I was talking to a fellow business owner this weekend and we had a bit of a debate over something I originally thought was a no brainer in that an 0844 or 0845 number looks more professional than using a local number such as 0115 or 0202.

 

He swore blind that it was the opposite way around and really dislikes 0845, but couldn't really put his finger on why?

 

What does everyone else think because it's got me a little puzzled and thinking about our new number (we were literally in the process of changing over from local to 08').

 

Obviously in a perfect world we'd serve 0800 numbers but it's costly especially as more people are inclined to call and, without being rude, waste your time!

Whilst an 0844 does look professional and gives that 'National' feel, unfortunately alot of people still see them as expensive numbers to call and it does put people off.

 

Another issue would be some people specifically search for a 'local' designer, and a national number may give the impression that you are not local.

Ha. Funny story about that. I signed up for a VOIP number through Sipgate, because I wanted to be able to answer the "office" number on my laptop when I was working elsewhere. Got an 0845 number, then I ran into the sort of thinking there - I was trying to rank locally at the time, so I thought a geographic number would be a better trust signal. Long story short, I changed the number, and Sipgate only allow one number per account.

 

Problem is, I promptly forgot about it so last week when I was ordering new business cards from Moo, I searched my email for the Sipgate welcome email and put my 0845 number on the cards. I facepalmed whenthe cards turned up and I realised.

 

A panicked email to Sipgate support reverted me to the old number, but I'm stuck with 0845 for now.

I've always got the association that local numbers are residential ones, so every time I call a business using one I imagine it's being run from someone's living room or an office in the shed in their garden. Which is fine if they're a small business or a freelancer (eg: web monkey, photographer, dog walker, etc...). In fact I'd probably say I'd prefer them to have a local number in that case as it comes across as more personal and less corporate.

 

If it's any other kind of business or any sort of support/billing helpdesk then I'd prefer it to be a 0840 or 0845.

Thanks for your input thus far guys, mixed feelings.

 

I think you may have hit the nail on the head Spitfire, we operate 7 days a week so perhaps an 08' number is more in keeping.

 

On the other hand we are a local business, we do a lot of work locally and in fact have very few 'national' clients.

 

It's a bit of a coin toss moment for me and I don't want it to be!

Why not give both 0845 and a local number? Then the user will know which area you are in.

I just did a quick Google and didn't realise 0845 aren't local rate, I thought Ofcom had changed that so the additional cost will certainly put people off calling.

I personally wouldn't bother with an 08 number unless you're a business, and if you do, I think it should be 0800.

I personally wouldn't bother with an 08 number unless you're a business, and if you do, I think it should be 0800.

 

We are a business, but the costs of 0800 are pretty high.

 

If you're active on the phones an 0800 would rack up £20-30 a day, if not more.

You know what I think my associate was right and I was wrong, from some more research it does appear that public perception is against 0845 numbers... our route should be 0800 and just stomach the costs (currently only existing clients get our local number).

How much business actually comes through your phones?

 

Balance that against the cost. Do some math. If it's not cost effective, don't bother.

Last time I looked their were a few companies offering 0800 numbers on a 'minutes' style package.

 

I.E £30 a month would allow you to take 1500 minutes worth of calls.

 

If you're small, these could always be a viable route to take. Not sure what happens when the minutes run out though

 

Edit: The main attraction, as I see it, with a non geographical number, it's far cheaper & easier to move than a geographical number.

Edited February 27, 201214 yr by bocaj