How Does Cloud SIP Trunking Differ From Traditional SIP Trunking?

Organizations are moving to the cloud to maximize the value of their communication systems. Nearly 90% of organizations use the cloud for a service or application. Moving your organization’s communications to the cloud can help it overcome limitations and challenges. 

Session initiation protocol (SIP) trunking is one technology that can deliver enhanced benefits through the cloud. Cloud SIP trunking eliminates the costly carrier fees and in-house hardware with simple and easy-to-maintain virtual communications.

Traditional SIP trunking requires an in-house private branch exchange (PBX) and relies on a local telecom carrier to provide the trunking. Trunking allows an organization to consolidate the communications of many branches, locations, or departments. 

Organizations have used traditional SIP for years, but cloud-based trunking is a relatively recent technology. This blog will discuss why organizations are moving their communications to the cloud and the benefits it can deliver. We will also discuss vital considerations when choosing a cloud SIP trunking provider.

Why Are Organizations Moving to Cloud SIP Trunking?

Organizations move to cloud SIP trunking to take advantage of its many benefits. SIP trunking provides unlimited capabilities for calling, messaging, and video calls using a SIP channel within the trunk. No matter how many communications your organization handles simultaneously, only a single trunk is needed. However, each simultaneous SIP call will need a channel, limiting concurrent calls to the number of channels. 

SIP trunking works with IP-enabled or cloud-based PBX systems. The trunk is a virtual phone line that combines all of the organization’s existing communications in one. The cloud-based protocol also allows your organization’s communications to scale indefinitely. 

Scalability is a primary reason organizations move to cloud SIP trunking. Choosing the right partner for your trunking can also help you save money by adding channels to your trunk without a setup fee or extensive wait times.

Related: What Are Internal Business Communication Solutions? 

Differences Between Cloud and Traditional SIP Trunking

Telecom carriers and cloud service providers both provide SIP trunking services. The main distinctions between the services are the network area and scalability. A local telecom carrier tends to focus on a single geographic location. The telecom uses a publicly switched telephone network (PSTN) to connect to the organization’s PBX and provide trunking. A PSTN generally operates in a specific country or region, meaning trunking is limited to the network area. Scaling a PSTN network can mean installing and paying for the additional line.

Cloud SIP trunking offers coverage over a wider area than a traditional carrier. Often the service provider’s network operates internationally, and the cloud allows the trunk to scale to the needs of any company. Cloud-based platforms can easily connect to your organization’s CRM, apps, and other software. Your organization can add voice calling or live chat to their CRM or a click-to-push button to an app for seamless communication with users.

Advantages of Cloud SIP Trunking

The cloud offers several benefits to simplify integration and use of SIP trunking. Your organization’s communications can also scale quickly to meet demand and unify in the cloud for management, monitoring, and software integration. Cloud SIP trunking offers the following benefits:

Flexibility

Cloud SIP trunking allows users in different branches or locations to communicate seamlessly using SIP devices, mobile devices, or landline phones. Calls can be answered and received using the business phone number outside of the office, allowing business continuity when employees are in a virtual office or another office location. The flexibility can also allow for hybrid and virtual office environments.

Features

SIP trunking is not only capable of voice or voice over internet protocol (VoIP), but it can also provide messaging and video enhanced by the cloud. SIP phones can provide typical PBX operations like call recording and conference calling along with high-definition phone calls, auto-attendant, custom caller ID, and integration in software. Mobile devices and personal computers can also use these extended functions from a software application called a softphone offered by cloud SIP trunking providers.

Reduced Costs

Cloud SIP trunking helps most organizations lower their costs, not only by reducing in-house maintenance but also by lowering carrier-related fees. An organization can use its existing telephony hardware and devices, depending on the cloud service provider. 

Traditional trunking carriers rely on a PSTN gateway that requires a subscription fee for voice and data service. Since Cloud SIP trunking happens over the internet, only one subscription and an internet service provider are required.

Cloud-based SIP trunking providers often charge per channel, allowing for two-way communication on each channel. An organization can subscribe to the number of channels they need for each session without overpaying. Trunking allows the entire organization’s communications to centralize for simple and cost-effective management in the cloud. There are no additional charges for minutes or long-distance calling, only the per channel cost and local taxes.

Scalability

Cloud SIP trunking scales up or down easily, depending on your organization’s needs. It is not limited to a local network, so your communications work internationally, and you can easily add more channels as needed. Cloud SIP trunking is only limited by the number of channels your organization has and the bandwidth your ISP provides for each concurrent session. Your organization can add users and phone numbers and make or receive calls without limits.

Low-Maintenance

When your organization’s SIP trunking is in the cloud, the service provider handles maintenance, upgrades, and security. You only have a small amount of physical hardware and infrastructure to maintain, such as an existing PBX and the devices. Updating SIP devices and softphones can be simplified with a downloadable software update.

SIP trunking consolidates your organization’s communications to a single trunk, making it easy to manage everything from a control panel. Employees can also use their existing CRM and consolidate their devices to a single computer or SIP device. It can be easier to train employees and reduce helpdesk tickets.

Reliability

Cloud-based SIP trunking offers exceptional reliability and near-perfect uptime if you choose the right partner. The ideal network provides redundancy to mitigate outages, rerouting calls to other data centers throughout North America to avoid interruption. As mentioned above, cloud SIP trunking is highly flexible, allowing for business continuity when an office is closed. Employees can work from a mobile device or PC at home in a virtual office environment.

Considerations When Moving to Cloud SIP Trunking

Organizations are rapidly adopting the cloud for more flexible and scalable communications. The pandemic spurred many organizations to move from local systems to cloud-based infrastructure. Developing a strategy to move your organization’s communications to the cloud is vital to getting the value it can offer.

Plan In Phases

In most cases, your existing SIP trunking or PBX system will not be ready to migrate to the cloud at one time. Create a multi-phase rollout plan for your migration to cloud SIP trunking to provide flexibility. Create milestones and goals to keep your migration on track, and outline which systems will migrate first and last.

Create a dedicated team to carry out each phase in the process or its entirety. Secure a budget for the migration with enough flexibility to ensure unexpected costs are covered.

Migration Strategy

Migrate large groups by dividing them into logical groups, such as departments or branches. Begin with your most simple services, such as office phones. Move into more complex phone systems, such as security desk phones, elevator phones, and emergency parking lot phones. You can also incorporate messaging, video calls, and conference calling features.

Partner Network

Finding an excellent partner for your organization’s cloud SIP trunking service is essential. The partner network will ensure you have enough security, availability, reliability, and scalability to grow and support your users.

Your cloud service provider should have virtually no downtime and excellent reliability. They should be able to scale with your users and services without excessive fees, quickly providing extra bandwidth when you need it. The service should be secure and have monitoring tools that your organization can use to monitor performance and calls. 

Quality of service and failover services are also vital to ensure that calls are smooth and free from interruptions throughout your geographic market area. You should verify that the network you partner with works well with your internet service provider and existing hardware.

Related: SIP Trunking Providers – What’s the Difference Between Them? 

Partnering With a Cloud SIP Trunking Provider for Optimal Benefits

Cloud SIP trunking provides various benefits over traditional SIP trunking. It eliminates the in-house infrastructure and limited availability and scalability of a local telecom carrier using a PSTN. The cloud is easy to integrate and use, cost-effective, and highly scalable. If your organization is switching to the cloud for its SIP trunking, finding an ideal partner is critical in providing the most value.

Cloud SIP trunking from SIP.US allows you to use the legacy or IP-enabled PBX system your organization already uses. You pay for each SIP channel your organization requires and can make calls from almost any mobile device, landline, or PC with softphone software. Cloud-based SIP trunking can also integrate into your organization’s apps, CRM, and other software. The cloud is scalable, cost-effective, and helps your organization communicate seamlessly. Get Started with SIP.US today.