Goodbye Landline, Hello Savings

Ever since Alexander Graham Bell was granted the first United States patent in 1876 for the telephone, communication has never been the same. The telephone gives people all over the world an opportunity to talk to each other no matter how far they are from each other by converting sound waves to electrical signals, transmitting them, and then converting the signals back to audible sound. 

So why is it that the percentage of people who continue to use landline phones drastically drops every single year? Research shows that a high number of households are deciding to opt against the use of a landline. According to a report by the U.S. Center for Disease Control National Health Information Survey, in December 2017, only 42.8% of American households still used a landline phone.¹

It’s not because the quality of landlines has come down over the years. Quite the opposite actually, as advanced technology has added several features to ensure that calls are clear and include options such as answering machines, etc. The reason for more and more people abandoning their landlines is because of the many newer, more user-friendly alternatives that have popped up instead, for example, VOIP and cell phones. These are the two main technologies that have replaced landlines, and below, we’ve taken a closer look at each.

Voice Over Internet Protocol, or VOIP as its popularly known, may sound new-fangled and perplexing, but in reality, it is quite an established system that is extremely easy to use. VOIP was originally developed in 1973 as an experiment by the American government, making the technology over 45 years old. It has been commercially available to the public for at least twenty years and has made many advances since it initially came out to market.

Where landlines use a physical wire connected to your phone to transmit your voice to the person on the other end, VOIP technology uses the internet. Not only will you have all of the functionality of a traditional landline with VOIP, but you’ll also receive several features and options to choose from, giving you more control over your calling experience. Some of the most popular features from today’s VOIP systems include mobility, portability, auto-attendants, call forwarding, call recording, call analytics, and more. There are no additional costs for these features with many VOIP systems and they are perfect for households and businesses! The combination of additional features and low monthly costs means that it will have a direct impact on a business’ bottom line and savings each month.

Users are often worried that using VOIP means that the person on the other end of your call must also be using a similar system or be hooked to the internet. This is a myth and VOIP numbers can make and receive calls with any other cell phone or traditional landline user.

Another feature of VOIP lines are that they are never impacted by signal issues like cell phones; mobile phones can have trouble with signal strength and call clarity depending on where you are at when trying to use them since you need to be within the range of a network tower. While coverage has greatly improved over the last decade, there are still several areas that can have spotty connections. As long as you have a broadband internet connection to connect to, you’ll have a VOIP line that is even more dependable and clear than a traditional landline.

The type of phone line you choose depends on what you want it to do for you; both VOIP and cell phones have distinct advantages and disadvantages. One thing is for sure, either option is prominently superior to a traditional landline and it may be time for to ditch the landline for a better alternative.

Sources:

 1. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhis/earlyrelease/wireless201806.pdf