A phone number used to be a landmark moment for a small company, but today it is too often an afterthought. That’s partly because today a phone is not tethered to a physical location.
So opening a company number isn’t quite the symbolic gesture of getting up and running your own place.
Partly, it’s because access to a business number is easier than ever, so it’s not a milestone investment. In fact, it only costs a few dollars a month if you’re looking for a dedicated business phone number but you don’t need a separate landline.
That means there’s no reason to wait to give your customers a line of communication directly with your company. So why do you need to have a dedicated phone number?
Build Customer Confidence
A company’s phone number is an assurance to its customers that there is a way to reach out and talk about problems if there’s an issue with an order or faulty work done down the road. It also provides them a way to ask questions ahead of making a purchase with you, so they can be sure to get what they want when they do place that order.
Customers who see a phone number for a business are even inclined to view that company more positively when they don’t intend to call the number or don’t need to, so it can make it easier for them to reach out via email or messaging as well.
That means even a small eCommerce startup working out of your home would benefit from having a dedicated contact number. So why not use your existing personal line?
A Business Line Means Security
If your personal number is also your business number, that means a lot of people wind up having it. Even if your business phone number simply forwards to your cellular handset, it’s a more secure method of communication because the number is registered to your company, and not you personally.
What difference does that make? To make it simple, your phone number is a major point of identifying information about you. Making it public increases the ease with which random individuals can access your other personal information, including your location.
Maintaining your personal privacy is as simple as having a public-facing phone option that goes to the handset you already use while only revealing the name and location of your company, not yourself or your employees.
Versatile Options for Businesses
Today’s phone lines can be set up in a variety of ways. Maintaining a dedicated cell or landline might be the first option that comes to mind, but it is often one of the more expensive ones. If you’re wondering whether your business needs a dedicated phone or just a line that comes to your existing phone on a dedicated number, consider these questions:
- Do you have employees who need to answer the phone for you?
- How many handsets need to receive the number?
- Are you interested in connecting it to VOIP or a dedicated landline? Or keeping it wireless?
Once you know the answers to these questions, it gets a lot easier to find the right plan for your small business. Protect yourself while providing your customers with the communication tools they need to shop confidently.