Google Voice - New Tool for Ministry

[n david]

From: Church Tech Matters (website link below)

Some here may be interested. Not sure if I trust The Google enough to use this, but CTM lays out some good reasons to use Google Voice.

Some of the key features include:

• Local telephone number availability - may depend on telephone provider and locale. I had to get an AT&T number for a neighboring town.
• Unlimited 48 continental state calling with no Long Distance
• Tight integration to Google Contacts
• Low International Long Distance - For example, $0.01 per minute to Canada from the US (a/o today)
• Built in voicemail with transcription
• Unlimited SMS to and from your GVoice number
• Unified messaging with voicemail and SMS dropping into the same interface
• Custom call routing - Determine how specific calling numbers are handled (which number they are forwarded to, which voicemail message they receive, etc)
• Multiple destination telephone numbers
• Ability to record calls

During my early usage, I have also identified the following other potential uses for other ministries:

Church Plants / Small Churches - Use GVoice as the published # for the church thus saving the cost of telephone/voicemail service/systems each month. Call routing can be set up in the background to route to one or many numbers. If staff changes, the church simply changes the call routing and continues to use the Gvoice number. Therefore, no need to change numbers.

Long Distance savings - while many church staff may use cell service to call Long Distance numbers, thus saving Long Distance charges for the church, this still uses package minutes. GVoice calls are free within the continental US.

Voicemail distribution - As church members leave voicemails on the GVoice #, notifications can be immediately emailed to the appropriate address.

SMS notifications - churches may use the unlimited Inbound and Outbound SMS feature to send notifications and updates to church members without having to have an unlimited package on a cell phone. Plus the web interface makes message management easier.

There's a link to Google Voice on the CTM website to enter your email address to try it out.

Source