If you’ve recently started a business, you’re going to have to establish some type of business phone line. No matter if your business is large or small, or if you’re a B2B business or B2C type of establishment, you’ll need to give clients a way to reach you via telephone. Whether you need to set up a structured VoIP phone system or are going to have calls routed right to your cell phone, virtual phone numbers provide a great way to make business phone numbers memorable and build client trust. If you’re wondering how to get a business phone number that benefits both your business and your clientele base, here’s how to get started.
Choose Your Business Phone Type
Before you can go about setting up and choosing your new number for business, you’ll need to choose the type of business phone line you’ll need. Fortunately, with advancements in cellular and internet technology, you no longer have to establish phone systems and call rooms. Rather, you can simply have your business phone number set up directly on your smartphone. In either case, virtual phone numbers provide the flexibility and free calling services for your customers you want to provide.
In many cases, business phone lines may differ due to varying business sizes and needs. For example, if you have a virtual call center and don’t have a physical office where you and your employees meet, you may want to choose to establish your business number on cellular devices. And, you can even add extensions to each line so each employee has a personal business line. But, on the other hand, if your business consists of a physical establishment with multiple departments, you may wish to consider the functionality of a VoIP system.
Select Your Business Phone Number
Now that you know which phone you want your business number routed to, you can select your business phone number. At United World Telecom, we offer a few different options for the type of phone number you select. You can either choose a local number in your area or that of your target client base, or a toll free number. Local numbers can help to reach consumer bases in target areas, even if you aren’t located anywhere close. And, toll free numbers offer you the ability to create your own branded telephone number. As well as offer your customers a completely free way for them to call your business.
The Option of a Vanity Toll Free Number
When choosing a toll free number, think of numbers that can translate into lettering that benefits your branding. For example, if you own a taxi service, you may want to choose a toll free vanity number like 800-CAB-TAXI (800-222-8294 translated on the keypad). This way, your customers can more easily recognize your number and will be more willing to pick up or call you back.
Set up You Customized Business Phone Line Options
After you’ve chosen your number and verified that it’s available, it will be connected to your chosen phone line system. Then, you can go about setting up your customized business greeting and creating your voicemail recordings.
The business phone greeting is optional. But, it’s a simple way to have an idea about what a customer might be calling about right off the bat. When a customer dials your business phone number, a recorded greeting will provide them with options to more easily forward them to the correct department. Or, simply give you a better idea of what the call may be about. For example, you could set up your greeting to provide an option like, “For customer service requests, press 8.”
When you’re not around, you can have your virtual phone line forward calls to another number. Or, you can go the traditional route of a voicemail. If you want to give your customers a way to leave you voice messages, you’ll need to create a business voicemail recording once your phone line is set up.
Set up Your Employee Extensions
Instead of having to forward calls to the right employees every time a customer calls, extensions give employees individual phone numbers. But, they are all extensions of the same number: your business number. So, if you’d rather not have to forward calls and give your employees the capability of giving out their own business phone numbers, you’ll have to select extensions, which are usually four-digit numbers, that are designated to each employee. Once established, your customers can dial your business phone number with the additional extension to reach the specific employee of their choosing.
Getting Your Business Phone Number Through United World Telecom
Now that you know how to get a business phone number, it’s time to get started. Here at United World Telecom, we offer businesses many customizable options when it comes to choosing a business phone number. Whatever feature you need for your business, we can help to provide a business phone number that does what you need. If you need a new business phone number, visit our website to learn more about all of our vanity phone number features. It’s time you allowed your customers to reach you the way you want them to!