Phone recording which is also known as call recording or voice logging, allows businesses to keep a record of their conversations by storing them in audio.
Being able to store and play back recorded Calls is beneficial for different organizations. Recorded sales calls are useful resources when you are training a new sales crew. It also gives you the means to check your records, handle challenges, comply with laws and work better as a company. The following blog will discuss VoIP call recording, the best features and softwares.
What is the Concept of Recording VoIP Calls
It is safe and dependable to use VoIP call recording for cloud storage of two-way audio of a conversation. This technology has moved from being used in big call centers to being accessible to small businesses.
Today, it isn’t easy to record phone calls without the proper tools. Enabling call recording for your company in the cloud is as simple as setting it for groups, for all employees or for individuals alone.
Call recording allows both individuals and companies to review and check on any verbal promises. With call recording, people can quickly recall too-fast talk from their conversations.
VoIP Call Recording Features
Significant VoIP call recording features are:
i. Cloud Storage
Major VoIP suppliers usually have free call recording storage for 6-13 months and customers can even download the recordings or upgrade for longer storage as desired
ii. Call Transcription
It’s possible to get an audio recording transcribed while the call is going on or after it has finished
iii. Call Tagging
Every call that comes in is assigned a label to identify its subject, important terms, place where the call is made from or similar details
iv. Noise Cancellation and HD Voice
Because High Definition (HD) voice carries more voice frequencies, the sound is cleaner and there’s less chance of hearing background noise.
v. Recording Alerts
Callers are able to customize the announcement so everyone knows the call is being recorded according to regulations
vi. Recording Playlists
Supervisors and admins pick a set of recordings to help train new members of the team.
vii. Implementing Record Retention Policies
Some federal agencies set rules for the length of time documents, call recordings and transcripts need to be retained and users are able to change their retention settings.
How Do You Record VoIP Calls
Build-in Call Recording is available on a number of phones. Because of this, it’s possible to begin recording a call as soon as you connect.
When your VoIP includes call recording, you will be able to save all your phone calls or only pick the ones you wish to save. In most cases, choosing the proper setting is all it takes. When recording finishes, you get an audio file which you can listen to when you want.
Different Ways to Record Calls
You can record calls using several different ways.
i. Recording Calls On Demand
To start recording, users only need to push the record button before or while having a call. A few providers have the option for “look back,” which means the whole call is recorded if you send the command to save it after the call has begun.
ii. Recording (all) Calls Automatically
Automatic Call Recording is available only in higher plans and it’s included when using this method. Usually, admins can decide to record calls all the time, never or whenever they are needed.
iii. Individual Call Recording Settings
Admins are able to customize rules that start recording calls automatically only when certain conditions are in place
Steps For Setting Up Call Recording In VoIP
In most cases, setting up call recording takes only minutes within a business VoIP phone platform. This is how you do it:
Step 1: Initial Set Up
Software that records audio grabs sound at the source; however, these sources could be two or more. In a phone or Skype Call, every person involved is a source and the software can decide which ones to use or select both sources if possible.
Step 2: Select How You Want to Record Data in the App
You’ll need to pick how your calls are recorded, from being recorded as needed or whenever they happen.
Step 3: Tailor the rules for Recording
Based on the available services, administators can set their own call recording rules, play an announcement before the call is recorded or control how any silence in the conversation is managed. They will also be able to select the preferred way to save their call recordings.
Step 4: Enable or Disable Access to Recordings
Admins have the ability to let agents access certain recordings and adjust their user permissions as needed.
Step 5: Download Recordings
People who have access to the system are allowed to download call recordings, tag them and organize them into training playlists. Supervisors have the ability to choose the best call recordings and turn them into training playlists.
Different Types of VoIP Call Recording
VoIP call recordings might fall into any of three main types.
i. Hosted Recording
Recordings are made with hardware and servers that are located on the provider’s site. There are providers who provide free access to recording storage, whereas others charge for this service
ii. Software-Based Recording
Software recording software is set up on your server to record every sound coming from your computer’s sound card. With software, users can record calls on their desk phones or softphones and pick the channel(s) they want to record. Usually, the mono format is used for recording, since stereo sound would need double the amount of recording space. Calls that have better sound take up more bandwidth.
iii. On-Premise Recording
Usually, the first step is connecting an appliance (often found in a rack) to other rack-mounted gadgets via LAN cables.
While sniffing, the device catches and analyses the data flowing through a particular network port. VoIP calls are only allowed through the firewall on set, designated ports.
The appliance checks the port for any VoIP data and stores it. Some appliance devices are simple and manage just a small amount of extensions, but others are bigger and handle hundreds at once. Rather than keeping recordings on their own hard drives, appliances now use server databases to keep records of the calls.
The Best VoIP Call Recording Software
The top call recording software companies are:
1. Nextiva
The Company provides a reliable and cost-effective business phone system for SMBs and VoIP call recording is available to Enterprise Plan users. Nextiva allows you to make calls, send messages, video conferencing, look after your social media pages and monitor your reviews and reputation.
It is helpful for SMBs who want a communications solution together with social media posting and management features. There is almost always a 99.999% guarantee that the service is online.
i. Features of Call Recording
There are choices for call recording such as never recording, recording all calls, recording with the option to pause and resume, recording on demand or recording only when the user starts it. You can find call recording announcements, custom options for recording and support for cloud storage here as well.
ii. Pricing
Three paid plans from $17.95 per user/month have call recording and the Enterprise Plan ranges from $31.95 to $37.95 per user/month.
2. RingCentral
RingCentral is HIPAA compliant, meaning it’s a cloud-based UCaaS system that works with businesses of all sizes. You can record both incoming and outgoing calls at any time with RingCentral. Using AI such tools automatically transcribe calls and look for important keywords, how customers feel and the most frequent questions during the call.
RingCentral gives users advanced security like single sign on and data encryption that occurs from start to finish on its system. Users of RingCentral enjoy video conferencing that allows screen sharing, breakout rooms, live captioning and much more.
i. Features of Recording Phone Calls
Recordings can be made automatically or on demand, with the ability to store up to 100,000 business recordings/account, plus you can download them one by one or all at once.
ii. Pricing
For $20 a user every month, there are three paid plans to choose from. Every plan allows recording of calls as they occur, automatic call recording is available with the Advanced ($25/user/month) and Ultra ($35/user/month) plans.
3. OpenPhone
Small businesses can use OpenPhone in the cloud and it offers call recording that is always on and available at any time. All your agents can manually set up a call recording.
The system doesn’t provide CCaaS capabilities or allow video calling, but it is easy to set up and costs less than alternatives. AI provides features for tagging calls, summarizing them and giving transcripts.
i. Features of Recording Phone Calls
You can automatically record every call, listen to the records again, read the transcriptions and get a summary of the call without effort.
ii. Pricing
There are three paid plans available for $15 per user per month. Recording your calls manually is included in each of our pricing options and with the Business Plan ($23/user/month) you can also record your calls automatically.
4. 8x8
With UCaaS and CCaaS functions available in 8×8, users can easily record, listen to, download or delete both incoming and outgoing calls.
8×8 is known for being reliable and secure and specializes in calling within various countries with no limit on minutes. Even though 8×8 is more expensive than others, it offers many advanced features made possible through AI such as monitoring live calls, using IVR during conversations, record-taking using automation, etc.
i. Call Recording Features
Call recordings are enabled automatically and can be done on demand and users select who will hear the recording notifications (none, all, just the remote party, just the 8×8 user).
ii. Pricing
There are 5 paid plans starting at $24/user/month up to $140/user/month and call recording is available on the X6 plan ($85/user/month) and higher.
5. Ooma
Ooma is the provider of VoIP service for homes and businesses. Ooma office is one of the few systems that let you make unlimited calls to Puerto Rico and Mexico. Ooma makes it possible to record calls automatically or manually and provides video conferencing and a team chat service.
Ooma gives you the options of voicemail transcripts, text messaging and pay-as-you-go calls.
i. Call Recording Features
You can save up to three hours of audio in your account with cloud storage for 90 days and either manual or timed recording is supported.
ii. Pricing
The cost for paid plans start at $19.95/user/month and call recording is part of the Pro Plan for $24.95/user/month as well as the Pro Plus Plan for $29.95/user/month.
Final Words - VoIP Call Recording
All modern enterprises can get great help from using VoIP call recording software. It makes it possible to respect policies, protect your organization, and advance through what you learn from clients and your team. If you’re aware of what VoIP call recording is and why it helps, you can pick the software needed for your purposes.
Even though call recording helps your company, you should make sure you are aware of any rules or laws set by your local, state or supranational authorities. In some cases, you need the consent of all the people on the line before any recording begins.
FAQs - VoIP Call Recording
Some examples of why businesses keep call recordings include quality checks, mentoring for new workers and company-wide analysis of data.
It is common to save recorded calls in the cloud, but you can choose to do it on a local device as well.
Even though the length of call recording storage varies between providers, most come with at least 6 months of saved calls.
Both one-party consent and two-party consent are accepted under American law, as long as at least one person in the call knows the call is being recorded.
Anyone with permission can retrieve or play a call recording saved on the cloud. Access is most commonly provided by someone from the company administration.
