One of the big initiatives this quarter for my marketing team is get more involved with starting and contributing to conversations with customers, partners, media and other industry types. After all, I have been blogging since 2005, on Facebook and LinkedIn since 2006, use YouTube everyday, listen to and participate on Podcasts weekly and gnereally I consider myself to be a “social media” kind of guy.

Now it’s time to put this experience to work at work.

So, if you are interested in learning more about VoIP Supply and engaging in conversations with us, please follow us on Twitter (PS we will follow you as well).

Or is the industry (or this medium) just maturing to a point where PR folks are finally starting to invade this bloggers in inbox?

In the past I would receive on average 5 pitches (if you even call them that) per week.

For the last month or so, I have been receiving 5 to 10 pitches per day from a variety of PR agencies and companies.

While I do not respond nor write about most of the releases sent to me, it is very interesting to see the increased level of activity.

• Is competition increasing such that folks are working harder than before?
• Is the market getting more saturated?
• Have I reached some sort of “new level” as it relates to my perceived importance within the industry?
• Is anyone else noticing this trend?

What makes this all even more strange is that fact that I haven’t even been blogging very much as I am working on a new direction for the site…is that the key to getting pitched, blog less?

I typically don’t brag (much) about the accomplishments of VoIP Supply, but I thought that I would take a moment to do so on the heels of our recent recognition as Western New York’s Best Place to Work.

Over the past two and a half years we have won many awards for our growth, however none of them are as satisfying as winning this one. Sure be recognized for revenue growth is great and no easy feat, but to be recognized, by those within the organization as the best place to work in the area is something that every employee at VoIP Supply is proud of. Building the type of culture and environment is certainly not easy, but the hard work pays off every day with a place that is a pleasure to go to and people who are a pleasure to work with.

I took some time to put down some thoughts on VoIP industry trends over at the VoIP Insider. Take a read if you are interested.

For those of you who read many of the other prominent VoIP blogs, you probably already know that my latest project, Mobile VoIP Review, was launched last week Thursday. It went well (considering the launch took about 15 minutes…10 minutes to crank a release…five minutes to email some friends of mine…thanks again all!)

In case you missed it, here is the release about Mobile VoIP Review. More to come about the launch of this site and future plans later this week!

MobileVoIPReview.com Launched

Site Features Consumer Reviews of Mobile VoIP Service Providers

Buffalo, NY April 3, 2008 – MobileVoIPReview.com, a consumer generated review site for the Mobile VoIP industry, announced today the initial launch of the site. MobileVoIPReview.com features Mobile VoIP reviews generated by consumers as well as news, interviews and analysis of the industry. This is the first phase in a planned three phase site feature role out.

The Mobile VoIP industry is currently experiencing explosive growth. Many analysts predict that 2008 is set to be the year that Mobile VoIP moves to the forefront of communications technologies disrupting the status quo. According to a November Far Point Group survey, over 25% of the respondents stated that mobile VoIP was the application that they are most likely to add in 2008. In fact a November 2007 Distruptive Analysis report stated that VoIPo3G (VoIP over 3G networks or Mobile VoIP) will be more important than VoWLAN (Voice over Wireless networks), for operators and 3rd parties over the next four years.

MobileVoIPReview.com was born out of the need for increased consumer education and insights into the many providers of the service and the benefits of using the site. At launch, the site features reviews of leading Mobile VoIP service providers like Truphone, Rebtel, Skype and fring. Future plans call for the site to expand by offering a service provider comparison tool and a forum where Mobile VoIP service users can connect.

For more information about MobileVoIPReview.com, visit http://www.MobileVoIPReview.com/about-2/

About MobileVoIPReview.com

MobileVoIPReview.com is the leading site for Mobile VoIP service provider reviews, industry news, views and special offers. The purpose of MobileVoIPReview.com is to educate the savvy and non-savvy on Mobile VoIP services. The site is not merely about educating consumers on the technology; the site allows consumers to read Mobile VoIP service reviews, create their own Mobile VoIP services reviews and discuss their experiences with Mobile VoIP and those who provide the service. The end goal of all of this is to ensure honest, forthright information about the Mobile VoIP industry so that prospective consumers will be able to make educate decisions.

I had the opportunity to get interviewed by CRN’s Andrew Hickey on the Polycom IP6000 and IP7000 and what these new conference phones mean to Polycom resellers. Take a read here.

Boy have I been waiting to talk about Polycom’s new line of conference phones.

Today, Polycom officially released their new IP6000 and IP7000 conferencing phones. Ever since Cisco released their CP-7937G conference phone, I have been waiting for their OEM partner, Polycom to release the SIP based version.

Here are some of the things to look forward to:

Polycom IP6000

First off, this isn’t just an IP4000’s with a new firmware version…Polycom did a great job in address a few weaknesses. First off, the IP6000 features Polycom’s awesome HD Voice. If you haven’t experienced it yet, what are you waiting for. I digress…

In addition to HD Voice and acoustic clarity technology, Polycom has increased the microphone pick-up range, added a high-resolution white/blue LCD screen and best of all Power over Ethernet capabilities. That’s right, no more figuring out how to get that power supply run to the middle of the conference room table!

Best of all, the IP6000 is actual cheaper than it’s predecessor, with a wallet friendly MSRP of $899.99

Polycom IP7000

Wow.

The Polycom IP7000 is the Ferrari of conference phones. This is THE conference phone for any organization that wants serious style and bleeding edge functionality.

To start, the IP7000 represents a complete redesign of Polycom’s legendary starfish design. Aesthetically speaking, you simply want one. This isn’t an “all show, no go” device however as the IP7000 delivers not just HD Voice and acoustic clarity technology, but Power over Ethernet (like the IP6000), a large multi-line high-resolution LCD display with a full XHTML microbrowser, 20-foot microphone pickup, and even more with optional expansion microphones or multi-unit connectivity and a built-in 2.5mm applications port that allows you to connect the conference phone to a mobile phone or to a computer for calls using PC-based soft phone clients. All of this for $1299.99.

This conference phone defines “next generation” and sets the bar extremely high for competitors.

The phones are not yet available in the channel, but will be sometime in May.