Get In on the Cutting Edge:

Voice Over Internet

Protocol

By Tom Ogg

My wife Joanie Ogg, president of NACTA, had to go to NACTA headquarters in Alexandria, VA, for a couple of weeks to hire a new employee and was staying in a hotel near her office. I always miss her when she is gone, even though we stay in constant communication. I try to do little things to let her know I am thinking about her. So on this jaunt, I decided to surprise her with a dozen roses halfway through her trip.

When it came time to order them, I was working on a Web project so I jumped to Internet Explorer, opened Google and entered “Alexandria VA Florist” and did a keyword search. In about a second I was presented with a list of florists in Alexandria. But, since there was a blizzard going on in Alexandria, I wanted the closest one to Joanie’s office just to make sure they could deliver them.

It only took a few seconds to find one on the very next block. I immediately called the florist using SKYPE Out (Voice Over Internet Protocol), which I discussed in November 2004 Home Based Trade and had the florist check the back room with her cell phone so she could describe my choices to me. I selected some pink long-stemmed roses and then concluded the transaction by giving the lady Joanie’s address and my credit card info. All in all, it took me about four minutes from start to finish. They were delivered within 15 minutes and I received the rewarding “thank you” call from Joanie. She loved them.

A few days after, one of my techie-idea buddies, Sherry Kennedy (we share every out-of-the-box thing we run across with each other, as a way to stay on top of things), forwarded an article to me she had ran across that Google was looking for a VoIP negotiator of world-class magnitude. While I didn’t understand anything in the job description, the article speculated about the intent of Google.

“Google wants to incorporate VoIP into Internet searches” was the theory of the article.

I almost blacked out.
I thought to myself how obvious this was. Why couldn’t I have simply clicked on a “call now” button on the florist’s listing in Google and called them using VoIP? Why did I have to do the search, find the number and then go through the hassle of dialing it into SKYPE’s telephone pad and paying a whopping 1.6 euro cents a minute, when it should have been free?
It got me to thinking about how this might affect the travel industry and home based travel agents in particular, and it boggled my mind about ways VoIP and other new technologies will empower individual home based entrepreneurs. Searching and VoIP will allow every consumer to locate (and effectively communicate with) the specific individual they are seeking, by simply describing what it is they are looking for. I am sure you can see the benefit of this new idea.
VoIP has become viable because of the huge number of people using broadband connections that are constantly online. The speed and constant availability make VoIP a given. As the use of the Internet and broadband access grows, VoIP will be the direct beneficiary.

So what should you do now to take advantage of all this when it evolves? First, start using VoIP and get accustomed to its functionality. Introduce your clients to VoIP, especially if you have clients in out-of-state or country markets. Here is a lowdown on who offers it.

Free VoIP Service
I wrote about SKYPE (www.SKYPE.com) in my November 2004 column. There are now over 46 million SKYPE users. Businesses have sprung up selling items that can specifically be used with SKYPE and many of the magazines have rated it the best VoIP service. SKYPE is free to download and communicate with other SKYPE users, or you can make regular telephone calls with SKYPE Out for only 1.6 euro cents per minute. I suggest that you download and use SKYPE.
Dialpad (www.dialpad.com) offers VoIP connection to the landline telephone system, but does not offer free access to other users.

VoIP Paid Service
Vonage (www.vonage.com) offers VoIP unlimited calling in the U.S. and Canada and is used by a good number of users. I ran into a guy in Mexico who used Vonage exclusively to run his business in Arizona. He could talk all day and night, all month for only $24.99 a month from a little village in Nayarit, Mexico (we are talking the boonies here.)
All of these companies offer VoIP paid service.
AT&T Callvantage (www.usa.att.com/callvantage/)
Broadvox (www.Broadvox.net)
Lingo (www.lingo.com)
Verizon Voicewing (www.verizon.com/voicewing/)
VoicePulse (www.voicepulse.com)
Once you are familiar with VoIP, make sure that your name is coming up in keyword searches. Go to Google.com and enter your city and state name followed by your specialty. Are you in the listing? If not, who is, and how did they get there? Integrating your Web presence, VoIP and keyword searches is likely to play a major role in your future, as more and more consumers are becoming savvy Internet travelers.

Tom Ogg is editor and publisher of www.CruiseReviews.com and www.PortReviews.com