Toll free phone number business strategies are a thing of the past. Many Businesses thought that they were a necessary tool to make the company look bigger than it was, but that’s no longer the case. In fact, a local number is much better than a Toll Free number because people want to know where you are based from.
Some companies are opting to buy telephone numbers in many cities to give the appearance of being a local company; again, I’m not sure that I would still agree with that strategy.
Toll Free numbers were a sought after marketing tool in the Eighty’s and Ninety’s but long distance rates are negligible to non-existent with mobile phones and unlimited calling plans widely in use.
Today, the numbers have little relevance in business, as pointed out by Bob Parsons, CEO of GoDaddy who has never used Toll Free telephone numbers even when they were popular.
Businesses simply do not need to have the added expense of the number especially when the majority of the customers don’t pay long distance anyway. The savings of no Toll Free bill will likely make up for a potential lost customer due to lack of the number.
Toll Free numbers have been most often used for customer support. Too bad we didn’t think about that back when they were extremely popular. If the customer knew they were paying for the call when they are on hold, they might not want to spend as much time online, making the call more productive and ultimately costing the company less money.
Before you invest in a Toll Free number, consider spending your marketing and advertising dollars in more productive areas such as online marketing or other promotions that will make an impact on your bottom line.
If you disagree with me, let me know. If you have something more to contribute, please tell us so other readers benefit as well.