I am a bit of a computer nerd and have a business background. I know a lot about linux and have been gradually learning more about SIP, VOIP, and voip.ms.
I’ve gotten somewhat decent at it, and think with learning more (making an effort to learn), I could probably become an expert.
I have wondered whether there’s any way I could leverage these skills to make money, or if this something that is hard to make money doing. I am also not great at people networking and people-facing skills; I come across a bit awkward, but I realize it.
Part of the reason I am wondering this is that I first learned about VOIP about 5-6 years ago when I wanted to be able to keep a number even if I switched phone company providers or phones. I didn’t like my number being attached to a specific cellular provider, nor did I like that my data from 1 company that was able to collect a lot of data on me was being sold to so many people all at once. I ended up going down the VOIP rabbit hole, and getting rid of a traditional cell phone. When I went on this journey, it was a huge learning curve and took me a long time to understand different aspects to setup, latency issues, and other concerns.
I still do not have a great grasp on hardware, as I do everything with softphones.
I am also not sure if there is even a market for leveraging these skills. I am not sure if VOIP is actually complicated or if it just took me a long time to figure out the basics. Some of the more complicated stuff involved network configurations to decrease latency and increase sound quality. I am still learning.
You can earn money with these skills because many small businesses need VoIP setup, SIP troubleshooting, and Linux based PBX support. Most IT workers avoid this area, so the niche pays well and fits someone who prefers technical work over people facing roles. A practical next step is offering VoIP setup or troubleshooting on freelance platforms or working with local IT shops that prefer not to handle VoIP.
The best way to find out is to start with something small and see how you handle real world issues. As for getting clients with no history, people will still hire you, but usually for smaller jobs at first. If you can clearly explain what you do and show confidence, someone will give you that first job. After that, your experience grows quickly. You do not need a long resume to begin. You simply need to solve the first person’s problem well.
Just go for it and make sure you give yourself plenty of time to figure things out as you go.
If you’re unfamiliar with hardware based phones, buy some to get started. I’m mostly familiar with Grandstream phones and love their remote configuration options and pricing.
I am a reseller for them if you need to purchase, you can buy them from other resellers. If you buy from Amazon or Ebay make sure you buy from an authorized reseller or they won’t honor the warranty.
For setting up business phone systems, you’re gonna need to be familiar with hardware based phones for sure. Buy at least 2 so you can learn about things like BLF, transfers and such.
Whatever you do, don’t get into reselling the phone services, just set them up with a VoIP.ms account directly. If you resell the phone numbers and minutes, you will be regulated by the FCC if you are in the US and you do NOT want to deal with all that as a small player.
Good luck and let me know if you have other questions.