This is going to be slightly longer … sorry guys …

At home or in your office, your local telephone number is normally associated with a physical telephone line. In this way, your telephone number has a ‘physical’ or real presence. Our Non-Geographic numbers, by contrast, are virtual numbers. That is to say, they are not associated with any particular landline or physical device.

When you take an Non-Geographic number (0800 Freephone, 0845 Local Rate, 0330 or 0300 True Local Rate, 0870 National Rate or 0844/0871 Fixed Rate) they are connected (or ‘target’, ‘divert’ – terminology varies by vendor) the ‘virtual’ Non-Geographic number to your ‘physical’ landline. This connection normally takes just minutes and, once complete, any call to your alphaTALK Non-Geographic number will ring on your landline or mobile.

Your non-geographic number can be ‘re-targeted’ or ‘diverted’ (connected to a different landline or mobile) just as quickly. You can log on to our online facility to do this yourself, or you can ask us to do it during working hours. Many providers charge an ‘administration fee’ for this service – we don’t believe in such charges and will divert your number whenever you like at no charge.

The great advantage of this ‘virtual’ setup is that you do not need a new telephone line or any special equipment in order to use a non-geographic number for your business. You don’t need to spend a fortune on a large, complicated telephone system. All you need is your existing telephone line and handset, or even a mobile phone.

We can even offer many of the facilities that would come with an expensive telephone system – including advanced voicemail, call recording, call queuing, and even advanced IVR (telephone menu systems) all without any additional equipment to be installed. All of these services are provided on alphaTALK’s infrastructure and can be used with any of our non-geographic numbers.

Because these are virtual numbers, your existing telephone line or mobile is not affected, and will continue to be able to make and receive calls in exactly the same manner as before. Similarly, you will need to continue to pay your existing landline or mobile network for your line rental and the calls that you make. Your existing landline or mobile will ring whenever anyone rings your existing local or mobile number, and also when anyone rings your alphaTALK non-geographic number.

The other difference between physical landlines and ‘virtual’ non-geographic numbers is inbound call charges. Depending on the type of non-geographic you choose to use, you may need to pay per minute call charges for your inbound calls. However, these generally only apply if you’re receiving a large volume of calls or if your non-geographic numbers is connected to a mobile telephone. For more information on this see the individual product pages.

To find out more about alphaTALK non-geographic numbers, call us now on Freephone 0800 093 2193.

Or

Email us at Info@alphatalk.com

Image is everything in business – The Virtual Office can remove that question mark that hovers over a home based business and gives it that professional look and feel that all businesses need.

BUT WHAT IS A VIRTUAL OFFICE?????

It is a way to have all the benefits of a serviced office without actually occupying the space. You get the professional image and support tools without the burden of corporate costs. With a “Telephone any Virtual Office” package it will ensure that your business will run smoothly from anywhere in the world.

For more information on this service call 0800 093 2193

or visit the main site www.alphatalk.com

This is a question we hear quite a lot (and I’m sure other telecom companies get it as well)

So here’s the answer

Well … Good 0800 Numbers are expensive, this is because (Gold Numbers as we call them) are running out fast and are getting harder for even number providers like us to get our hands on.

They are the telecoms answer to Crude Oil; people are using them up more and more each day!

Eventually we will only be left with 0808 numbers

For more information on this give us a call 0800 093 2193

Or visit the website www.AlphaTALK.com

1. Memorability

These numbers are in formats which are easy for your customers to remember, often containing repetitive patterns or sequences that aid memory. This makes it much more likely that the customer will remember the number later. This will benefit advertising campaigns (posters, billboards, vans, commercials etc.)

2. Portability

It doesnt matter if you move office or even country, your number will stay the same. So no need to change business cards or promotional material.

3. Track Ads (Call Data)

Using an 0845 numbers itemised billing and reports allow you to view a multitude of information about your incoming calls. This in turn allows you to monitor the effectiveness of your advertising campaign by monitoring the number and nature of calls it receives.

4. Accessibility with call features

With a 0845 number you can also apply it to a call recording, auto attendant and call whisperer service. These can drastically improve your company’s customer service.

For more information call 0800 093 2193

or

visit our website www.alphatalk.com

We have had such a good working relationship over the years with members of the travelling community, from general customers to our work with Travellers got talent.

One thing we have learned from this ongoing relationship is how some traveller’s lifestyles effect how they use their phone services.

The most common issue is “how can you use a phone number to its fullest without a landline?”

Here is a special service we provide that goes directly to your mobile with significantly low costs.

One Number:
£70.00 inc VAT – Includes £12.50 call credit.

Two Numbers:
£100.00 inc VAT – Includes £20.00 call credit.

Any number + An Office Address or Website:
£179.00 inc VAT – Includes £10.00 call credit (Terms & Conditions apply)

Full Package – One Number, an Office Address and a Website:
£279.00 inc VAT – Includes £20.00 call credit (Terms & Conditions apply)

Call for more details 0800 093 2193

Or Email us at info@alphatalk.com

Or visit the website www.AlphaTALK.com

In most forums focusing on small businesses or telecoms phrases like “telecom providers are crooks” or “Telecom providers just want to rip people off, don’t listen to them” are pretty common.

And why is this?

Just to defend my profession for a moment, the main reason calling numbers from mobiles is so expensive is a result of mobile phone providers charging (not the companies providing the numbers). Companies like Virgin, 02, Orange, T-Mobile etc. dictate these costs.

However in all honesty it is quite justified that people will feel hostility to us, telecoms (numbers and services) can potentially cost callers a lot of money and many times these charges are not as clear as they should be.

So here is a sum up of what numbers charge both the number holder and the caller (based on 26/01/11)

0800/0808 Freephone

Number holder call charges – 3p/pm
(Landline) and 13p/pm (mobile)

Caller – FREE (Landline) and depending on your provider, but can be from 15p/pm to 30p/pm (Mobile)

0844 Fixed rate

Number holder call charges – N/A (Landline) and 13p/pm (Mobile)

Caller – up to 5p/pm (Landline) and up to 40p/pm (Mobile)

0871 Fixed rate

Number holder call charges – N/A (Landline) and 13p/pm (Mobile)

Caller – Up to 10p/pm (Landline) and up to 35p/pm (Mobile)

0300/0330 True Local

Number holder call charges – 1p/pm (Landline) and 13p/pm (Mobile)

Caller – Local rate (Landline) and Local rate/Part of your FREE minutes (Mobile)

0845 Local Rate

Number holder call charges – N/A (Landline) and 13p/pm (Mobile)

Caller – from 0.05p/pm to 10p/pm (landline) and from 15p to 40p (Mobile)

If you do call any number from a mobile it is always best to check the rates with your network provider first.

For more information Call 0800 093 21 93

or
Email us at info@AlphaTALK.com (www.AlphaTALK.com)

1. Wrong phone number for your type of business

This is covered on my previous blog (HERE) but one of the biggest mistakes you can make is having a 0800 number when your business would benefit more with a 0844 or 03 numbers.

You have to think about …

WHAT YOUR PRODUCT IS

ITS PRICE

and

YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE

Do your company’s products make enough to support the money you pay for a 0800 number?

Does your company rely on getting large numbers of callers opposed to seldom calls on particular occasions?

2. Poor Customer service

Do not make your customers feel like they are being left alone with no communication. Even if they are left to an auto-attendant, make sure it’s structure is as simple as possible (most people would rather go to an answer phone than spend too long pressing buttons) [click here for more details on auto-attendant structure].

3. Answer phone time wasting

The longer an answer phone message is left un-responded the likelihood of them loosing patients/interest in your service will increase. It could also seriously affect your company’s reputation, which is an almost impossible feet to overcome (especially for a smaller company).

It can be tricky keeping on top of all your voicemails, but putting in that extra bit of effort and responding immediately is defiantly worth it.

You could even set up a “VOICE to EMAIL” service, which directly sends the voice mail (as an audio file) to your chosen email account (see here for more information on that).

For more info calls us on 0800 093 2193

Or

email us at info@alphatalk.com

Or

www.alphaTALK.com

what phone number is right for your business?

0800 Numbers (Free phone)

Pros

Your customers don’t get charged from landlines

Cons

You as the number holder have to pay the charges

According to the Institute of direct marketing if your customers know exactly what they want or your product range is specialised customers will be attracted to a 0800 number. This is psychologically due the lack of financial participation; the number is free for them to call.

Also if the price of your products exceeds £20 then you will find the small costs you have to pay for the 0800 numbers worth it.

0844 Numbers

Pros

You don’t have to pay anything, not for the number and not for the call charges (this is because phone number providers make the money from the call charges the callers pay)


Cons

Your callers have to pay the call charges

If you sell products that are inexpensive then paying for the call charges may not make sense. Instead you should think about using 0844 numbers where the callers pay the call charges.

0845 Numbers (also known as the local rage number)

Pros

You and the caller “meet half way” and you both pay collectively for the call charges. This puts both you and the caller in a position where you pay the cheapest possible costs.

Cons

Erm … You both have to pay the charges…

Yes, 0845 numbers are the devils advocate of the phone number world making their positives also their negatives.

If you’re in a position where whatever you are selling may not cost a lot but also isn’t too far on the cheap end either.

Sometimes things are not black and white and you are not in a position to pay for the call charges but you are also not in one to demand your customers pay for it too.

0300 and 0330 numbers

Pros

Unlike most phone numbers 03 numbers are treated like local numbers (01/02) meaning callers won’t get charges when calling from a mobile.

Cons

03 numbers are still little known and despite the fact they are so beneficial for your customers, a lot of people still don’t know enough about them.

03 numbers are investments for the future, eventually people will clock on that they are so beneficial to the modern mobile phone dominated world. However that has not happened just yet, but from what you can see online (forums/message boards) there is a rapid increase in 03 number interest.

For more information visit our main site at

www.AlphaTalk.com

Email/Call us at

info@alphatalk.com/0800 093 2193

1. Rebates

Both 0844 and 0871 numbers both allow the number holder to make money from the charges the caller pays …

0844 – 3p per minute

0871 – 7p per minute

2. Diversions

0844 and 0871 numbers can be diverted to any landline or mobile (0844 numbers for free), making it almost impossible to miss any potential sales or traffic to your company.

3. Memorability

These numbers are in formats which are easy for your customer to remember, often containing repetitive patterns or sequences that aid memory. This makes it much more likely that the customer will remember the number later. This will benefit advertising campaigns (posters, billboards, vans, commercials etc.)

4. Portability

It doesnt matter if you move office or even country, your number will stay the same. So no need to change business cards or promotional material.

1. (NOT) Using 0845 numbers as part of a Advertising Campaign

Despite the fact that no matter where your customers are in the UK they will only get charged local rate, your customers know they will be charged and will always have this in their mind when calling. This means that a 0845 number will not have the general appeal as that of a Free Phone number (0800).

However using 0845 numbers will save you a lot of money as a business because you do not pay the call charges, so it’s always best to

THINK ABOUT WHAT’S RIGHT FOR YOUR BUSINESS!

However, remember just because an 0845 number doesn’t look as friendly alongside an advertising campaign, doesn’t mean they won’t work well as your companies general phone number.

If you feel your company is not in a position to pay the charges 0800 numbers require then an 0845 number is best for you, as long as you do not attach it to an advertising/promotional campaign. If you want to work on promotion you sadly need to cough up the call charges and use an 0800 free phone number.

2. NOT taking advantage of it’s market research capabilities!

Usually with 0845 numbers you are able to access the call ad data, which means you can track the calls made on the number.

Itemised billing and reports allow you to view a multitude of information about your incoming calls.

This in turn allows you to monitor the effectiveness of your calls by monitoring the number and nature of calls it receives.
 
 

3. Not taking the time to find the most memorable number available.

Don’t rush, see what the telelphone number provider has to offer.

Look for the number with the most patterns and repetitive numbers in it, not taking advantage of this could be the difference between your companies being remembered or forgotten.