Switching from Frontier to VoIP? Something you should know…

We have migrated enough clients away from Frontier phone service to learn that they have a peculiar issue once they switch: A few days later, the internet suddenly goes down even when it’s kept with Frontier.

They call Frontier support and learn that restoring internet service could take hours, days or even a week or more. Now they have to decide whether to wait it out or switch to another ISP (where one is available).

Why it happens:

Frontier accounts are tied to your business phone number. After you port that phone number out, all of Frontier services get shut down because your internet service is no longer tied to a bill. Tech support reps at Tier 1 are not always aware that this is the cause of the issue. Even when we have proactively worked with Frontier to avoid downtime, some of our clients have still experienced the outage. We should note that a recent outage was able to get resolved by Frontier remotely after only an hour of downtime, so there has been some improvement.

How to respond in the Tampa Bay Area:

A client wants to switch from Frontier’s phone system to VoIP. Getting better features at a lower cost is a great business move. Of course, the client wants to port their number to their new phone system. Who wouldn’t? They still want to maintain their internet connection because VoIP is internet dependent. Porting day comes without a hitch, and they are adjusting to their new phone system.

A few days goes by, and disaster happens. Internet goes down unexpectedly with no warning and no way to plan for it. They call Frontier support, and learn that there are no outages in the area. Resolution to get the internet turned back on could take hours, days or even a week or more. Now they have to decide whether to wait it out or switch to another ISP (where one is available). In the Tampa Bay area, here is why it happens and what to do about it:

There are multiple ways in which you can prevent the downtime to your business when porting from Frontier. Here are some suggestions:

1. If you have the ability and desire, you can migrate your internet service to another ISP. In most areas of Tampa Bay, Spectrum will service your address if Frontier already does. While Spectrum has their own challenges, they do not require you to be on a contract. If you are unhappy with Spectrum, you can always go back to Frontier a few weeks after porting occurs. Not being tied to a contract also means that Spectrum will often work harder to keep your business.
2. You can set Spectrum up as a temporary “fail-over” solution while you transition to VoIP. If you lose Frontier service, you can easily plug into your Spectrum service and run until Frontier comes back up. Not the most cost efficient measure, but it would work.
3. There are other third party cellular solutions to backup your internet in case of an outage. In most cases, the quality and speeds received through the cellular network will be reduced substantially, but it will work.
4. Most VoIP providers now give you access to a mobile app for your cellular phone. You can still make and receive phone calls on that mobile app if your internet goes down. This would not be a solution to run your office internet off of, but at least you can still communicate with your customers.

Any internet downtime can be frustrating and costly, but the cost savings you will get by switching to VoIP will largely make up for it in the long run. With a little pre-planning, we can help you minimize that downtime. Make A Better Choice for your business phone system provider.