With hyperlinks everywhere and company websites at the end of a simple Google search, you might be wondering why a business would still need a vanity number in the internet age. After all, when was the last time you manually typed a number into your phone? In fact, when was the last time you called any company rather than just using their website or emailing?
But no matter how active you are online, some customers will always prefer getting on the phone and chatting with a real person. And some businesses need a phone line as an essential part of their service. For those circumstances, you need a professional edge over your competitors – a dedicated, custom phone number for your business that people can easily remember. You need a vanity number.
What Is a Vanity Number?
A vanity number is simply a custom phone number with a tailored set of digits that are either memorable or somehow connected to your business – or both! They roll off the tongue, often with repeated numbers, allowing for easy input into a device and easy memorization.
Many vanity numbers are phone words, like 313-DETROIT or 1-800-PIZZA-GO, which can help customers associate a slogan with your brand. They are particularly popular with companies that depend on their phone lines for business, like taxi companies and food delivery chains, or with companies who advertise on billboards where people only have a few seconds to look at the message.
Advantages of Vanity Numbers
There are some hard stats backing up the use of a vanity or alternative business mobile number. Compared with generic phone numbers, businesses can achieve an 84% improvement in the rate at which customers can recall their number if they get a custom set of digits. And there are several other bonuses:
1. The internet isn’t everywhere. It might seem like it is, but there are plenty of people out there who primarily communicate using telephones rather than emails. And what about a TV advert? If you’re advertising on television, it is much easier to prompts viewers to contact you with a memorable phone number rather than a lengthy web address.
2. Vanity numbers look professional. Because we’ve become so used to companies operating with a custom business number, it now looks unprofessional when a generic number is provided. At the end of the day, you want your customers to trust you, and a vanity phone number enables that.
3. You can communicate a message. Vanity numbers also let you reinforce your company’s identity or brand. For example, the antivirus company McAfee has a famous number: 800-Virus-No. It tells you exactly what they do and is easy to remember.
4. They can be toll free. Most regular numbers will charge your customers for calling you, either using up their minutes or with a surcharge in some cases. But you can ensure a vanity number is toll free, so your customers can always contact you.
If you want to boost your local or international business, just pick a custom vanity phone number. Surveys indicate that the Revenue resulting from phone calling is much higher than from the Internet. The internet may have a high traffic, but it may not be that accurate and effective for marketing. Marketing through phone, however, brings forward a one-to-one relationship between a sale and a customer, dramatically increasing the possibility of converting potential to practical.
