By: Jason Kay
Submitted: 2010-01-05 04:50:44 | Word Count: 521
For a small business there are many benefits to having a virtual 800 number. A virtual 800 number offers you freedoms like you’ve never known before and allows you to conduct business from literally anywhere you are so long as there is a phone.
Many small business owners find that the benefits of a virtual 800 number far outweigh the costs. Some of the many benefits that back this up are:
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•Customers more likely to call: This is really a no brainer. If you were on a website and wanted to order a product or needed more information on that product, are you more likely to go with the website that makes you pay for the long distance call or the one that provides a toll free number? With a virtual 800 number you have one 800 number for your customers to call and the virtual 800 number service then routes that call to the appropriate phone, like yours.
•Makes your business look bigger than it is: Because all the customer sees is the toll free number, they have no clue that they have not just called a multi national company, but your small business instead. They dial the toll free number, the call gets re routed to your home or cell phone and business is conducted.
•Increased flexibility: You may only have two or three employees working for you and some of them may not be working were you are. With a virtual 800 number you can use the same 800 number and set up multiple extensions. This way the caller is routed to the appropriate person to handle their inquiry. This beats having several phone numbers on a website for customers to choose from. Customers like to keep it simple and will appreciate only having to call one number instead of trying to figure out which of the multiple numbers to call.
•Do business from almost anywhere: Let’s say your department is sales. If you are working out of the house for the day, the virtual 800 number service can have all your calls routed to your home number. If you decide you need to go get some running around done, you can have the calls transferred to your cell phone and work on the run. No one but you knows that you switched the line and this way you will not miss an important call while you are getting your errands done.
•Easy to retrieve messages: Sometimes you may have to miss a call due to a meeting or other unforeseen event, but with a virtual 800 number you can generally check your messages in several different ways. Many virtual 800 number companies offer you access to your messages by calling into a message center, faxing you the message, e mailing you the message, and some even go as far as sending the messages to your Blackberry or iPhone.
Consumers are fickle creatures. They like ease, low cost, and dealing with a company that has their act together. With the implementation of a virtual 800 number for your small business the consumer gets what they want and it will have you seeing an increase in your bottom line.
