Top VoIP Implementation Challenges: Identify & OvercomeTop VoIP Implementation Challenges: Identify & Overcome

To streamline your implementation, get ready to tackle quality, network, security, and infrastructure challenges.

Voice over IP is winning the telecommunications race. In fact, according to recent market data from Wise Guy Reports, mobile VoIP in particular is expected to grow at a 28% compound annual growth rate over the next four years, spurred in part by the evolution of both LTE and 4G connectivity. Yet no technology is perfect, and many companies discover after they've doubled-down on VoIP systems that things aren't running as smoothly as they'd hoped. Here's a look at some of the top VoIP implementation challenges and how to both track and overcome them.

In the early days of VoIP, calls were historically associated with poor quality and spotty service, as Stephanie Clarke wrote in Polycom-sponsored blog, The VoIP Report. While most of the early technology kinks have been addressed, many companies may still find that VoIP deployments don't live up to expectations when it comes to call clarity and quality.

Tracking the problem means taking a look at possible failure points. While your provider could be the missing link here, if it has a track record of great service, call quality issues are probably linked to something else. For example, if you're trying to get great VoIP over a wireless connection, chances are, you don't have the necessary throughput. Another potential cause? No dedicated quality-of-service (QoS) protocols that prioritize VoIP traffic ahead of other data during calls. The result? Jittery calls and possible packet loss. Go wired, get solid QoS in place, and these problems should evaporate.

Another common VoIP problem is that the service isn't available 24/7 as promised. Here, the culprit is often local Internet connections -- if your ISP is throttling your service or you're experiencing regular Internet failures, VoIP service will never perform as advertised. Think of it like cloud computing: While this technology offers a superior way to provision compute resources and services, everything falls apart if your "last mile" isn't consistent. To solve the problem of failed connections, start by taking a hard look at your ISP and current bandwidth. If you're experiencing regular outages or don't have the pipeline space, you may need to upgrade or change providers.

VoIP security is quickly becoming a hot topic as the data packets used to send voice and video calls are subject to greater scrutiny, both by government agencies and malicious actors. Here, it's critical to select the right provider, since not all VoIP services and suppliers are created equal. Some quick-and-dirty offerings come with great throughput but run your unencrypted VOIP data over public Internet connections, making it an easy target for interested hackers. Take the time to source a security-conscious offering that includes default encryption and the ability to connect end to end using a virtual private network (VPN).

Sometimes, you check off all the boxes above and your VoIP implementation still won't work. If that's the case, take a look at your existing hardware and network connections. While much of this technology has a lengthy lifespan, aging infrastructure may not be able to support the bandwidth or processing power needed for multi-participant video calls or streaming multimedia sessions. Planning is key here: Better to evaluate infrastructure first, then tie in a VoIP system, rather than trying to "shoehorn" VoIP protocols into a system that doesn't offer the right support.

VoIP is a hot-ticket technology, but that doesn't mean it's problem-free. To streamline your implementation, get ready to tackle quality, network, security and infrastructure challenges.