If your business operates in more than one location, then you’ve probably heard of virtual phone number. And if you’re not familiar with this, just think of it as the shiny new version of an old yet important item that we’ve come to know and love.
Just like how a smartphone is an upgrade to your basic phone, this is an upgrade to your regular phone number – it does everything the latter does and more. And if you want the upgrade, you can easily get it now from service providers like https://telnum.net/.
But even though the purchasing process is fast and easy, you should know that there are different kinds. And what would benefit you the most would depend on your particular circumstances.
Why do people get one?
There are many reasons, both business and personal, that you can benefit from a virtual number:
Personal reasons
- You’re relocating
Especially when it’s to another country (for example Australia), moving means you won’t have your own number for a while. So even if you’re not interested in permanently getting one, this lets you temporarily connect with people while you wait for your own number.
- Applying for jobs abroad
For sure your odds of getting hired will be higher if they can easily contact you via phone. If you’re an employer in France, would you really be willing to spend on a long-distance call for someone you haven’t even met yet?
Business reasons
- You want to keep costs as low as possible
Because a virtual number is not location-dependent, you can now connect with the international market without spending anything on physical infrastructure investments there.
- You want to better track results
As we said, this is an upgrade. So it comes with lots of features that can help you track agent performance, monitor calls, and many more.
You’ll have access to information from which you can draw insights to improve business performance and your bottom line.
What types are available?
Multiple sources would categorize the types by certain features such as geographic and cost to customers. But for our purposes, we won’t stick to a particular categorization rule to show you the extent of variations available.
Local numbers
Also known as local access numbers, this is a number that’s associated with a specific area. Each of the United States is assigned multiple area codes to represent a particular place within.
So if you want, you can get an extremely localized number even if your actual location is stated away.
Toll free numbers
Essentially, this is a number that anyone can call that’s free of charge. Enterprises of all sizes are using this to encourage their market to connect with them. Any of these three sub-types may be suited to you largely based on your business size:
- Domestic
Also known as the true 800 number, anyone in the country can call this number for free regardless of the device the caller is using.
And because people are slowly getting rid of landlines, your company will maintain its accessibility to practically everyone.
- International
In many ways, this type is just like the domestic. But there’s one big difference: providers will usually charge callers if they’re not using a landline.
So does this mean it’s now irrelevant? Not necessarily.
Even today, there are countries where households still have a landline. So in the right markets, it may make more sense to get an international toll free number instead of its domestic counterpart.
- Universal International Freephone Numbers (UIFN)
Either domestic or international may work if you’re operating in just a few countries. But it can become downright overwhelming if you’re trying to reach markets all over the globe.
If you have a separate number for each country, you probably have multiple country-based websites also. But with UIFN you can just get one number for as many as 40 countries around the world.
Here’s the catch, though: many companies are still wary of upgrading to UIFN because it requires a fairly substantial setup fee.
Vanity numbers
We’re recognizing vanity numbers as a separate type of their own because a lot of business owners are forgetting how beneficial this can be. With this, you can:
- Make the number extremely memorable, so people would be more likely to call.
- Improve your brand image by letting people know what you do before they even “meet” you.
- Improve your professional image, making it easier for potential customers to trust you.
Unlike your regular virtual number, this one follows a certain format so it’s not just a bunch of random numbers. It can be made to spell out something like 1-800-FIX-CARS or 1-800-222-2222.
Regardless of what you think will work best for you, virtual numbers are definitely the way forward in your industry. As a communication and marketing solution, it’s also highly cost-effective that even startups can easily make this investment.