Whether they’re calling to make an order or contact customer service, consumers appreciate businesses that are easy to reach. And that means having a dedicated business number.
In the past, getting a new number meant having a phone company run a line to your house. But today, there are more options than ever.
Decide on a Vanity Number
Vanity numbers are phone numbers that are easy to remember, which makes them attractive to potential clients and customers. They can also convey your company’s identity and values. If you offer eco-friendly products, you can use a number like 1-800-GO-GREEN to show your commitment to sustainability. Similarly, if you provide customer support, using a number like 1-800-HELP-ME can emphasize your focus on ensuring customers have the help they need.
Whether you choose a local or toll-free vanity number, you can get one perfect for your business. The best way to find a good vanity number is to consider the keywords, phrases, or numbers that describe your business. You can then use a keyword search tool to see what’s available.
Another option is to use a phrase that reflects your unique selling proposition (USP). This can make you stand out from your competitors and give potential customers an idea of your business. You can even incorporate your USP into your phone number to make it more memorable.
Once you’ve decided on a vanity number, the next step is to decide whether you want a toll-free or local number. Most modern phone service providers offer both types of numbers, so you’ll have plenty of options. You can even combine a toll-free or local vanity number with a virtual phone system, allowing you to work from anywhere.
Decide on a Number with a Local Area Code
When choosing the perfect phone number for your business, the type of area code you choose can have a significant impact. Whether you manage a neighborhood art gallery or offer teletherapy services, having a local area code can help you gain the trust of your clientele by demonstrating to them that you are accessible and close by.
However, it’s important to remember that not all consumers live in the same city as you do. It’s becoming more common for people to choose an area code that isn’t associated with their hometown for professional or personal reasons. This is partly due to the rise of mobile phones and their associated “phone culture,” where many users like to show off their phones’ unique digit combinations as status symbols—much like some people wear designer labels to signal their wealth and status.
As you can see, to buy 201 phone number can be a challenging task. But if you consider the above factors, you can make an intelligent decision that can significantly affect your business’s bottom line and success. Depending on your needs and the size of your business, you can also opt for a toll-free number to allow callers to reach you at no extra cost.
Think About Who Answers the Phone
When choosing the perfect phone number for your business, a simple rule of thumb is to pick a memorable prefix consistent with your brand message. Once you’ve found the correct number, there are many ways to make it stand out and drive more calls to your company.
A business number allows you to separate your personal and work calls and set business hours so callers can reach you when the office is open. You can also use features like auto-reply to direct callers to your website or emergency contact. This provides you and your employees with a better work/life balance while increasing consumer trust in your brand.
Modern business numbers are unified communication systems that combine multiple functions to help you manage and grow your business. They’re also quick to deploy, easy to use, and device-neutral. They often come with advanced features such as number sharing, IVR or interactive voice response, voicemail, call forwarding, and advanced texting for customer communication and marketing. Many of these platforms can be accessed from desktop computers, mobile devices, and tablets. This makes unifying and optimizing your team’s call and voice interaction easier, regardless of location. Employee travel is reduced as a result, and you have the flexibility to scale as your company expands.
Think About Your Prefix
Sometimes, more than choosing just the correct phone number format is required. How that data is used across your business, and the customer journey would be best. For example, if your sales team uses auto-dialing software and your customer support teams use a different system for dialing customers, you must ensure the phone number format you choose will work with each system.
This may be easier to do with a custom phone number. Modern virtual phone numbers with features like customizable voicemail greetings and call recordings come in various formats to support each team’s needs. If you want to be sure your CRM and other business systems will seamlessly work with the phone number format you choose, you can ask one of these platforms to provide test numbers for you to try out.
The other way to test a new phone number format is to ask your friends and colleagues to give you a call and see how the number sounds. However, this method can be costly if you reprint documents with the new number or update any advertising materials that contain the number, like business cards, letterhead, commercials, and even branded company vehicles. Tracking who has called a number that has been changed or reprinted can be challenging.
