ground out. And still, now is the time to act. The VoIP business has a burgeoning market. The sooner you can position your product, the better are your chances of securing a loyal customer base. Becoming a branded VoIP reseller may just be your best option.