What is a toll
free telephone number?
Currently there are five toll free prefixes available -
800, 888, 877 and 866. For more than 30 years, toll free
numbers have provided convenient access for customers, along
with an easy way to draw new business to an organization.
Why use a toll
free number? By using a toll free number in your advertising or as
a customer service contact number, you are providing your
customer a no-charge means of communicating with your
company. Consumers speaking to a merchant on the telephone
are more likely to complete a transaction than those examining
a merchant's website or printed ad. Moreover, easy-to-remember
telephone numbers are more effective. A productive ad
featuring a quality toll free number can generate up to
30 percent more orders.
What is a toll
free vanity number? Toll free vanity numbers begins with 800, 888, 877 or
866, and spell out useful words such as 800-Dentist, 800-Flowers,
and 800-Collect. A vanity number can also be an easily
recalled number combination such as 877-444-4000, or 800-490-Diva.
How many toll
free numbers have been issued so far?
The original 1-800 series of 7.7 million toll free numbers
lasted nearly 30 years. In 1997, an additional 7.9 million
numbers were added with the 1-888 series. In 1998, the 1-877
series was introduced, and finally, in July 2000, the Federal
Communications Commission introduced the 1-866 series, raising
the total pool of toll free numbers to more than 32 million.
Which prefix
is better - 800, 888, 877 or 866? The well established 800 prefix remains your strongest
exchange in terms of consumer awareness and ease and accuracy
of use. 888, 877 and 866 prefixes have more readily available
numbers because they are newer. However, 30 years of usage
has embedded "1-800" in the minds of consumers
as "toll free". Using 888, 877 and 866 carries
an inherent risk of customer confusion and misdialing.
Are toll free
numbers portable? Acquiring your own toll free number gives you the freedom
to change as your business needs change. Toll free telephone
numbers can be directed to any number. If you relocate,
your number can easily follow you to your new physical
site. You can have your toll free number ring to your
home, business line, cellular phone or pager.
Do my toll free
calls have to ring to the same place all the time?
Call routing options are based on area code, location, date,
time---or all four. For example, calls during a lunch break
could be routed directly over to your satellite office for
direct customer assistance, rather than simply forwarding
to voice mail. Another routing configuration used often
by companies with multiple offices is one that distributes
calls based on area code specifications. Callers within
a certain area code grouping would route to one office and
other callers in another region or grouping would be directed
to another local office.
Can I limit my
callers to a certain area of the country?
Toll free phone numbers can have the added feature of blocking
unwanted calls from specific area codes or even prefixes.
Often this is done to prevent wrong phone numbers, especially
if you only need a small portion of the country, or are
receiving wrong telephone numbers from just one section
of the country.
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