VoIP Alternatives for SMBs: How to Evaluate the Costs of Premises and Hosted IP PBX Options is an interesting read.
VoIP is doing really well in large enterprises and is also achieving excellent market penetration with residential customers. However, VoIP has had much more difficulty penetrating the SMB (Small and Medium Business) market.
Hosted VoIP solutions may be key to the success of VoIP technology in the SMB market.
Here's an excerpt from the article:
VoIP can bring significant cost savings to Small and Medium Businesses. But in light of the different types of VoIP and the diversity of service providers, SMBs should evaluate their options carefully before making the switch. The TCO equation detailed in this paper provides an excellent starting point for SMBs to evaluate the economic consequences of product choices.
SMBs can use TCO analysis to determine their total cost per employee per month for voice and data services. Once this is calculated, they can easily compare the economic impact of each type of VoIP product (in other words, IP PBX and Hosted IP PBX) and of traditional voice and data services.
Before definitively selecting a service provider, SMBs should also consider such factors as the providerâs responsiveness during the sales process, the strength and reliability of its VoIP network, additional service options and the scalability of the proposed solution.