Myth Busters

If your business has yet to choose a toll free 1-800 or vanity number, you may well have fallen subject to one of the myths about the industry. Expensive, difficult to install and/or a questionable investment? Not at all.

Here are some counter-arguments to your possible objections.

Myth 1: They’re expensive

In reality, vanity numbers are at a near-historic low, according to an industry review on bebusinessed.com. And the increased calls alone are worth the price. “A toll-free number is no longer an expensive luxury for large businesses; it’s now an inexpensive necessity for small businesses,” says Joel Holland on Entrepreneur.com.

Myth 2: Consumers don’t need toll-free numbers anymore

In fact, just a few years ago 59 percent of American households still had landlines, reported the National Center for Health Statistics, and still have calling plans that incur long-distance costs. But even without landlines and calling costs, 1-800 toll free numbers are more memorable for customers and help increase calls to your business – in fact, our memorable 800 numbers generate 25% or more phone calls compared to random numbers!

Myth 3: Vanity numbers aren’t worth the investment

Among other benefits they lend credibility, authority, and stability to your brand by giving the appearance of a national presence. They promote word-of-mouth marketing and establish trust by letting customers know you wish to hear from them. And they’re easy to incorporate into marketing efforts like pay-per-call campaigns.

Myth 4: Email and text have made calling obsolete

In fact, 51 percent of U.S. adults prefer phone calls to texts, says a Pew Research Center survey, which notes 83 percent of U.S. adults own a mobile phone. Some conversations are easier to have over the phone, especially when discussing complicated details or comparing options, so phone calls will never become obsolete.

Myth 5: You don’t need a toll-free number because you’re focusing on driving traffic to your website

But that doesn’t mean you won’t need an easy-to-remember vanity number for other forms of advertising, and Pew reports 7 percent of Americans still don’t use the Internet at all. “The most tangible and measurable benefit of a great vanity number is an increased response rate to all advertising,” says Bill Quimby in his book “Phone Numbers That Make Money.” “If you do any significant amount of advertising, a good number can easily increase your response rate by typically 12 to 42 percent, and sometimes more.”

Myth 6: The most relevant toll-free numbers are already taken

Not true: While some firms have had to move to less-popular number prefixes, RingSquared has more than fifty-thousand 1-800 numbers from which to choose. And businesses nationwide can share the same toll-free numbers if they’re not competing in the same geographical area.

Myth 7: Changing your number will be a huge project

No changes will be needed to your existing phone systems or numbers; all features or options work exactly the same as if the caller had dialed the local number directly.

Myth 8: Toll-free numbers are only for major corporations

In fact, they’re a great option for small businesses because they’re so affordable and memorable. “The small individual has just as much opportunity as a big company to get a good number,” notes Quimby. “If you are creative and understand marketing, you should definitely see what possibilities there are in your area.”

Ready to get a toll free phone number for your business? RingSquared’s online database of over 500,000 numbers has options for toll free numbers, local numbers, vanity numbers, premium numbers, and more!