The post about Call Whisper for 0800 numbers on 3rd September created some useful feedback.
The short pre-recorded message is only heard by the person that answers the 0800 number call.
The caller doesn't hear the pre-recorded message.
While the message is being played the 0800 number caller hears the normal ringing tone.
Friday, 3 September 2010
0800 Number Display
Question:
If I purchase an 0800 number and point it to my mobile phone will the 0800 number show on my screen when someone uses my 0800 number to call me?
Answer
In a word, No.
The actual landline number or mobile number of the person that rang your 0800 number will display on your mobile phone.
This is better for you really as if you can't take the call you will be able to ring it back. If you just saw your 0800 number displayed it wouldn't be as helpful.
What might prove useful is a service like DBS's call whisper which gives you a short pre-recorded message when your 0800 number is being used. Click here for more information on the call whisper service for 0800 numbers.
If I purchase an 0800 number and point it to my mobile phone will the 0800 number show on my screen when someone uses my 0800 number to call me?
Answer
In a word, No.
The actual landline number or mobile number of the person that rang your 0800 number will display on your mobile phone.
This is better for you really as if you can't take the call you will be able to ring it back. If you just saw your 0800 number displayed it wouldn't be as helpful.
What might prove useful is a service like DBS's call whisper which gives you a short pre-recorded message when your 0800 number is being used. Click here for more information on the call whisper service for 0800 numbers.
Wednesday, 4 August 2010
BT's 0800 Number Charges
There is still a misunderstanding of BT's stance on calling 0800 numbers from a BT Mobile Phone.
To clarify, BT has scrapped all charges for its customers who call 0800 phone numbers in May 2009 after pressure from consumer groups
BT have called on other mobile phone operators to suit.
This would benefit mobile phone users to the tune of £50 million a year.
For many years BT's mobile phone customers were irritated by having to pay exorbitantly high rates when dialling (ironically) free 0800 numbers.
0800 number resellers such as Gold 0800 Numbers were delighted with BT's decision. A spokesperson for the company said "We applaud BT's decision to end these punitive call charges and hope other operators will take BT's lead."
To clarify, BT has scrapped all charges for its customers who call 0800 phone numbers in May 2009 after pressure from consumer groups
BT have called on other mobile phone operators to suit.
This would benefit mobile phone users to the tune of £50 million a year.
For many years BT's mobile phone customers were irritated by having to pay exorbitantly high rates when dialling (ironically) free 0800 numbers.
0800 number resellers such as Gold 0800 Numbers were delighted with BT's decision. A spokesperson for the company said "We applaud BT's decision to end these punitive call charges and hope other operators will take BT's lead."
Thursday, 8 July 2010
0800 VOIP
For one quite simple product the 0800 number industry has a very wide range of call charges.
0800 numbers have a pence per minute charge although most providers have a per second billing facility which means you only pay for what you use.
A search on the first page Google for "0800 numbers" shows companies that charge between 1.5p and 6p per minute for incoming 0800 number calls.
Why such a massive difference? At the bottom end of the price range you will find that 0800 number are routed by VOIP which means "Voice Over Internet Protocol".
The VOIP 0800 number is sent to an IP phone or can be routed to an IP PBX.
0800 numbers have a pence per minute charge although most providers have a per second billing facility which means you only pay for what you use.
A search on the first page Google for "0800 numbers" shows companies that charge between 1.5p and 6p per minute for incoming 0800 number calls.
Why such a massive difference? At the bottom end of the price range you will find that 0800 number are routed by VOIP which means "Voice Over Internet Protocol".
The VOIP 0800 number is sent to an IP phone or can be routed to an IP PBX.
0800 Fax to Email Services
Not a lot of people know this, but...
There is a more eco friendly way to send and receive faxes. Rather than waste power, ink and of course tons of paper savvy businesses in Britain are having their faxes sent staight to their PC.
This service is called Fax To Email. You simply obtain an 0800 Fax to Email number from a well known UK 0800 number reseller and instead of pointing it to a landline or mobile you direct it to an email address.
This means you can delete junk faxes without having to print them off first. It also makes storing faxesa breeze as you simply save your faxes to relevant folders on your PC.
There is a more eco friendly way to send and receive faxes. Rather than waste power, ink and of course tons of paper savvy businesses in Britain are having their faxes sent staight to their PC.
This service is called Fax To Email. You simply obtain an 0800 Fax to Email number from a well known UK 0800 number reseller and instead of pointing it to a landline or mobile you direct it to an email address.
This means you can delete junk faxes without having to print them off first. It also makes storing faxesa breeze as you simply save your faxes to relevant folders on your PC.
Tuesday, 22 July 2008
0800 Numbers – 10 things to look out for before buying!
0800 numbers allow your customers to call you without being charged. This not only increases the amount of calls your business receives, it also gives you the chance to measure which of your services are most popular.
0800 number owners are charged for each call they receive. When a person dials in 0800 number owners can “point” their numbers to any landline (or mobile) that they designate.
The phone line that you use to receive the call does not necessarily have to be dedicated to 0800; it can be a standard phone that you use to make and receive normal calls.
Follow this advice before buying an 0800 number:
1. Make sure 0800 is right for you – 0800 numbers are good at linking businesses to their customers. If the majority of your work is business to business, a 0800 may not be necessary. The majority of companies contacting you will not mind paying for the cost of a phone call.
2. Work with a reputable 0800 number company - Look for an organization that has been working with 0800 numbers for a long time and can provide you with support. There may be glitches that can arise the first time you use an 0800 number so make sure you sign up to a company that can look after your best interests.
3. Get the company contact address if buying an 0800 number online - Some telecoms resellers do their best to cover up their identity on their websites. Make sure you can see a physical address and that you have a contact phone number. Better still choose a company who actually provide a real person’s contact name. Most 0800 number resellers should be able to connect your number within 24 hours.
4. Beware of 'free' numbers – If you're not being charged a set-up and rental fee for a 0800 number then the cost of the phone calls you receive will be more expensive. Nobody gives anything away so read the small print. The majority of reputable companies will charge a modest set up fee, a monthly rental of around £2 + VAT per number and call charges of around 4p per minute.
5. Get itemised bills with phone calls charged by the second – Make sure your 0800 provider doesn't round your calls up to the nearest minute. This can be an unnecessary and expensive cost. Similarly, make sure you receive frequent itemised billing for all the calls you have received. Some companies will let you access this online.
6. Be prepared to pay more for 0800 to a mobile – pointing an 0800 number at your mobile is a larger risk for telecom providers and consequently costs you more money. This is something to take into account if you expect a lot of calls.
7. Cater for your international calls – a UK 0800 number may not be free for international enquiries in some cases. If you rely on foreign customer sales set up a country specific number or international toll free 0800 number to extend your business.
8. Don't pay a fortune for a so-called memorable number - Many companies offer "Golden" numbers for extortionate rates that aren't memorable at all. Truly memorable numbers are very hard to come by. Unless your number is for a radio or TV campaign then it's not very important for it to be memorable.
9. Don't buy into 'free minutes' - No company can afford to give away free minutes. Some companies offer to sell bundles of minutes to you for a fixed price in much the same way as you would buy a text bundle for a mobile phone. The odds are you won't use exactly the amount of minutes you paid for. If there is a shortfall the 0800 company makes a profit. If you go over your minutes you pay for it anyway. Bottom line: Free minutes aren’t free – it has to be made up elsewhere in set up fees and monthly rentals. Does your business give products way for free?
10. Make sure your 0800 number is moveable - A lot of people use a landline for business and divert it to their mobile when they are out of the office. You can set up an 0800 number and point it at your landline. The 0800 will then follow any divert you set up on that landline. Should you decide to do this, check what the transfer costs will be from your landline to mobile - the charges can be hefty.
0800 number owners are charged for each call they receive. When a person dials in 0800 number owners can “point” their numbers to any landline (or mobile) that they designate.
The phone line that you use to receive the call does not necessarily have to be dedicated to 0800; it can be a standard phone that you use to make and receive normal calls.
Follow this advice before buying an 0800 number:
1. Make sure 0800 is right for you – 0800 numbers are good at linking businesses to their customers. If the majority of your work is business to business, a 0800 may not be necessary. The majority of companies contacting you will not mind paying for the cost of a phone call.
2. Work with a reputable 0800 number company - Look for an organization that has been working with 0800 numbers for a long time and can provide you with support. There may be glitches that can arise the first time you use an 0800 number so make sure you sign up to a company that can look after your best interests.
3. Get the company contact address if buying an 0800 number online - Some telecoms resellers do their best to cover up their identity on their websites. Make sure you can see a physical address and that you have a contact phone number. Better still choose a company who actually provide a real person’s contact name. Most 0800 number resellers should be able to connect your number within 24 hours.
4. Beware of 'free' numbers – If you're not being charged a set-up and rental fee for a 0800 number then the cost of the phone calls you receive will be more expensive. Nobody gives anything away so read the small print. The majority of reputable companies will charge a modest set up fee, a monthly rental of around £2 + VAT per number and call charges of around 4p per minute.
5. Get itemised bills with phone calls charged by the second – Make sure your 0800 provider doesn't round your calls up to the nearest minute. This can be an unnecessary and expensive cost. Similarly, make sure you receive frequent itemised billing for all the calls you have received. Some companies will let you access this online.
6. Be prepared to pay more for 0800 to a mobile – pointing an 0800 number at your mobile is a larger risk for telecom providers and consequently costs you more money. This is something to take into account if you expect a lot of calls.
7. Cater for your international calls – a UK 0800 number may not be free for international enquiries in some cases. If you rely on foreign customer sales set up a country specific number or international toll free 0800 number to extend your business.
8. Don't pay a fortune for a so-called memorable number - Many companies offer "Golden" numbers for extortionate rates that aren't memorable at all. Truly memorable numbers are very hard to come by. Unless your number is for a radio or TV campaign then it's not very important for it to be memorable.
9. Don't buy into 'free minutes' - No company can afford to give away free minutes. Some companies offer to sell bundles of minutes to you for a fixed price in much the same way as you would buy a text bundle for a mobile phone. The odds are you won't use exactly the amount of minutes you paid for. If there is a shortfall the 0800 company makes a profit. If you go over your minutes you pay for it anyway. Bottom line: Free minutes aren’t free – it has to be made up elsewhere in set up fees and monthly rentals. Does your business give products way for free?
10. Make sure your 0800 number is moveable - A lot of people use a landline for business and divert it to their mobile when they are out of the office. You can set up an 0800 number and point it at your landline. The 0800 will then follow any divert you set up on that landline. Should you decide to do this, check what the transfer costs will be from your landline to mobile - the charges can be hefty.
Thursday, 17 July 2008
0845 Numbers In - 0800 Numbers Out?
The popularity of 0845 numbers is outstripping Free Phone 0800 numbers. Recent search engine statistics for February 2008 show that online purchases of 0845 numbers outweighed 0800 numbers by a factor of 3 to 1.
In recent years 0800 has been seen to be the way to go. Business people have known that they can attract potential customers with the lure of a free phone call so why this change in trend from 0800 to 0845?
A major advantage of 0845 numbers is that they offer one fixed annual cost to business owners. This is because business owners do not pay to receive calls on their 0845 numbers. Typically you will pay a modest set up fee to purchase an 0800 number plus an annual fee and that’s it – no nasty surprises.
This isn’t the case with 0800 numbers as businesses pay typically anywhere between 3p and 6p per minute to receive calls made on their 0800 numbers as well as a set up fee and monthly rental. If call traffic is high on an 0800 number then the monthly bills for call charges can rapidly rise to an unacceptable level. This can make the cost per enquiry much too high.
0800 numbers can be open to fraudulent use by employees and their families as well as salespeople. If your employee’s wife finds out that she can ring her husband at work for free by using the company’s 0800 number there is not a great deal anyone can do about it. There is no great incentive for your employees and their families to use an 0845 number to ring up work as they realise that they have to pay for the call just as if they had dialled the landline number.
A common tactic for telesales people is to go through a Yellow Pages, BT Phone Book or Thomson directory and just dial business that display 0800 numbers in their adverts. Obviously this practice greatly reduces telesales costs but can be incredibly frustrating for businesses who continually receive telephone solicitations on their 0800 number. 0845 numbers come into their own again as telesales people would simply not make the effort to just ring 0845 numbers as they understand there is a cost element to the call.
In many ways the increased popularity of 0845 numbers is a self fulfilling prophecy. The more 0845 numbers that are purchased the more they appear in adverts – the more they appear in adverts the more the public accepts and understands them. Try conducting a straw poll at your office by asking your colleagues what it costs to call 0800 numbers and 0845 numbers. Most people understand that 0845 calls cost the same as a local call so they do not represent a barrier.
Both 0800 and 0845 numbers give businesses the opportunity of a great monitoring and tracking service. The concept is simple – just put a unique number in each advert that you have and make sure that it doesn’t appear anywhere else. Look at the itemised bill you receive from your telecoms provider every month and it should list the numbers of calls your advert receives. At a glance you will be able to see how well your adverts are performing.
So, if you are considering purchasing an 0800 or 0845 number you have some decisions to make as to which one you go for. 0845 is making massive strides on 0800 number yet 0800 is a double edged sword offering free calls to your customers but being open to potential abuse.
In recent years 0800 has been seen to be the way to go. Business people have known that they can attract potential customers with the lure of a free phone call so why this change in trend from 0800 to 0845?
A major advantage of 0845 numbers is that they offer one fixed annual cost to business owners. This is because business owners do not pay to receive calls on their 0845 numbers. Typically you will pay a modest set up fee to purchase an 0800 number plus an annual fee and that’s it – no nasty surprises.
This isn’t the case with 0800 numbers as businesses pay typically anywhere between 3p and 6p per minute to receive calls made on their 0800 numbers as well as a set up fee and monthly rental. If call traffic is high on an 0800 number then the monthly bills for call charges can rapidly rise to an unacceptable level. This can make the cost per enquiry much too high.
0800 numbers can be open to fraudulent use by employees and their families as well as salespeople. If your employee’s wife finds out that she can ring her husband at work for free by using the company’s 0800 number there is not a great deal anyone can do about it. There is no great incentive for your employees and their families to use an 0845 number to ring up work as they realise that they have to pay for the call just as if they had dialled the landline number.
A common tactic for telesales people is to go through a Yellow Pages, BT Phone Book or Thomson directory and just dial business that display 0800 numbers in their adverts. Obviously this practice greatly reduces telesales costs but can be incredibly frustrating for businesses who continually receive telephone solicitations on their 0800 number. 0845 numbers come into their own again as telesales people would simply not make the effort to just ring 0845 numbers as they understand there is a cost element to the call.
In many ways the increased popularity of 0845 numbers is a self fulfilling prophecy. The more 0845 numbers that are purchased the more they appear in adverts – the more they appear in adverts the more the public accepts and understands them. Try conducting a straw poll at your office by asking your colleagues what it costs to call 0800 numbers and 0845 numbers. Most people understand that 0845 calls cost the same as a local call so they do not represent a barrier.
Both 0800 and 0845 numbers give businesses the opportunity of a great monitoring and tracking service. The concept is simple – just put a unique number in each advert that you have and make sure that it doesn’t appear anywhere else. Look at the itemised bill you receive from your telecoms provider every month and it should list the numbers of calls your advert receives. At a glance you will be able to see how well your adverts are performing.
So, if you are considering purchasing an 0800 or 0845 number you have some decisions to make as to which one you go for. 0845 is making massive strides on 0800 number yet 0800 is a double edged sword offering free calls to your customers but being open to potential abuse.
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