Skype - Is it good value for Money?

[Paul Waller]

I was just wondering if anybody is using Skype for business and if it represents good value for money? Part of our business is making lots of calls to potential clients in the UK and we are looking at the best cost effective way to do this so any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[ffox]

At £2.95 per month per user for unlimited calls to UK landlines it's very good value for money. Quality is an issue though. Skype tends to dynamically consume bandwidth for each channel open. The longer a call runs, the lower the quality. Restarting the Skype application on the PC seems to clear the issue, but you will need to take that requirement on board during testing. It goes without saying that you will need a very good Internet connection.

 

[bsewell]

That seems insanely cheap! If only I could scrap line rental and just pay for internet at home!

 

[Talay]

I use Skype and Voipfone and Voipfone has less issues and more reliable call quality. Skype's annual subscriptions for overseas calls (for my uses) cannot be beat.

For tracking, back office stuff, I imagine Voipfone is far ahead but Skype has the ability to deal in video, speech and text with file transfer all in the one application and at the same time, which is hugely advantageous.

 

[Excel Expert]

People speak highly of Voipfone and expect they will be along to explain their offering soon enough.

I have used Skype for about 4 years now and never had any of the problems described above. There have been one or two issues but they have been related to my broadband connection more than anything else.

It is probably worth at least giving both Voipfone and Skype a try to see which you get on with best. If support is an issue for you I suspect the support from Voipfone is far better than Skypes.

 

[Talay]

I needed to call some mobile numbers in the Netherlands today and Skype's costs were around $2 for a month giving 60 minutes of calls to mobiles. Nothing else comes close for convenience when you factor in all the other "cheaper" providers charge a 15p or so set up charge. Can also be linked with Skype to go number where you dial a landline number and it forwards under your subscription to the foreign mobile, making it easy from a mobile as well !

 

[aarthielumalai]

I like skype Paul. I've been using it for my business for 5 years now. Their service is very good for their price, and the fact that you can can make voice calls is a big plus too, especially if your clients are out of your country.

I haven't used the UK subscription yet (I mostly use my mobile to make calls to my clients), but it only costs about $10 a month to make US calls, and you get unlimited calls. Now that's a steal if you ask me.

There are better options of course, there always is, but if you are looking for a cost effective option that works well, then I'll recommend skype any day.

 

[Simon.P]

Does anyone use Skype for its answerphone and forwarding features?
I seem to recall (albeit, i haven't used it for a while and perhaps there is a newer interface) that there was no option to save answerphone messages and that once listened to they were effectively downloaded to that computer so they couldn't be listened to elsewhere.

H

 

[Remys]

Skype can be great, but there's just so many problems with it. If anything, I think Google's talk is a good thing to look into as well. I think it works just as good, if not better at times.

 

[elenaolga]

I think Skype could have problems with internet connecttion

 

[DuaneJackson]

I ran a 40-person business using just voipfone for our calls. Works extremely well as long as you have a decent internet connection.

 

[BrotherMarkinter]

Skype can be good if you have a good internet connection. I wouldn't consider it as a replacement for a traditional phone though in an office with many workers but it does have it's uses. Google Talk is another I would recommend you looking at.

 

[darlen78]

No doubt Skype is good option for business...free chatting free video calling...saves lot of money ...and At £2.95 you get unlimited calling in uk ...its great for me

 

[Barbara McKinney]

For me Skype is the cheapest way to communicate with your clients. Most companies nowadays are using Skype for business purposes and it worked well.

 

[Dlin]

While everybody is generating leads/customers in different mediums skype is a better way to communicate clients and other companies on requirements and strategies, for step by step instructions, demonstrations and clarifications. It's a great instrument of communications for a long distance meeting.

 

[easidoo]

As most of the posts above say, Skype surely offers a really good value for money. For the cost, a rare occurrence of lower quality is acceptable. But, what I would question is the security of skype communication. My personal skype account was hacked and someone foreign used all my credit. When I reported it to MS, they did not take any responsibility. Few days later, there was publication in the news (around Nov'12) where MS accepted skype accounts being hacked really easily. I never got any refund or apology for what happened to my account.

This, obviously, prompted me to look at alternatives. I found a few good solutions -
a. Asterisk hosted solutions
b. Hipchat
c. Big blue button (open source)

For business purpose, depending on the type of communication, I now choose the channel. For example, the internal team communication is via Hipchat which we host internally and security is paramount for us. For a presentation session with the clients, I use big blue button which is far more feature rich then skype business video/ screen sharing function.

I must accept, I still use skype because the adoptability of skype is too high and more or less everyone you want to communicate with outside our organisation has skype on the phone/mac/pc.

 

[Ethicsandprofits]

Its really good bang for your buck, but if your connection is bad.....well buckle up

 

[paulWW]

I was just wondering if anybody is using Skype for business and if it represents good value for money? Part of our business is making lots of calls to potential clients in the UK and we are looking at the best cost effective way to do this so any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

skype is the best way to communicate with our known people. and the best thing about it that its free.

 

[paulWW]

While everybody is generating leads/customers in different mediums skype is a better way to communicate clients and other companies on requirements and strategies, for step by step instructions, demonstrations and clarifications. It's a great instrument of communications for a long distance meeting.

So how do you think its better than our mobile video calls on careers?

 

[naxtech]

I've found Skype to be both good and bad. In the majority of cases it's been good for all types of calls but depending on the connection of the other person the quality could be not so great. But most times it has worked well for me.

 

[Cloudcandy Sales]

Skype is a very helpful for business purpose as we communicate a lot with US, NL & other clients It is good value for money........

 

[TimFallon]

I've also found it be good most of the time though on less reliable internet connections or when bandwidth is limited it could be better. Still for what you pay it is a very sweet deal.

 

[Kabir Ahmed]

Skype do not have their own network, which may explain some of the issues with their service as detailed in this thread.

I firmly believe that if you intend to make/receive serious business calls you shouldn't even consider Skype.

Personal calls to a friend or relative anywhere in the world, great.

Choppy voice quality and no guaranteed CLI whilst trying to broker the next major deal... I wouldn't risk that for that for a few pence. Would you?

 

[MikePNV]

For me Skype is the cheapest way to communicate with clients.

 

[cjd]

For me Skype is the cheapest way to communicate with clients.

Well it is when it's free. When you have to break out of their own little world and call a normal telephone number, it's not cheap anymore.

 

[astraqomuk]

if you are serious about the way you want to interact with customers and don't want to make a bad first impression...do not use skype!

There are plenty of professional VoIP providers out there (including AstraQom UK ) that can set you up with great service, plenty of minutes and great features.

Yes they might be a bit more expensive but your telephone system can be your business card and first impressions are hard to change.

Cheers!

 

[Saffwood]

Hi, Skype is improving as Microsoft have bought them. However Skype started life a predominetly a peer to peer service (skype to skype) and was aimed a the consumer market rather than business. As such Microsoft a playing catch up with this service. With specialist providers of hosted VoIP phone systems you'll find that these are, and always were, aimed at the business community. The big things for VoIP for business is the support. I've heard mixed reviews about MS support, but having someone on hand who knows your setup and react instantly if there is an issue is vital. If you need any support, feel free to give us a call at Saffwood Communications.

 

[Excel Expert]

Astraqom - I would have to disagree with that. I have been using Skype in my business for around 5 years now and I have never had a problem. I have clients from all around the world who only call me via Skype.

This does not make it the best solution - people, like CJD, offer an excellent service (going by their reviews on here) - but neither does it make it the worst solution.

 

[astraqomuk]

Hi Carl,

I respect your opinion and I agree that skype is an option but in my personal opinion (and I think many others would agree) is that using Skype as your business line is like using yahoo or gmail for your business email.

We have Company X and Company Y and both of them offer IDENTICAL services but company X has a professional phone system (IVR/Auto-attendant, Dedicated Conference Number etc.) and the other is using Skype...what would your instinct tell you to choose ?

We have Company X, Y and Z and all of them offer IDENTICAL services but Company X is the only one that has a Freephone number that you can call for FREE to get in touch with them. Which one would be more inclined to call FIRST ?

Your phone service is your business card and is very often the first channel of communication that a client will use to get in touch with you. It can very well be the single detail that sets you apart from your competition.

Cheers!

 

[cjd]

Personally, I use Skype for international video calls between the family - for which it can't be beaten.

For business use though it's expensive and only really of use as a one to one service with people you are confident about your relationship with.

 

[Excel Expert]

Hi AstraQom,

I think we have slightly crossed wires.

Skype, if you pay for it has an ordinary number as well. Mine is an 02921 number which is a variation on Cardiff's (my nearest city) 02920. That is the number that is on all of my advertising not my Sky address (TheExcelExpert). On my website I also provide a Skype link / button along side my buttons for Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

I would say 99.9% of my first time callers are via my Skype number. Of those that convert in to sales about 30% to 40% will switch to calling me on Skype. Over 80% of my clients are from abroad which is probably why so many use Skype. At one point I had a New York number as well but my American clients still kept follow up calls on Skype to Skype. If 80% of my business was from the UK I suspect that all of my clients would contact me via the number and none via my Skype name.

You are perfectly right though. If you put your only way of calling you down as a random Skype address it is no better than advertising your email as a gMail or Hotmail account.

 

[Excel Expert]

CJD - Another good point re the costs. My business is a bespoke service type business and I only deal with 2 to 3 clients a month. As a result the number of calls I make in a month does not even hit their lowest of their thresholds. So I personally dont see a great deal of cost. If I was a business making a lot of calls I would have probably dumped Skype ages ago.

 

[astraqomuk]

This is the thing, Skype can be used for low amount of calls.
But a business for which the phone is a powerful and productive tool in their activity will prefer an alternative to Skype, be it traditional phone lines or VoIP.

 

[reacha]

I had to explain to my next door neighbour that it is not free since you had to pay for an internet connection and usage; obviously the way around this is to stop having an additional telephone landline and also a broadband connection at the same time. But if you have cable TV and uncapped internet bundle then it’s a no brainer if you call other Skype users. But you can run Skype without a cable connection, just use Skype for mobile phone app,

 

[cjd]

They really don't care you know......

http://technews.tmcnet.com/hosted-v...e-rescues-londons-ditched-skype-customers.htm

 

[Excel Expert]

This is the thing, Skype can be used for low amount of calls.
But a business for which the phone is a powerful and productive tool in their activity will prefer an alternative to Skype, be it traditional phone lines or VoIP.

Totally agree - If you do not have a low number of calls (like me) then you really need to be speaking to CJD.

 

[astraqomuk]

Totally agree - If you do not have a low number of calls (like me) then you really need to be speaking to CJD.

Or...to other VoIP providers

 

[cjd]

T

Or...to other VoIP providers

there are other providers?

 

[astraqomuk]

Sure there are CJD...if you're interested I can send you a quote

 

[cjd]

To misquote the Fat Controller from Thomas the Tank Engine

"There are only two ways to run a telephone company, the Voipfone way and the wrong way."

If you're still active here in 12 months, you may send me a quote of your own ;-)