Calling friends and family members is usually a top priority for anyone traveling or living abroad. Whether you’re feeling homesick, would like to tell a loved one how much you’ve missed them, or need to converse with a colleague who happens to be located in a different country, calling abroad can end up getting quite pricey. Take it from someone who nearly spent the amount of money it cost to buy flight ticket calling her then-boyfriend and best friend while she was abroad.
Instead of having to deal with extremely high phone bills (and a rather unpleased father), making international calls for free or for a low rate is something everyone should know how to do. If you need a guide on how to make international calls for free but don’t really feel like rummaging the web for your answer, we’ve got the exact answers you’re looking for right here. Let us guide you through the process of international calling using your smartphone.
Nowadays, several apps including our very own Viber, are able to connect users through their desktop, mobile or tablet to their friends and family no matter their physical location. Thanks to VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), a revolutionary method that takes analog audio signals and turns them into digital data that can be transmitted over the internet, international calling, which was once considered quite the luxury, has now become something every person is able to do for free.
As a cross-platform instant messaging and VoIP app, Viber enables you to call, video call and message other Viber users for free no matter where you are. How does it work, you wonder? Viber uses your 3G, 4G or Wi-Fi internet connection to enable you to call abroad for free no matter where you are. You should, however, be aware that there could be mobile data charges if you have exceeded your data plan. If your data plan is not unlimited, though, simply use a Wi-Fi connection as often as possible to avoid additional charges.
And if you’re not sure about your data plan restrictions, contact your service provider for further information.
Here’s how to use Viber to call abroad for free to make international phone calls from your iPhone or Android. Simply follow these instructions:
From the contact list:
1. Choose to view only Viber contacts
2. Select the contact you want to call
3. Click Free Call
From a one-on-one chat:
1. Open your chat with the contact you want to call
2. Click the Call button
From the calls screen:
1. Open the calls screen
2. Click the phone icon next to one of your recent calls
OR
1. Click Open Keypad
2. Enter the Viber user’s phone number in the correct format (+Country Code – Area Code – Phone number)
3.
Click the Call button
You can also make free Viber to Viber calls from your desktop either by selecting a contact from your existing contact list or by typing in a contact’s phone number through your keypad. Here’s how to get it done by desktop in case you’re busy charging your phone in the meantime:
From the contact list:
1. Open Viber
2. Open the contact list
3. Select the contact you would like to call (Only contacts with the Viber badge can be called for free)
4. Click on the Phone Icon
5. Select Free Viber Call
From the keypad:
1. Open Viber
2. Select the keypad icon
3. Type the number you would like to call
4. Select the call button
Make @Viber your go-to app for free calls and messages no matter where you are in the world!- Click to Tweet
Now that you’ve got all the instructions you need on how to call abroad for free using your phone or desktop, you should know what other options are out there for making international phone calls to your family or friends who don’t have a Viber account.
While the majority of the world’s population owns a smartphone, there still are those who don’t own one, don’t have an internet connection or don’t have a Viber account. That’s where Viber Out comes into play, helping you get in touch with your loved ones no matter their circumstances.
Viber will never complete a call to a non-Viber user without first telling you that you’re about to make a regular call and requesting permission. However, if you know you’ll be making international calls on a regular basis, purchasing Viber Out credit is your best choice. Not only will it save you money but it will also prevent your having to search for cheap international calling alternatives.
With Viber Out you’ll be able to call anyone, no matter their location or circumstances. Call at a flexible and low-rate by choosing the option that best suits your needs:
Credit plans:
30-day calling plans:
Monthly subscription plans
Now that you not only know how to call abroad for free but also how to make international calls using your smartphone, you’re all set to go on your summer vacation, resting assured that your loved ones will be up to date regarding your trip with Viber’s help.
Making international calls hasn’t always been easy. Remember the times when you had to use your landline and a “cheap international calling rate number” to call abroad? Well, thanks to today’s rates on Viber’s low-cost calling service, Viber Out, those calling tricks are a thing of the past. Whether you’re abroad or need to call a landline from your mobile, Viber Out provides you with the cheapest and quickest option to do so, allowing you to contact your family and friends abroad easily. When choosing the best way to make an international call, you want to make sure you’ve taken into account all the dos and don’ts. Here are some things you should be aware of:
The easiest way to contact your friends and family abroad is through Viber. All Viber-to-Viber communication is absolutely free as long as your loved ones are also Viber users and you both have an internet connection.
Viber Out is the best solution for when you need to call a landline, someone who doesn’t have Viber or someone who doesn’t have an internet connection. Always make sure that you preload your Viber Out account in advance with credit so that you’re always able to use your phone to call anyone, anywhere – even if you don’t have an internet connection. Call any number in the world with Viber Out’s low calling rates and choose the best calling plan for your specific needs. For example, you can choose whether you need a 30-Day Calling Plan or a Monthly Subscription Plan if you travel abroad frequently.
The first thing you should do before traveling abroad is to check whether your mobile service provider allows you to make international calls and whether your contract covers the amount of data and minutes you’ll need to use while you’re away.
If you know that your phone is able to work abroad, you can keep using your local SIM card as you normally would at home. If it’s not included then find out how much it will cost to use and make sure your phone is suitable for using abroad and is unlocked so you can also have the choice to use an international SIM card. This means fewer chargers and roaming rates from your service provider.
When making international calls to a mobile or landline, you should take into account that you need to know the international dialing code for the country you wish to call. So whether you’re abroad working, traveling or at home and need to call Ireland from the US or any other country, you will be required to use an international dialing code before dialing your requested phone number otherwise your call will not go through. It’s super easy to call internationally with Viber Out. All you need to do is use the following format: (+)(Country Code)(Area Code without the leading zero)(Phone Number).
Use Viber for Desktop to make free international calls if you are a person who spends most of their day in front of a computer or you just don’t have your phone with you at that moment. Viber for Desktop enables you to call from your computer to other Viber users’ phones or computers. You can also make Viber Out calls from your desktop, offering an easy alternative for people who spend a lot of time at their computer and don’t have to worry about looking at their phone. Give it a go!
Be aware of the time differences before you make your call since you don’t want to have to deal with a grumpy friend or coworker who you’ve just accidentally woken up! If you are calling China, take note that there is only one official time zone (CST – China Standard Time), which is 8 hours ahead of UTC. This means there’s no Daylight Saving and the time zone stays the same all year round.
When traveling abroad many people have a difficult time finding a quiet place to speak on the phone from all the buzz that’s going on around them. Background noise such as construction, traffic or an echoey audio can also affect your call so make sure you are connected to a strong internet connection. Once you’ve examined the space you’re in, where the noise is coming from and you’re still having connectivity issues, try one of these sound blocking tips.
Be aware of how much credit you have on your Viber Out account before you make a call. You don’t want an embarrassing situation where you are cut off from a business call with your team as a result of running out of credit. Viber Out is a low-cost calling service to any international destination in the world.
Be aware that every country has a different code and varies in cost so dialing the wrong code could cost you more than you think.
Now that you know the dos and don’ts of making international calls, you can choose which Viber Out plan suits your needs. Discover international low calling rates for any destination of your choice. Let us know which Viber Out plan you chose and who you’re planning on calling on our Twitter page.
Recently it became known that Anna Znamenskaya, who previously worked as a top manager at Apple, Beeline, ivi, Tinkoff, has taken the global position in Rakuten Viber's business development. This is the first time in the history of the company that a manager from Russia has been appointed to an international position. Anna shared with Forbes useful tips on what needs to be done on the way to such a career
Work in a large international company - a ghostly dream or an achievable reality? According to a HeadHunter study, 41% of young Russians who are thinking about working for hire would like to work in the Russian division of an international company, and 88% of these applicants are ready to transfer to the foreign office of this company.
The enthusiasm of young specialists is fueled by the example of Russians who are already successfully realizing themselves in global corporations. How to get a job in an international company?
1) The first piece of advice is rather banal, but it is the basis without which everything else loses its meaning. To feel confident in a global company, you need English , and at a level that will allow you to freely express your thoughts in the professional field, as well as joke and communicate with colleagues on abstract topics - politics, art, travel. You should take care of this in advance, and there are a great many ways available: courses, classes with a native speaker in an online school, chatting with English-speaking friends or making new acquaintances on couchsurfing, watching movies in the original. The more practice the better. I started on the courses 20 years ago, watched films in the original and, of course, practiced.
2) One of the most reliable ways to get a job in an international corporation is to show relevant experience in a large Russian company.
A well-known and respected employer on your resume will be a tangible plus and demonstrate that you have already managed to prove your competence. As a rule, in large-scale international companies such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, resume screening and initial phone interviews are carried out by an HR department that is not located in Russia and does not always know the local market thoroughly, so a well-known brand will play into your hands.
3) Another important step is to go to get an MBA or MA in the West. The presence of a Western education, which, by the way, almost does not matter in Russia, when considering your profile in an international company, can also add points. Yes, the option is quite expensive, but it certainly opens up new horizons. In addition to having a very attractive line on your resume, during your studies you will get the first real experience of working abroad during an internship and the opportunity to make contacts that can be decisive for your future career.
Life hack: LinkedIn has a very handy feature, it shows the graduates of your business school who work in the company you are interested in, you have the opportunity to write to them directly and ask for the company’s HR contact or introduce you to the hiring manager for a vacancy. As a rule, in 70% of cases these strangers answer. I myself completed a master's degree in Digital Marketing at IE Business School - this is a well-known European business school, ranked in the top 8 in the Financial Times ranking.
4) If you still can’t get a job in an international company in Russia, and you don’t have time and resources to get an MBA degree, you can start looking for a job abroad in the standard way, but apply specifically for vacancies where you need the Russian language . You may be surprised, but recently Russia has become a significant market for many industries, especially IT and digital, and many companies are looking for specialists with experience in the industry, knowledge of the Russian language and connections in the Russian market.
The first step here is to write a resume in English. In general, the rules are general: you should focus on your professional qualities, experience, responsibilities at the previous job and achievements. At the same time, it should be taken into account that foreign employers prefer to see real examples with numbers and quantitative results of your activities, as well as a list of recommendations from well-known companies. LinkedIn pages of experts in your field can be a good source of information for writing a resume. Similarly, the vacancies you need are posted on LinkedIn, for example, in London and Berlin, vacancies where Russian specialists are needed quite often come across.
5) The system of letters of recommendation is popular in foreign companies. While studying at a university, doing an internship or working for a company, it is useful to establish professional contacts with people who could confirm your experience in the future. You need to be prepared for the fact that a potential employer will want to get real feedback about your professional or academic activities and will ask for recommendations.
It can be not only your past employers, but also clients or partners. Think about who in your business environment, who works for a well-known Western company, could give you recommendations.
6) The same goes for cover letters - the right presentation of your motivation and the best professional skills that will be useful in a particular position is often the key to success. In no case should you copy template options, you need to devote time to each letter, making it personalized, clear and catchy. Try to apply your experience to the requirements of the vacancy. Before writing a letter, carefully read the description of the position you are applying for, as well as information about the company and its new projects. The HR professional and the hiring manager should get the impression that you are simply made for this role. The volume of the document should not exceed more than half a page.
7) Feel free to share your job search on social media.
In Russia, there is a common opinion that it is impossible to share one's plans before they are implemented, but abroad the position on this matter is the opposite. In the US and UK, for example, open discussion about career expectations is very welcome. Therefore, discard stereotypes, share your plans on social networks, update your LinkedIn profile - this is a great chance to meet the right people. Cases when people got into dream companies due to the fact that their profile was noticed by employers do exist.
8) You can try to post a resume on foreign job search sites (such as Glassdoor, for example) or contact Western recruiters - this applies primarily to work in foreign divisions of companies. Everywhere there are job sites where you can leave your resumes and find open vacancies. And remember, the more job postings you leave, the better. It often happens that they do not answer you right away, but your resume ends up in the agency's database, which can call even six months later, when a suitable position is in their work.
9) Whatever field you work in, the surest way to get your dream job in an international company is to be visible and successful in your field . Your task is to make the market perceive you as an expert in the industry, which means that you must speak at conferences, give comments to the media on professional issues. If you are approached for recommendations in your field regarding people or companies, always answer if you have something to share. Most international companies cooperate with recruiting agencies that constantly monitor the labor market, identifying talents - employees who can strengthen the team of the client company. In fact, there are not so many such people, and, as a rule, there is a demand for them, regardless of the direction of business.
10) It is worth remembering that the most important thing is always relevant experience and getting into the company culture. How a candidate fits the team in terms of his personal characteristics (soft skills) is a very important criterion, especially in American companies.
In Russian organizations, the professional performance of an employee is still more important, for example, in Tinkoff Bank or Beeline, management is very result-oriented and KPI-fulfillment, while in a Western company, the ability to build relationships, win over, present ideas correctly, “sell” them plays a big role inside. Since the decision chain is much longer, this requires skill in intra-corporate negotiations.
Who: Viber Communications Director in the CIS, France and Germany.
What it does: spreads a positive message about the company, its products, and the people who represent the company at the public level.
The main functionality is to find good news and minimize bad news, as well as talk about new products that Viber is launching.
Background: worked in product PR at Samsung. Previously, she oversaw the brands ColumbiSportswear and Miele on the side of the agency.
I started my career in Playboy magazine. From the fifth grade she dreamed of becoming a journalist - she entered the journalism department of Moscow State University. In my last year of university, I posted my resume on HeadHunter, and a few days later I was contacted by HR from Burda Media Company. Already in the interview, I found out that they need an assistant editor-in-chief of Playboy magazine. At first I was surprised by the offer to work in this particular publication, and then I thought, why not?
At first I was engaged in administrative work, and then I began to help the PR director: I wrote press releases, communicated with Russian stars, and helped in organizing events.
Then I was hired as a project manager at the agency, where I worked for four years. There I grew to the head of the group, and after that I decided it was time to move on.
I was invited to an interview at Samsung, which consisted of three stages: communication with HR; with the future leader and with the marketing director. Somehow everything worked out quickly - I was hired. At first, I was engaged in PR for household appliances, and when the head of the department left, I began to deal with everything: from IT to smartphones.
Working at Samsung was nervous, but it was a very interesting four years in terms of development and growth: I worked at least 10 hours a day, I was able to realize my creative ideas, which for some reason were previously in table”
There I learned to defend my point of view, to find an approach to people of very different characters – I worked not only with top managers, but also with representatives of our show business.
When a new head was hired to the department, I did everything to leave the IT direction behind. I think this is the most driving and interesting area for development and growth. IT journalists and experts with whom I talked a lot helped me to understand the specifics of this market.
Samsung is one of those companies that eats up all your time and emotions. Working there for a long time is difficult emotionally - professional burnout occurs. The working day could last for 12-14 hours, it seemed that work takes up your whole life. New employees often could not stand it and left after a probationary period.
Plus, there have been changes in the company - new management has come in, and with it the work background has changed.
On the sidelines of the workplace, they said that there is no life behind Samsung. I decided to find out if this was the case and told my manager that I was leaving.
He was surprised, asked me not to rush and think carefully
They didn't offer to raise the salary, because the company has a complicated system of long-term budget planning. They tried to get me interested in tangible and intangible bonuses: expanding the area of responsibility, the number of projects and autonomy within the team. At first I thought to agree, blaming everything on emotions and fatigue, but in the end I left. And never once regretted it.
After Samsung, it was hard to find an interesting project with the same big budget and tasks.
For about half a year I was looking for a new job.
I was contacted by an agency that was looking for employees in Viber. It was the longest interview in my life - the process dragged on for two to three months. First, I was invited to a meeting at the agency, after which I had to prepare a test task: draw up a six-month plan for the development and promotion of Viber and a list of ideas for events and informational events.
Test prepared in English. I liked my assignment, and I was invited for an interview with the head of the local office. After that, an acquaintance with the executive director from the company's headquarters in Tel Aviv took place. There were only three interviews, and the gaps between them were huge. At some point, I decided that nothing would work. As my manager told me later, it takes a lot of time to agree on all the terms of the contract with the headquarters.
At the interview, I bombarded the future employer with questions: I asked what the workload would be, how often newsbreaks happen, how important comments from top managers are coordinated, how quickly they react - the experience in previous companies affected. They convinced me that everything here happens very quickly. So, my first position at Viber is PR manager.
I worked for the company for a little over a year before becoming Viber Communications Director for the CIS, France and Germany.
A little background: in February of this year, a CEO joined the company, who, after the departure of the founders, Viber did not have for several years. Upon assuming this position, CEO Jamel Agawa called the company's key employees from different regions to the headquarters in Tel Aviv. There we held a team presentation of our projects, and after that we were invited to a tête-à-tête with the CEO.
Viber Minsk office. Photo: kyky.org
At the meeting with him, everyone had to tell about themselves, their role in the company and plans. After this acquaintance, I began to often cross paths with him on work issues. This summer, Viber became the official messenger of the Barcelona football club, and in honor of this, press conferences for partners and journalists were held in several key countries for the company. I held such a meeting in Moscow, after which Jamela Agawa told me that it was time to grow and take on more complex tasks.
He started from afar: he asked if I was considering moving to another country, and then offered to move to a new position and move to live in Europe
You know, he himself is a very mobile person - he was born in Marseille, France lived in Silicon Valley for several years, then received an invitation from Viber and moved to Israel.
He believes that many people are as mobile as he is. This is typical for Europeans: they are not tied to a city or country, they can move freely. For them, the main thing is interesting work.
But I was not in the mood to move somewhere - I feel comfortable in Russia, I still have a large block of work in Russia and the CIS - these are important and priority markets for Viber, to which the main forces and attention of the company are directed. Plus, I was getting married.
We agreed that I would work for France and Germany from Russia. I am starting an interesting stage in my life - how, without being in the market 24/7, to create the right impression that you are a local, that you understand this business. In addition, I have not one market, but two.
Viber's largest offices are in Belarus and Israel. There are IT developers in Minsk: everything you see on Viber is their work.
Tel Aviv is inventing new products and looking for new partners. Many Russian specialists work in Israel. Viber values the brains of Russian programmers, they are in demand here. When a company opens new vacancies, the search for new employees is more concentrated in Russia.
The main requirement is to know English well, then you can move to live by the sea
The rest of the offices are scattered in Japan - the parent company Rakuten is located there, in America, our sales managers work mainly in San Francisco. A small office is located in Moscow - mainly marketers and PR specialists work here.
A few years after the founders Talmon Marko and Igor Magazinnik left the company, the CEO role in Viber was performed by the executive director. Prior to the arrival of Jamel Agawa, the structure of subordination in the company was slightly different - local offices were subordinate to the head in a particular region.
That is, there was the head of the office in the CIS or in Central and Eastern Europe, for example. And the rest of the functions - PR, marketing, partnerships - were under it.
Now the structure is more vertical - for example, my colleagues from the partnership department report to the director of business development, who is physically located in Bulgaria and is responsible for two regions: the CIS and Central and Eastern Europe. At the same time, although he is a citizen of Bulgaria, he also travels a lot and can hold working meetings or calls from almost any part of the world. This is a more mobile, mobile structure. There is no rigid hierarchy.
Depending on the projects, I report to several top managers at once - CEO, b2c marketing director and b2b marketing director
If I have some urgent question, I can write to the CEO in the chat instead of going through personal assistants. In a corporation, everything is more closed and recorded: requests are submitted through memos, work correspondence occurs only by mail.
Here, 80% of communication takes place in Viber chats. I have several chats with advertising agencies, with the team, which includes Jamela Agawa, and the leadership of the b2b department, where they discuss important things related to legislation or requests for comment on some sensitive issues. We use mail to coordinate reports on the work done, financial estimates or large interviews.
My main function in my new position is to analyze the markets and find interesting newsbreaks. Now I am looking for local PR agencies that will become our partners and experts in France and Germany, in the future I will supervise their tasks. France is a priority right now, as our CEO is from there, and he wants all the action to start there. We'll go to Germany later. I work from Russia, but several times a month I have to fly to France.
Global PR can be done from anywhere in the world. To do this, you need to read local media and social networks for days to keep abreast of what is happening.
Be ready for calls or correspondence in the messenger at a convenient time for Western colleagues. Communicate with opinion leaders who can share useful cases with you and spread information to the rest of the market.
The French have their own preferences in communication - they are snobs, and you have to be very courteous with them. Colleagues warned me about this, later I learned it in practice. And they also have their own understanding of deadlines: in Moscow, people respond instantly to any request, but there they are in no hurry to respond - you can wait several days for feedback. We have a working chat with French colleagues - we correspond in English, and they quite often and suddenly switch to French. Jamel Agawa even made a remark to them, saying that you are not alone here - let's communicate in English.
Viber Minsk office. Photo: kyky.org
There are many such features in international companies, and you need to be prepared for them.
Once I invited an Israeli representative of Viber to a conference in Moscow, and he said that he could not work these days - they had New Year's religious holidays.
In Israel, the working week starts on Sunday, and Friday and Saturday are days off, and many of our employees observe the Sabbath. It is unlikely that they will answer you these days, so I try to resolve important things (financial issues or urgent comments) before Thursday. If this does not happen, you have to wait until Monday. I am helped by the Google Calendar, which marks all weekends and holidays of offices around the world, and when planning announcements, we take into account the recommendations of local PR agencies.
I am physically present in the office from 9 am to 7 pm with a break for lunch. But in chats and in the mail - 24/7. As a rule, a new working day begins the day before - I have a habit of checking work email and monitoring the media before bed to be ready for the tasks and projects of the next day.
Therefore, upon arrival at work, I already know in what order to answer certain letters, what urgently requires certain decisions, and what I can think about during the day.
True, sometimes it is not possible to fully "strategize" - there are days filled with calls and meetings with both local and global colleagues. But on such days I try to combine as many meetings or calls as possible so that I can devote the rest of my working time to direct official duties.
And towards the end of the working day, you can afford to talk with colleagues about work-related topics, exchange ideas on various current projects, search for new opportunities and read industry news.
Salary can be both in dollars and in rubles - it depends on many factors. There are also bonuses - their size depends not only on your personal achievements, but on the success of the company as a whole. Here they pay me for parking, for Moscow this is very important.
Well, the standard set - payment for mobile communications, VMI, food compensation.
There are no protocols in a startup, and that's why it's cool to have a proactive attitude - the more ideas you offer, the better. Not all of them, of course, will be approved, but the main thing is to show that you are not afraid and are ready to take on the most difficult task.
The team is small, so it is important to be in good emotional connection with colleagues. After all, you are building a new team together, and the way you communicate, among other things, affects business results.
If you want to promote a startup, you must know the industry in which it operates and be an expert: know the trends and journalists who write about this industry. Understand what's on the hype right now. For example, now it’s great to talk about blockchain and artificial intelligence. Follow the local and foreign press, study the market, keep an eye on what competitors are creating.
