Between your device and the website or app you’re on, your information goes through routers, networks and servers. Any of those could, in theory, be watched by someone you’d really rather didn’t.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) has the job of making sure that even if someone is watching, they see scrambled data. That’s the beauty of encryption. But how does jumbling your data actually keep it safe? And is it as bulletproof as VPN providers would have you believe?

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Your Data Is More Exposed Than You Realise

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Cybercrime in the UK isn’t a rare event that only happens on occasion. It’s much closer to home than that. The government’s 2025 Cyber Security Beaches Survey found that 43% of British businesses experienced some form of breach or attack in the year – that’s roughly 612,000 companies.

In fact, the Institution of Engineering and Technology reckons that one incident happens every minute, with one in three UK adults witnessing more hacking this year than in any year before it.

And it’s not just businesses in the firing line. Individuals are equally as targeted, especially when they’re on the move. Which brings us to what VPNs do in the background.

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What Are VPNs Actually Up To?

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If you had to think of the Internet as a highway, everyone would be able to see what’s going where. The task of a VPN is to build a private tunnel through that highway. Your data doesn’t just travel freely anymore, it gets bundled into the tunnel and sent through a VPN server in a thick layer of encryption.

At this point, two very useful things happen simultaneously. The first is that the content of your traffic becomes completely unreadable to anyone on the network – your Internet Service Provider (ISP) included. And second, the website that you visit sees the VPN sever’s address, not yours. Both your location and identity become hidden.

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Where Does Encryption Come In?

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If you take away the jargon part, encryption is just a sophisticated way of turning readable information into, well, gibberish and then turning it back again, but only if you have the right “key.”

Everything that’s readable, including passwords and bank details, are all plaintext. An encryption algorithm scrambles it all so that anyone looking at it without the key sees nothing but a meaningless jumble of characters. When the data is fed through with the correct key, it all slots neatly back into place.

The gold standard, which you’ll see on most VPN websites, is AES-256. More formally, it’s the Advanced Encryption Standard using a 256-bit key. Trusted by banks, governments and militaries, there’s a good reason “military-grade” isn’t entirely marketing waffle here.

A 256-bit key has so many possible combinations that it would be completely impossible to guess every option until it works. In practical terms, nobody is getting through a properly-implemented AES-256.

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Why Public Wi-Fi Is A Stranger’s Living Room

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Any public Wi-Fi, whether it be your local coffee shop or hotel, is convenient precisely for the fact that it’s open and easy to connect to. “Open” also means that anyone else on that network has a shot at intercepting what’s being transmitted across it if they really wanted to.

Brits clearly sense the risk. According to a Forbes Advisor poll, around 34% of VPN users in the UK list securing public Wi-Fi as the main reason for having a VPN in the first place.

When encryption is switched on, even if you’re on a dodgy network in the furtherest corner of an airport, your data stays sealed inside its private tunnel.

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Here’s What Your VPN Won’t Do

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There’s nothing like reading the fine print. While encryption protects your data on its journey, it doesn’t make you invisible or anonymous online. It also won’t save you from actively clicking on a suspicious link.

Basically, a VPN isn’t a substitute for an antivirus software or a healthy suspicion of emails and texts from unknown senders. Phishing attempts and malware sail straight past your VPN because they rely on fooling you, not cracking your connection.

On a separate note, you’re also putting your trust in a VPN provider so take the time to do the research before choosing one. Since your data passes through their servers, they should have a no-logs policy so you know for sure that your information doesn’t get sent elsewhere or is seen by people who shouldn’t be seeing it.

The post Your Data Is Chattier Than You Think, That’s Where VPNs Come In appeared first on 91̽��.

As July comes to an end, this week’s crowdfunding roundup brings together a bunch of founders solving very different problems. One is bringing AI analytics to athletic performance. Another is turning farm surplus produce into food products that would otherwise go to waste. The third is building therapeutic groups to support parents and babies through the early days.

Sport, sustainability and mental health are not an obvious group, but separately they are addressing a need that’s easy to overlook.

So, who are the startups crowdfunding this week? Here they are.

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1. K-Sport

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How much are they raising: €2,300,000

Website: www.k-sport.tech

SEIS/EIS? N/A

About: K-Sport is bringing pro-grade performance AI analytics to semi-professional and consumer athletes, the same technology already trusted by elite teams.

At the top level of sport, data analytics has become fundamental – every movement measured, every performance dissected, every marginal gain pursued. That kind of insight has largely stayed locked behind elite budgets and infrastructure. K-Sport is taking those analytics proven at the highest level and putting it within reach of the semi-pro clubs and serious amateurs who are hungry to improve.

Where to invest: Europe Republic

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2. Ample

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How much are they raising: £244,722

Website: www.ample.shop

SEIS/EIS? Yes, SEIS

About: Ample is a food-tech social business turning surplus farm produce into food products for the UK public sector, tackling food waste and public sector catering simultaneously.

Enormous quantities of perfectly good produce go to waste every year because they don’t fit the specifications of retail, while public sector caterers like schools and hospitals work under pressure to feed people well on tight budgets. Ample connects those two problems into one solution, redirecting surplus that would otherwise be wasted.

Where to invest: Europe Republic

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3. Rockabye

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How much are they raising: £10,000

Website: www.rockabye.org

SEIS/EIS? N/A

About: Rockabye creates therapeutic group spaces for parents and babies with supportive, expertly facilitated environments where new mums can find connection and genuine understanding.

The early months of parenthood can be as isolating as they are joyful and the support on offer too often stops at the practical, leaving the emotional side to fend for itself. Rockabye’s groups pair the reassurance of other parents going through the same thing with skilled, sensitive facilitation, creating somewhere people feel safe enough to be honest about how they’re really doing.

Where to invest: Crowdfunder

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4. Lanson Refill

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How much are they raising: £12,000

Website: N/A

SEIS/EIS? N/A

About: Lanson Refill is a zero-waste refill shop that has spent five years proving that shopping without plastic packaging isn’t just possible, but genuinely practical.

You bring your own jar, bottle or bag and fill it with exactly what you need – oats, olive oil, lentils – pay for that amount and leave without packaging to throw away. In a world of grand sustainability pledges that never quite materialise, there’s something reassuring about a shop that has been simply getting on with it, week after week.

Where to invest: Crowdfunder

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5. Trash2Treasure

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How much are they raising: £30,000

Website: N/A

SEIS/EIS? N/A

About: Trash2Treasure gives quality furniture a second life, redirecting it to families moving into independent living so they can build stable, liveable homes from day one.

Perfectly good furniture is often thrown away in enormous quantities while families setting up independent homes – often after real hardship – frequently move into empty spaces they can’t afford to fill. Trash2Treasure bridges the gap, rescuing furniture that would otherwise be wasted and putting it exactly where it’s needed most.

Where to invest: Crowdfunder

The post 5 Startups Crowdfunding w/c 27.07.2026 appeared first on 91̽��.

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Tell Us About Acurable

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Acurable, founded by Professor Esther Rodriguez Villegas, is a fast-growing medical devices company which creates accurate and user-friendly wearable medical devices intended to be used by patients themselves at home.

Its award-winning, patented AcuPebble technology uses a small wearable sensor to detect biomarkers linked to sleep and respiratory conditions, allowing patients to complete tests from the comfort of their own home. It builds on the foundation of more than 10 years’ research at the Wearable Technologies Lab in Imperial College London led by Professor Rodriguez-Villegas.

By removing the need for complex hospital-based procedures, Acurable is making diagnostics more accessible, convenient and patient-friendly.

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Want to be featured as 91̽��’s Startup of the Week? Find out more about this weekly feature, and how to get involved,��here.

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What Makes Acurable Unique?

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Acurable combines breakthrough engineering with a simple, easy-to-use design to bring clinically validated respiratory diagnostics out of the hospital and into the home. Its wearable technology is designed with patient comfort and accessibility in mind, removing much of the inconvenience associated with traditional testing.

By enabling accurate at-home diagnostics, Acurable helps healthcare providers expand testing capacity, reduce bottlenecks and deliver a faster, more convenient experience for patients.

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Is There A Market For Acurable?

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Yes. There is growing demand for at-home diagnostic solutions as healthcare systems in both the UK and the US face significant bottlenecks in respiratory and sleep testing. Long waiting lists, limited specialist capacity and increasing rates of conditions such as sleep apnoea and chronic respiratory disease have created pressure on traditional diagnostic pathways.

Wearable technologies that enable patients to be tested at home offer a scalable alternative, reducing the need for hospital visits while helping clinicians diagnose conditions more quickly.

As healthcare providers increasingly look to decentralise care and expand access to diagnostics, solutions like Acurable’s are well positioned to address a clear and growing market need.

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Where Can We Find Acurable?

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Acurable operates across the UK, the United States and Europe, working with healthcare providers, hospitals and sleep clinics. Its solutions are available through healthcare systems and clinical partners. You can visit its website here: https://acurable.com/.

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Nowadays, cybercrime isn’t just installing viruses onto your device to crash the system. It has evolved to sophisticated operations from phishing scams to social engineering and everything in between. And the most concerning part of it all is that these attacks can bypass traditional antivirus software with a fair amount of ease.

So the next logical question to ask is, can your antivirus software alone be enough to protect you and your data? Or is it just one part that forms part of your overall cybersecurity effort?

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Why Antivirus Software May No Longer Be Enough

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At its core, antivirus software is designed to work in the background to check for any suspicious activity. While you continue to use your device, it’s constantly scanning every website you visit or file that you download. And if it finds something that it doesn’t quite like, the software will flag it and notify you.

But how can the antivirus differentiate between normal and malicious activity? It works with a database of known threats so all links and files are compared to them. If there’s a match, the threat is isolated and removed.

The thing is, cybercriminals are usually working one step ahead and are constantly producing new forms of malware. These aren’t yet in the database so your antivirus may not immediately recognise it as a threat. These are often referred to as zero-day attacks because your antivirus is usually unprepared for them.

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Cybersecurity Efforts Beyond Antivirus

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Users today are exposed to far more threats, with the UK Government’s 2025 Cyber Security Breaches Survey reporting 8.58 million cyber crimes so far this year. It’s a jaw-dropping number, given that the year isn’t even over yet.

Since full cyber protection requires a multi-layer approach, having an antivirus is just one part of it. If one of these layers misses a threat, another one can step in to catch it.

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Firewalls

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Firewalls are responsible for watching the traffic that attempts to come in and out of your network. It then decides what to allow through and what is deemed sceptical. If you don’t have one, malware could enter your system without you even realising it until the damage has been done.

There are two types of firewalls, hardware-based which are built into your router or software-based which needs to be installed onto the device.

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Password Managers

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It’s tempting to reuse the same password for every account you have or a very weak one because these are easier to remember. But hackers know this and it makes it much easier for them to get into multiple accounts.

Password managers can generate unique passwords for you and you can access them through authentication even if you can’t remember them all. Essentially, you need to just remember one master password to access all of your strong passwords.

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Regular Software Updates

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One thing that cybercriminals love is software that is outdated because they are full of vulnerabilities, making it easier to access. Your antivirus service provider will regularly release new updates with security patches but the responsibility falls on you to install them.

It’s one of the most simplest ways to stay protected yet so often, it’s overlooked and leaves devices wide open.

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Email Security

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Phishing still remains one of the most common forms of cybercrimes because for the hackers, it’s so easy to do. They impersonate someone that their victim knows personally or a company they trust and trick them into handing over personal information such as passwords or bank details.

Most email accounts now come with advanced AI settings which will automatically flag suspicious messages. These are usually removed before they even get to your inbox.

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Multi-Factor Authentication

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Even if you have a strong, unique password, it’s not always enough. They aren’t foolproof and if hackers are motivated enough, they can eventually crack it or even buy it on the dark web.

Multi-factor authentication adds an additional step to your login, either through a fingerprint or notification to another device. So even if a hacker had your password, they wouldn’t be able to get in without this second step. For things like online banking, it offers peace of mind that your most important data is protected.

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Is Antivirus Alone Sufficient For Total Cybersecurity?

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It’s not recommended to rely solely on antivirus software to protect you and your device. With that said, it is definitely worthwhile to have and offers security in its own way. If you want to maximise your protection, you can also look into paid antivirus software rather than using free options.

However, it does work best with other cybersecurity efforts to offer you a more comprehensive safety plan. And since cybercrime is showing no signs of slowing down, it’s necessary more than ever to prioritise cybersecurity for both individuals and businesses.

The post Is Antivirus Software Alone Sufficient For Total Cybersecurity? appeared first on 91̽��.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology has been slowly replacing traditional phone lines for years. The impending 2027 landline switch-off has forced some businesses to make the switch sooner.

VoIP certainly has its benefits and there’s a reason why so many businesses have willingly moved over. For one thing, it’s much more affordable to make calls, especially long-distance ones. Then there’s the flexibility aspect. It can grow comfortably alongside your business, unlike landlines which required more money and hardware to do so.

It really is a worthwhile piece of technology but the truth is, it’s not equally brilliant for everyone. So, how do you know if it’s right for your business?

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First Things First, What Does VoIP Do?

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While traditional phone systems use copper wiring, VoIP uses an Internet connection to make voice and video calls. And that’s pretty much the whole concept really.

What makes it interesting though, isn’t the technology itself, but what it’s capable of doing. It’s not just a physical object bolted to a wall anymore or tied to your desk. It goes with you, the numbers become real data to use and adding a new line takes roughly the same effort as adding someone to a WhatsApp group chat.

Keep those things in mind, because it explains why certain businesses will benefit more than others.

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Which Businesses Are Better Suited To VoIP?

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It’s not to say that VoIP should only be reserved for certain types of businesses or that not everyone can use it. From an affordability perspective, almost every business and even residential households can benefit from using it.

However, there are specific businesses that can get the most value out of their VoIP systems while others may not necessarily need all of its features and capabilities.

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It’s A Winner For Remote And Hybrid Teams

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If your team is working across kitchen tables, co-working spaces and maybe the occasional airport lounge, VoIP is literally the glue to hold your communications together.

When you have a traditional setup, a phone number belongs to a desk. With VoIP, it belongs to a person – and goes with them, wherever that may be. Even if you’re three time zones away from your team, everyone answers the same company number and you can pick up from your phone, laptop, headset or whatever’s nearest.

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Businesses Where The Phone Is The Business

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If your team spends most of their working day on a call, VoIP becomes a huge operational upgrade. Call centres, customer support teams, estate agents, recruitment agencies, you name it.

And it’s purely because of the features that VoIP offers, and most come as part of the standard plans and you don’t need to pay extra for them. Set up call queuing so nobody has to listen to an engaged tone. Use call recording for training and compliance purposes. Integration with CRM tools so your team already know who’s calling and their history before they pick up the phone on their side.

This is really where VoIP stands out and where companies can get the most out of what they pay for.

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Seasonal Businesses Operational For A Short Period

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Some businesses, especially those in hospitality, tourism or events, don’t always have a steady headcount. And when it’s season, they end up drowning. It just doesn’t make sense to pay for a set number of lines on a traditional phone system when your numbers change so often.

With VoIP, you can add and take away users from your dashboard without any extra cost. In peak season, you can add as many as you need and then drop it back down afterwards.

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Appointment-Heavy Services

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Dental or medical practices, law firms and salons will be all too familiar with an enormous volume of short, repetitive calls about bookings happening throughout the day, sometimes simultaneously.

VoIP features like automated menus can help route callers to the right person to speak to and voicemail transcription sends an email or text straight to your receptionist to see what was missed.

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Who Are The Businesses That Should Think Twice?

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VoIP needs a stable Internet connection to work so if you’re in a rural area or have patchy coverage, it might end up being more of a headache than a saving grace. Electricity is another thing to think about because if you have power cuts often, your phone system goes down too.

If your business has a very low call volume, you may find the switch to VoIP rather underwhelming. A mobile might suit you just fine if you only have a handful of calls a week.

But for those who are working remotely, growing unpredictably or have so many calls that your coffee gets cold before you get to it, VoIP offers far more than just a phone system.

The post VoIP Is Brilliant For Some Businesses But Overkill For Others – Where Does Yours Fit? appeared first on 91̽��.

As we near the end of July, this week’s crowdfunding roundup shows just how far founders will reach for a better solution. An app that lets you build your own AI investment strategy. A company augmenting human vision through biomimetic loupes. A fine wine marketplace connecting collectors and enthusiasts.

From finance to healthcare to something for the cellar, this cohort has little in common on the surface. But if you a dig a little, they’ve all taken something that’s traditionally been complex, exclusive or expert-only and opened it up.

So, who are the startups crowdfunding this week? Here they are.

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1. Bryant Medical

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How much are they raising: £500,226

Website: www.bryant.dental

SEIS/EIS? Yes, EIS

About: Bryant Medical augments human vision with radically clear, biomimetic loupes – optical tools designed to give surgeons and clinicians a sharper, more natural view of their work.

Loupes are essential across surgery and dentistry, but the conventional design comes with restricted fields of view, weight and eye strain over long procedures. Bryant Medical’s biomimetic approach takes its cues from how the eye itself works, aiming for clarity that feels natural rather than engineered.

Where to invest: Europe Republic

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2. Stratiphy

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How much are they raising: £300,011

Website: www.stratiphy.io

SEIS/EIS? Yes, EIS

About: Stratiphy lets people build, test and invest in their own AI-powered investment strategy, available directly through its app and to businesses via API.

Investing has long forced a choice between handing your money to a fund manager and going it alone with little more than instinct and a trading account. With Stratiphy, you get the tools to design your own strategy, test it before committing real money and then put it to work with AI doing the heavy lifting in between.

Where to invest: Europe Republic

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3. Cru World Wine

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How much are they raising: N/A

Website: www.cruworldwine.com

SEIS/EIS? N/A

About: Cru World Wine operates a digital marketplace for fine wine, connecting private collectors, wholesalers and producers directly with buyers around the world.

The fine wine market has traditionally been an opaque one, run through auction houses, brokers and personal networks that can be difficult to access and even harder to navigate. Cru brings that market online, opening up a global pool of buyers and sellers, and bringing a degree of transparency to a category that has long relied on who you know.

Where to invest: Crowdcube

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4. Nice

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How much are they raising: N/A

Website: www.nice-drinks.co.uk

SEIS/EIS? Yes, EIS

About: Nice is a female-founded modern wine company on a mission to free drinkers from the headaches – literal and otherwise – that the industry has always taken for granted.

Wine can be an intimidating businesses with pretentious labels, rigid packaging and a culture that seems designed to make people feel like they’re getting it wrong. The proposition is wine made approachable and adaptable, delivered in formats that actually suit how people drink today.

Where to invest: Crowdcube

The post Startups Crowdfunding w/c 20.07.2026 appeared first on 91̽��.

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Website:

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Tell Us About Hertility

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Hertility is the leading healthcare provider for women, developing next-generation technology to empower people to understand and care for their bodies better, smarter and faster than ever before.

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Want to be featured as 91̽��’s Startup of the Week? Find out more about this weekly feature, and how to get involved,��here.

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What Makes Hertility Unique?

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Hertility combines at-home hormone and blood testing, clinical expertise and advanced data science to support women across every stage of their hormonal lives. Built on one of the world’s largest reproductive health datasets, underpinned by research studies and rigorous clinical and regulatory standards, the platform helps women identify and manage reproductive and hormonal conditions faster, reducing diagnosis times from years to as little as six days through personalised insights and evidence-based care.

Its flagship product, the Advanced At-Home Hormone and Fertility Test, delivers clinical-grade results and includes a 30-minute consultation with one of Hertility’s in-house experts. The test provides insights into ovarian reserve and screens for up to 18 reproductive and hormonal conditions, including PCOS. Every customer receives a doctor-written report
designed to be easy to understand, alongside a personalised care plan and guidance on next steps, including referrals and specialist appointments where appropriate.

Beyond testing, Hertility provides comprehensive onward care through a range of services delivered by industry-leading experts and trusted partner clinics. These include pelvic scans, women’s health specialist GP appointments, private gynaecology consultations, nutrition consultations, counselling, and referrals for egg freezing and IVF treatment. This integrated approach ensures women can access the support and specialist care they need throughout every stage of their hormonal and reproductive health journey.

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Is There A Market For Hertility?

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Demand for proactive, personalised healthcare is growing rapidly, while millions of women continue to face lengthy delays in receiving diagnoses for reproductive and hormonal conditions. At the same time, women are increasingly seeking better visibility into their health and more convenient access to expert care.

As awareness of women’s health continues to rise, there is growing demand for trusted providers that can support women across every stage of their hormonal lives. Hertility’s combination of at-home testing, clinical expertise and advanced data science positions it to address this growing need.

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Where Can We Find Hertility?

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You can learn more about Hertility, which operates in the UK and Ireland, at www.hertilityhealth.com.

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But if you look a little closer, you’ll see that the island has an advantage money can’t buy. It’s located almost exactly on the equator, so most satellites pass overhead at least once a day. Now if you stack that on top of decades of precision engineering and aircraft maintenance, it starts to make a little more sense.

The numbers tend to agree. Roughly 70 space companies now call the island home that employ about 2,000 people, with over 30 satellites launched over the past two decades. While they’re not trying to out-SpaceX SpaceX, they are certainly carving out their own opportunities in the market.

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Singapore’s Swift Shift To A Space Programme

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Things began to change in 2022 when the national space office, OSTIn, launched the Space Technology Development Programme, writing cheques of over S$200 million to date.

On 1 April of this year, OSTIn was folded into the new National Space Agency of Singapore, which was announced two months earlier at the country’s first Space Summit.

NSAS arrived with a wider remit – operating national space capabilities and writing the space legislation that previously didn’t exist. The message to startup founders was perfectly clear. This was a sector now, not a side project.

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Meet Singapore’s Top Aerospace Startups To Watch

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The global space economy is expected to hit US$1.8 trillion by 2035 – and Singapore definitely wants a slice of that pie. Here are six of the country’s aerospace startups building a name for themselves.

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1. ALIENA

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ALIENA makes Hall-effect thrusters – the plasma engines that let satellites steer, but miniaturised. A conventional one eats through kilowatts but ALIENA’s MUSIC runs on under 10 watts. This matters enormously when you’ve got a tiny satellite with nowhere for solar panels.

In April 2024, the company closed a US$5.6 million Series A led by Wavemaker Partners. It pushed cumulative backing past US$9.3 million and funded a much bigger test facility. A custom MUSIC is currently earmarked for ELITE, Singapore’s flagship very-low Earth-orbit imaging satellite.

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2. SpeQtral

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SpeQtral’s pitch is straightforward, and mildly terrifying. Quantum computers will eventually shred today’s encryption but the fix is distributing keys as photons, where physics guarantees that any interception gets noticed.

Founded in 2017, the startup has raised US$8.3 million led by Xora Innovation, after a US$1.9 million seed. A huge milestone landed on 28 November 2025 when SpeQtre, roughly the size of a microwave, built with the UK’s RAL Space and backed £7 million of British government funding, deployed from SpaceX’s Transporter-15.

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3. Equatorial Space

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Most rockets are, functionally, a carefully controlled explosion. Equatorial Space’s are not. The startup builds hybrid motors burning chilled nitrous oxide against a proprietary solid fuel. The two can’t mix by accident, so the rocket ships fully inert with no pyrotechnics.

In December 2020, it flew a demonstrator to 1,200 metres from a palm oil estate in Perak which happened to be the first commercially developed hybrid rocket launch in Southeast Asia.

Equatorial Space raised US$1.5 million in seed in March 2023 and another US$1.5 million pre-Series A a year later.

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4. NuSpace

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Mobile coverage tends to stop at the coastline. NuSpace’s answer is a constellation of shoebox-sized satellites running LoRaWAN, so a buoy or shipping container can beam data straight up with no ground infrastructure needed.

The company’s first commercial satellite, NuLIoN, went up in July 2023. By December, the team had pulled off a first with Squareroot8, a post-quantum key exchange between satellite and ground, using an onboard quantum random number generator.

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5. F-drones

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Hundreds of ships anchor off Singapore, waiting on spare parts, paperwork and provisions that are delivered by small boats. Not only is it slow and pricey, it’s startlingly carbon-heavy. A 10km boat run emits over 100kg of CO2, but F-drones can do the same for under 500 grams.

It was the first company to run commercial beyond-visual-line-of-sight deliveries to vessels around the clock, including the world’s first night-time drone delivery to a ship in November 2020.

While the current fleet handles 5-10kg, the HyperLaunch Heavy, still in development, is built for 100kg over 100km.

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6. FlyORO

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Sustainable aviation fuel has always had a bit of a plumbing problem. It arrives pre-blended at fixed ratios in bulk so an operator wanting a specific SAF percentage on one flight is fresh out of luck. FlyORO’s AlphaLite is a 40-foot modular blending unit that plugs into existing airport fuel infrastructure and mixes to order.

In January 2024, the startup raised US$1.6 million pre-Series A led by Audacy Ventures with Investible. A year later, they deployed with Wagner Sustainable Fuels and Boeing at Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport in Queensland.

By May of this year, FlyORO had blended over 500,000 litres.

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More often than not, it’s something that you set up and never really think about again. Which is a bit of a shame because with that mindset, you’re missing out on a marketing tool sitting right there on your desk. With VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), your phone system suddenly offers data, reach and personalisation that doesn’t cost you more than what you’re already spending.

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First Things First, What Is VoIP?

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It sounds like quite a fancy acronym but simply put, VoIP enables you to make phone calls over the Internet rather than down traditional copper phone lines. Same calls, same conversations, they just travel through your broadband connection and that’s really all it is. With the 2027 landline switch-off looming, more businesses and residents have made the switch to VoIP.

While it just seems like a minor technical tweak, it’s precisely why VoIP can play such a big role in your marketing strategy. The fact that your calls are now digital means they can communicate with other software and be tracked and measured – none of which your landline phone system could ever dream of doing.

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Every Call Comes With A Side Of Data

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With VoIP, one of the gifts that keeps on giving is the information that it hands marketers on a silver platter. Very much unlike traditional phone systems where after the call has ended, you’ve learned almost nothing that you can actually use.

Fortunately, VoIP turns every call into a source of insight that you can actually act on.

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Find Out Which Campaigns Make The Phone Ring

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Have you ever run multiple marketing campaigns at once and didn’t know which one was pulling its weight? Call tracking can tell you pretty quickly. Give each campaign a dedicated phone number and VoIP will tell you which numbers are ringing – the Instagram ads, the billboard or email blast.

From there, you know where to put more of your budget into what’s actually working instead of just hoping for the results you want.

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Learn What Customers Really Want

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With the right permissions, call recording is a bit like a focus group that you didn’t have to pay for. If you take the time to listen back on the conversations with customers, you’ll start to see some patterns. If multiple people are asking you the same question, your message might not be clear enough.

Mentioning a specific competitor? Or a feature that you didn’t think twice about? All of that information is gold and you can feed it straight back into your campaigns. It’s like your customers are telling you how to sell to them, you just need to listen.

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It Makes Every Caller Feel Like A Regular

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The trick with good marketing is that it feels personal and VoIP can help with that, even over the phone. If you’re already using other Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, it integrates with it and suddenly, your interactions become a lot smarter and tailored.

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Your Phone Knows The Customer Before You Do

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As soon a customer calls in, your CRM will tell you who it is and any details that you need to know. If your CRM is up-to-date, you can see their full history including purchases or prior complaints.

Not only do you save time by not having to ask them to repeat themselves every time they call, but it’s a personal touch that builds true loyalty. And it’s the loyal customers who will come back time and time again – the kind of marketing that you can’t buy.

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Smarter Routing Means Happier Callers

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There’s nothing quite as frustrating as being placed on hold or transferred from one department to another, having to repeat yourself each time. Generally, your customer wants to put the phone down before they get the help they need – not really the ideal situation.

VoIP sends callers exactly to where they need to go automatically, whether it be to sales or customer support. Every customer having the impression that your brand has their act together does wonders for your reputation.

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It’s Time To Give Your Phone System Some Credit

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VoIP won’t replace your marketing team or your creative ideas – and it really shouldn’t. It’s meant to be seen as one of those brilliant behind-the-scenes tools that can help make everything else run better. It gives you data that you can use, adds a personal touch and helps you reach new customers.

Not bad for something that you thought was just for answering calls, right? It’s definitely worth considering at your next marketing strat meeting.

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There’s a clear thread running through this week’s crowdfunding roundup – money and the tech that moves it. One is a money app teaching children financial literacy. Another is a POS system helping merchants to sell both on and offline. A live shopping platform rethinking how we buy.

Learning to save at one end, taking payments at the other and plenty of commerce in between. It’s a reminder that some of fintech’s best work is the every day buzzing behind-the-scenes to make an experience possible.

So, who are the startups crowdfunding this week? Here they are.

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1. Sunshine + Kittens

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How much are they raising: £1,500,048

Website: www.sunshine-and-kittens.com

SEIS/EIS? Yes, EIS

About: Sunshine + Kittens is a money app built for children aged 6-12, giving them a real environment to earn, save and spend while learning how money actually works.

Financial literacy is one of those things that almost everyone agrees should be taught earlier in life, yet most of us pick it up through trial and error well into adulthood. Sunshine + Kitten lets kids learn through doing rather than through a lesson – earning, making choices about spending and seeing what saving gets them. For parents, it’s a way to hand over a little responsibility without handing over the whole wallet.

Where to invest: Europe Republic

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2. Pronto POS

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How much are they raising: £150,021

Website: www.prontofoods.tech

SEIS/EIS? Yes, EIS

About: Pronto POS gives merchants an omnichannel point-of-sale system that handles selling both offline and online. Users get one platform, one view of the business, wherever the sale happens.

For most small and mid-sized merchants, the split between the till and the website has always meant two systems, two sets of numbers and a lot of manual reconciliation in between. Pronto POS brings it all together so that inventory, sales and customer data all live in one place regardless of channel. The merchants who deal with this daily know exactly how much it costs them in time and errors.

Where to invest: Europe Republic

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3. Tilt

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How much are they raising: N/A

Website: www.tilt.app

SEIS/EIS? Yes, EIS

About: Tilt is a live shopping platform where products are discovered through interactive streams – and where sellers can start and grow a business without needing a shop or website.

Live shopping has been enormous in Asia for years, and the model is slowly proving itself around the rest of the world. People tend to like buying from a person who can answer questions in real time. It’s a low barrier to entry, offers a direct relationship with customers and the discovery happens naturally through the stream rather than through an algorithm.

Where to invest: Crowdcube

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4. Nusa Caña

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How much are they raising: N/A

Website: www.nusacana.com

SEIS/EIS? N/A

About: Nusa Caña is on a mission to reawaken Indonesian rum, a spirit with genuine heritage that most of the world hasn’t heard of yet.

Indonesia has been making sugarcane spirit for centuries, and there was a time when it travelled to European countries. That history largely faded and Nusa Caña is trying to change that, drawing on the Spice Islands story and reintroducing a style of rum that deserves a place on the back bar.

Where to invest: Crowdcube

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