Work from Home: Best Practices for Your Dialer Network

Technology has made it possible for many people to work from home. We’re no longer bound to desks and in-office networks. With SalesLoft, you can perform your daily tasks as long as you’ve got an internet connection.

However, that internet connection must be a solid one. Since the SalesLoft Dialer runs on VoIP technology, a strong internet can make the difference between a smooth call and a choppy one.

For offices and company networks, we usually recommend setting up QoS and other network requirements to ensure VoIP stability.

Now, most home networks won't support QoS (and we can leave that work to the IT professionals). But there are steps you can take to keep your Dialer quality strong whether you are a remote employee or working from home for a brief period of time. 

In this article, we will walk through some of the measures you can take for the best Dialer quality while you work from home, including:

• Connect Directly Via Ethernet
• Test Your Network
• Check Your Computer
• Minimize Network Traffic
• Call from SalesLoft Mobile
• Call Using Pass Through

For additional information, check out the Dialer Troubleshooting Guide. 

Connect Directly Via Ethernet

Wi-Fi is great for mobility around your home with a device. But when it comes to VoIP, Wi-Fi can lack the stability and bandwidth of an ethernet connection.

A hardwire connection is preferred for calling purposes.

Test Your Network

Perform a network test to learn about your in-home network. 

By testing your network, you know exactly what kind of bandwidth you have. This will help you take the proper precautions to stabilize your network during call time. 

Once you've run the test, you can give the Dialer a try to make sure your connection is strong enough. 

As an added bonus, here are some test numbers:

• Hogwarts Admission Number: 1-605-475-6961
• Santa Claus: 1-951-262-3062

Check Your Computer

If your computer is bogged down with stored items or usage, you could run into local issues that will impact the Dialer. 

We recommend looking at your memory usage, memory pressure, and CPU percentage. These can all be done by running one of the following tests:

• Mac: Activity Monitor
• Windows: Task Manager

Minimize Network Traffic

The best way to maintain network stability is to keep network traffic to a minimum. This means limiting the activity that is flowing through your network. 

Here are some of the best practices to keep your network traffic to a minimum: 

• Download the extension The Great Suspender and set it to put tabs to sleep after 5 or 10 minutes.
• Close any tabs that are not currently in use.
• Disable SalesLoft panels on the Person and Account page you are not actively using, like Twitter, Owler, or LinkedIn. 
• Turn off any streaming services (Netflix, Hulu, Youtube, etc.). 
• Close Spotify before a call blitz.
• Close any unused apps like Apple Music, Spotify, Safari, etc.
• For Mac users, close out unused virtual desktops.
• Make sure to fully close Chrome once a day.

Call from SalesLoft Mobile

In cases where home internet is slow, you can use SalesLoft Mobile as an extension of the SalesLoft Dialer. SalesLoft Mobile uses the SalesLoft Dialer through your cell phone by leveraging your cell network instead of your internet connection.  

Things to Note:

• SalesLoft Mobile is currently available for iOS. 
• Standard messaging and data rates apply. Please contact your provider for more information.

With SalesLoft Mobile, you can place calls, log calls, and view SalesLoft People just like you would in the web version, without having to be dependent on your internet connection. Check out our Getting Started with SalesLoft Mobile article for more information.

Call Using Pass Through

If your home internet is slow and you do not have access to SalesLoft Mobile, redirect calls from the Dialer with call pass through.

Pass through uses the SalesLoft Dialer through an alternative phone line, like your cell phone or a landline. The call will leverage the phone network instead of your internet connection. 

Things to Note: 

• Additional charges may apply. 
• When call through to a cell phone, standard messaging and data rates apply. Please contact your provider for more information