March 2016 – Toll Free 1800 Numbers

10 Commonly Asked Questions About Toll Free Numbers

What are inbound 1800 numbers? Are they actually free? Can they be used for making calls?

1800 Numbers are also known as toll free numbers or free call numbers. Everybody knows that they are free for the calling party. These are known as virtual telephone numbers because they are meant for receiving incoming phone calls only. You can not use these numbers to dial any external number. These virtual numbers are used for directing incoming calls to your existing mobile or land line number.

Can i choose my own 1800 number?

There are two types of toll free numbers. Normal and Smart Numbers. You can either pick a normal number from one of the many 1800 numbers available before you or you can choose a vanity number of your choice (a sequence or series).

Who owns my 1800 number actually?

Indian 1800 numbers are owned by the Indian Government and controlled via Indian telecommunications and Media Authority. Acquiring a number does not mean that you own that number. When you acquire that number you secure the Right to Use that number for a specific region or area. You do not have any right to put normal 1800 number on hold neither you can suspend it for the future use. Disconnected toll free numbers must be returned to the DOT for the future re-release.

Can i use multiple 1800 numbers?

Yes, you can. Advertising more than one 1800 number is a really good business solution. If you deal with a business that needs to advertise in a range of diversified media and want to track the effectiveness, you must consider featuring unique 1800 numbers for each media.

Can i customize my 1800 number?

The toll free or 1800 number service is a sophisticated call routing/redirection or diversion system. These numbers can be configured to redirect to answer points (either land line or mobile phone.)

Do i get access to manage my account online?

As a customer, you would have round the clock access to online portal that provides you full details about the calls and data usage that can be used for reporting and analysis.

As a customer of 1300 Numbers Australia, you will have 24X7 access to an online portal that provides detailed call and usage data for reporting and analysis purposes.

Who pays for toll free calls?

Toll free numbers are absolutely free for the callers. The full cost has to be bore by the account holders.

What are the call rates for 1800 numbers?

Call rates for 1800 numbers are based on the location of the caller and the answer points (the point from where you make calls.) When your customers call you, you would be charged as per the rates of the plan you have selected.

How a toll free number benefits my business?

Toll free numbers benefit your business in multiple ways:

Your marketing campaigns get an increased response.
Your brands image is enhanced in the local, state as well as national markets.
Get all the details of the people calling you.
flexibility in where and when you would receive the calls.

How do i order toll free number? What all i require?

Ordering a toll free number is easy. You can either order online or call on the number of toll free service provider. Ours is: ( (0522) 3098080, 1800-200-5777, 0955-444-3322). Once you have selected the plan of your choice and made the payment, you need an ID proof, an address proof and proof of your company’s registration.

Market Evaluation of Toll Free Numbers

There is much buzz around the advantages of toll free 1800 numbers but are they really important to survive the corporate strangling? Have you ever come across any advertisement on print or electronic media that mentions toll free number? If not, just imagine a situation when you are hungry, cannot go out and come across an advertisement of a food joint mentioning a toll free number. Without thinking any further, you call on that number, don’t you? This is how your customers also think and tempted to call you when they see a toll free number of your product or service.

Now How the Marketing Survey Goes?

All the marketing surveys conducted so far have established the fact that businesses not using this technology lose prospective customers and business eventually. Marketing professionals all across the world are convinced about the fact that toll free numbers are bringing in 30% more orders than the conventional advertising methods actually do. Apart from that, statistics have shown that the product return rates also go down sharply. This is due to the simple reason. Customers tend to call you more because they are exempted from charges and hence their problems are actually resolved before they buy.

How the Productivity of These Numbers Can be Improved Further:

As per a recently conducted survey, people are motivated to respond on toll free numbers. However, purchasing alpha-numeric numbers can enhance their productivity further as these numbers spell your business and make people recognize your business via your toll free number. For example, if you own a fast food centre and have purchased a vanity toll free number by the name of 1800-Best-Fast-Food, or 1800-Your Company name, think of the booming business you may get! So the vanity toll free numbers are no lesser than a boon to your business.

The More You Expose them, the More You Would be Benefited:

To get the optimum benefit of toll free numbers you own you need to bring it to the notice of public at large. To get the maximum exposure of these numbers, you can print them on pamphlets, brochures and business cards.

Go toll free and let your prospective customers smell the air professionalism!

5 Unique Ways Toll Free Numbers Boost Sales

Despite the exponential rise of internet users, the significance of toll free numbers has not lessened. These numbers have become an indispensable asset for businesses whether big or small. 1800 toll free numbers help you gain both credibility and recognization in the market and boost sales. Here are the top 5 unique ways toll free numbers enhance sales. Let us have a quick look.

Improves Overall Customer Satisfaction:

Needless to say, when customers can call you any time without spending any money, they would be happy. This is a great way to retain customers. When your customers face a difficult time reaching you, they become frustrated. With the help of 1800, you can put your customers at ease, as they are exempted of any charge and they can reach you at any hour of the day.

It is Easy to Remember:

These numbers have the same prefix: 1800. After that, four digits are given by the operator. Therefore, toll free numbers are easy to remember. Moreover, there are vanity numbers which are alphanumeric and can be remembered most easily. It is due to this reason that they are a significant marketing tool.

Establishes Your Credibility in the Market:

Yes it is true that people think that only big corporations can have 1800 numbers. So, the credibility and image of even the start up companies enhances greatly when they began to use toll free numbers which in turn result in increasing sales. So, if you are a company working from a basement, you can build your image once you are subscribed to toll free numbers.

Portability:

Once you own a 1800 number, your location does not matter. Even if you move your set up to some other area, you can retain your old number and it does not affect your customers in any way. Once you purchase it, you are the owner of it and the number remains with you even if you change the service provider.

A Great Marketing Tool:

Toll free numbers help you track your marketing efforts because you can track from where the marketing source has originated. You can track missed, answered and unanswered calls and can use the data to trace your prospective clients.

7 Unknown Facts About Toll Free Numbers That You Would Love to Know

Social media, emails and toll free numbers have become more of a necessity than a matter of choice. No business can imagine to thrive without these three. However, myths surrounding the toll free numbers cloud your vision and you cannot take the right decision. Let us have a quick look at 10 vital facts about the free phone numbers that you do not know.

1800 is a prefix for all the toll free numbers that you buy in India. International toll free numbers have 800, 888, 866, 877 as prefixes.

You own your toll free number once you are subscribed to it.

These numbers are portable and hence if you change the service providers you can retain your old number.

Toll free numbers have been around in the market for more than 35 years.

There are vendors that offer you lucrative packages which will look you tempting but yes you should beware of the hidden charges which may surface in only when they are billed.

You are provided with a Custom Relationship Management Panel with all toll free numbers that helps you analyse, monitor and track calls. You can check the call logs and track the missed calls.

Refrain from purchasing toll free numbers from direct operators, if you do so then you would not be given the facility of IVR, call forwarding etc.

How Toll Free Number Works?

Toll free numbers can be customized as per your budget and needs. Gone are the days when error-prone staff used to handle the calls manually and you tend to miss leads after the office hours. Once the number is dialed, the Service Switch Point (SSP) of the telephone number recognizes it as a toll free number by its prefix. This in turn prompts it to query the Service Control Point or SCP which contains the routing instructions that are set up by the called party.

Top 5 Ways Cloud Telephony Helps Your Business Grow

Does the term “Cloud Telephony” rings an unfamiliar tune to your ears? Have you heard people saying that this is going to benefit your business but do not know how? Well! No matter how big or small your business may be, switching to clouds is a sure shot way to get a cost effective and flexible communication solution.

Cost Efficiency: How?

What have you been using for handling business calls? Land line, cell phones or PBX? Whatever equipment you may be using one thing is for sure that you end up in paying hefty bills. Don’t you? That apart, you tend to come across a range of technical problems and have to pay huge maintenance costs in each case.

Cloud telephony does not require any hardware installation. As the service is hosted by the vendor on your behalf, you have to pay only what you need. The technical and maintenance issues are looked after by the vendor.

High Flexibility: How?

You can either retain your existing numbers or get new numbers. You also have the flexibility to obtain the number of your choice and above all your service plan can be customized as per your needs and budget.

Productivity: How?

Productivity increases obviously because Cloud Telephony puts you in a complete control of your system. Not only this, you will be given a wide range of call management and handling features that can be operated with the help of easy-to-use interface.

What else? You can record both inbound and outbound calls that can be recorded for audit purpose, for customer service and for compliance. With the help of personalized settings you can handle multiple calls efficiently. You can track the important details like call history, recorded calls and voice mails.

You are Present 24X7 Hours and Everywhere: How?

With the help of Cloud Telephony you can integrate your fixed and mobile capabilities in such a way that you cannot miss even a single call. Receiving all the details of missed calls make you available 24X7. Call forwarding feature enables your staff to be available everywhere.

Reliability Under all Circumstances: How?

Even under the events like floods and snow, service would not get disrupted. You can take and make calls under all circumstances. You can port the number in case you need to change the geographical location of your office.

7 Myths About Cloud Telephony Debunked

Gone are the days when employees had to work from the office 10am-6pm. Those conventional days are over now. These days employees need a flexible system that can be operated from anywhere. Cloud telephony has empowered the business organizations with flexibility. Without the use of hardware or cables you would be able to manage calls from far and wide. Let us have a quick look at some of the myths and truths related to Cloud Telephony.

Myth 1: Managing calls need a dedicated IT Support person.

The only thing that you need is a cloud telephony service and nothing along with it. You do not need any additional technical person for running the setup. Everything is managed by the vendor.

Myth 2: You need a hefty investment.

No, it is just a myth. An internet connection is all you require. Thereafter, you can select a package according your budget and business needs.

Myth 3: Cloud telephony is the newest technology.

The technology is growing at the fastest pace. All the big and small companies need cloud telephony to organize their calls.

Myth 4: The process of set up is complicated and takes a lot of time.

The process does not require a hardware and therefore there is no need of phones and cables etc. There is only one time setup of software that is normally free of cost.

Myth 5: Migrating your toll free number is a hard nut to crack.

You can retain your old toll free numbers if you migrate your business from one place to another. You would only have a short-term downtime while migrating your system to Cloud Telephony.

Myth 6: This is an automated process and no support is required.

Yes it is true that a majority of its aspects are automated. However, a technical manual support is always required which is provided by the vendor.

Myth 7: The technology is meant for start up tech companies

Cloud telephony is used by both small and big companies. So, it is wrong to say that it is meant for the beginners only. Microsoft has invested 90% of their R&D budget on the Cloud Telephony. Even the big firms consider it as a wise investment.

What all Advanced Features You Get With Cloud Telephony?

Interactive voice response
Voice mail
Voice recording
Call forwarding
Call distribution

5 Useful Tips to Use Bulk SMS Effectively

When you know that bulk SMS marketing is the most effective way to make your campaign successful, what comes next? How about framing a strategy that can give you the optimal benefits of bulk SMS? Your next marketing campaign is round the corner and this time you want to reap the maximum benefits. What would you do? Chalking out a roadmap beforehand is the best thing you can do. Enumerated here are the 5 tips that let you use bulk SMS properly. Let us have a quick look.

Your Goal Should be Clear to You:

Have your messages and goal clear in your mind before you send your first text message. What do you want to obtain from your campaign? Is it traffic in your mind or you want to acquire new customers for your newly launched product or service. Using this tip, you would be able to get the right customers and can convey them an apt message.

Craft the Best Text Message:

Though crafting a text message is the trickiest thing but it is very important. Most importantly, you should limit your characters to 160. Secondly, your message should sound personal and exclusive. SMSes are read more than e-mails. You need to categorize your customers using certain factors like:

frequency of their transaction
Their capacity to invest
Geographical Location
Spending level
Types of products that they normally buy

Next, you need to create a compelling text message for your customer segment. Your message should be:

Clear and concise.
Call to action
Sense of urgency.

Just ask yourself, what do you want your customers to do when they read message? and when would your offer expire?

Take Care of the Time When You Send Them:

Timing is very important. The time at which you send can make or break your campaign. Do not send your messages on the wee hours when your customers are super busy. It is important to determine your client base and the time when they are most likely to read the messages. For instance, if you have a salon, weekends tend to be your busiest days. So, your bulk SMS offering discounts should be send maximum on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Also, you need to determine the frequency of sending your SMS.

Test Which Messages Appeal Actually:

The best thing about bulk SMS is that you can test which messages appeal the most. Not only this, you can also test when you can send the messages to get the optimal benefit of it. You can also try doing this. drafting several messages for a particular segment. Try them sending on the different types of the day. This helps you tracking the results.

Try to Track Everything:

This is important. Tracking customers is important to have a concrete data. This will also let you know what works and what does not. Also, you would know the best time of the day to send messages. Given here are certain ways to track your campaign successfully. You can either include the specific web page that offers discount offer or you can use unique codes that can allow you to track purchases. Make sure that there are no legal issues.

How Real Estate is Helped by Call Capture Feature of Toll Free Numbers?

It is a tough competition for the real estate agents in the crowded marketplace. As market is deluged with the service providers for limited number of leads sustaining has become really difficult. To get a leg up in this competition, you need to evaluate the best possible use of your marketing dollars to get the optimal result. Toll free numbers for the real estate industry is one such investment. It is better to remember that even the warm lead can turn hot and the hot lead cannot turn into sale.

How Call Capture Helps You Determine Your Advertising Budget?

There are many real estate agents that make use of call capture technology that helps them determine how advertising dollars should be invested to gain the optimum benefit. Just by attaching an 1800 call capture number to all the advertising modes you use, you are able to track the results efficiently. Also, you can evaluate your promotion and advertising ventures in a real time. This is a great way for the busy real estate agents to know what types of promotional and advertising offers are bringing leads.

How Call Capture of Toll Free Numbers Work?

Call capture works through a toll free number which has multiple extensions. There are certain call capture systems offer “mirrored” extensions which enables the agents to track which piece of advertising is able to generate the maximum leads.

It works on a simple process. Each number in any given call capture extension is assigned to a different piece of advertising. For instance, 1 is assigned to a direct mail, 2 to a bulk SMS or 3 to a Television commercial, the calls can be tracked on a particular number and hence the agents are able to ascertain which type of advertising is the most productive one.

How Else Call Capture Helps?

With the help of a call capture system you are able to record special offers that you keep on coming from time to time. For instance, an agent may offer a free credit report for a direct mail postcard and a special discount on bulk SMS etc. With the help of call capture system reports, the agent can analyse which advertising method is generating the maximum leads.

In short, call capture of the toll free numbers help the real estate agents to test the water of their marketing so that they can put their money in just the right direction. No wonder, why the demand of toll free numbers for real estate has risen sharply.

Some Toll Free Conferencing Facts that You are Unaware of

The optional feature of toll free conferencing can be used to your advantage. Do you know that when you use it the way it should be, you can put your business on the map? Needless to say, this is just a phone call which involves 3-4 parties or more in an audio conference for free. The main organizer of the conference has to bear the cost of conversation session.

When to use Toll Free Conferencing?

In these cases:

You are a large team that has to be mutually dependant.
You have multiple business associates in the satellite offices.
You have to make a special presentation to the targeted audience.

Some Important Toll Free Conferencing Facts:

It involves more than two parties in a single conversation.
It may be configured in such a way that the other parties can hear your conversation only.
Though companies use this option for training, business meetings, workshops and demonstrations but this is basically a 3-way call that is available in most home phone services.

There are two Types of Teleconferencing Services:

One is the Flat Rate Conferencing where the users of the service have to fixed monthly subscription charges even for the unlimited number of calls.

The other type of conferencing is pre-paid conferencing. In this type, the callers are required to pay for the minutes they consume.

In case of toll free conferencing, callers do not have to pay anything to the providers for toll free conferencing. It is fast becoming a popular choice owing to its practicality and cost-efficiency.

Apparently, in the realm of marketing, free conferencing has proved to be an invaluable tool. To change your potential clients into your loyal customers, you need toll free conferencing.