Should i answer a toll free call

Q: What happens if you answer a toll

Its a term that a lot of people use, but what does toll-free mean? With phone calls, a toll” is fee that must be paid by the person placing the call, typically for long-distance calls. When a call is toll-free, the person dialing the number isnt charged. Instead, the person receiving the call foots the bill.

Toll-Free Numbers
Out-of-State Numbers
Local Numbers

Let’s face it, most of us tend to ignore an unknown toll-free number, because what is the first thing you think of when you see one on your caller ID? Most of us figure it is someone who is going to try to sell us something, so it’s no wonder those calls are often ignored. When it comes to a local number, a toll-free number and an out-of-state call, which outbound calls get answered most?

Table of Contents Show

Toll-Free Numbers
Out-of-State Calls
Local Numbers
You might also be interested in...
What is a toll-free 800 number?
What do toll-free numbers cost?
How do you get a toll-free number?
How do you choose a toll-free number?
How can you use toll-free numbers for marketing?
What are the pros and cons of using a toll-free number for your business?
Pros of using a toll-free number for your business
Cons of using a toll-free number for your business
Should you get a toll-free number?
What happens if you answer a toll
Do I get charged if I answer a toll
What does it mean when caller ID says toll
What numbers should I not answer?

Toll-Free Numbers

While toll-free numbers are important for high-profile businesses and some outbound call centers, they are not typically the best avenue to use when making outbound sales calls. Toll-free numbers have their advantages due to it being easy and free for the customer to return the call, but with the free long distance that cell phones (and most landlines) offer, that is not as important as it once was. While toll-free numbers are not the best choice for cold calls, they are a wonderful choice for Customer Service calls or calls to upsell your existing customers. The immediate branding your toll-free number carries will bolster your connection rates and leave an easy way for existing customers to return your call should you miss them.

Out-of-State Calls

Out-of-state calls have a slightly higher rate of getting answered than toll-free numbers for sales calls because it’s not an absolute that it is a sales call or business. Those who said they were either “somewhat” or “extremely likely” to answer an unknown call from an out-of-state area code totaled 13 percent — nearly double the 7 percent for toll-free numbers. Those who were surveyed claimed that they would be extremely unlikely to answer out-of-state calls dropped to 75 percent, as opposed to 80 percent of those seeing a toll-free number.

Local Numbers

According to Sales Hacker, people are four times as likely to answer a sales call from a local number than a toll-free one. The same study found that people are only 13 percent more likely to answer a call from an out-of-state area code. This makes sense because when you see a local number, you tend to think it is either someone you know or something related to your needs, such as a doctor’s office, a local retailer or grocer. Maybe it’s even a friend whose number you’re not familiar with or has changed.

The fact is that if it shows up local, then it is has 4 times better chance of being answered, and that means higher sales. It is also true that potential clients are more likely to dial back a local number out of curiosity than toll-free numbers or out-of-state numbers.

With almost 6 in 10 buyers wanting to discuss pricing on the first call, it makes sense to know the best way to call them in the first place when doing inside sales. Whether it’s VoIP, call forwarding or anything else to do with telephony, contact us at 855-505-4943 or so we can help.

Articles Outbound Sales Outbound Calling Local Presence Sales Team

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Toll-free numbers are a great way to help customers reach you from a long distance, saving the client money and improving your sales.
From vanity numbers to numbers with patterns that are easy to remember, a toll-free number can be a great way to market your company.
Getting a toll-free number involves finding a service provider, some of which have specializations like texting to toll-free numbers and call analytics.
This article is for small business owners interested in obtaining a toll-free business phone number.

In real estate, they say it’s all about location. The same is true for determining whether you need a toll-free number. The location of your business and the locations of your customers will greatly influence whether a toll-free 800 number would be beneficial for your company.

What is a toll-free 800 number?

A toll-free number is a telephone number that your customers can call without incurring long-distance fees for landline phones. Toll-free numbers are especially popular for customer service phone lines. They allow more people to reach a business versus a toll number.

There are a variety of area codes that toll-free numbers can use. These include 800, 888, 877, 866, 855, 844 and 833, but the 800 code is likely the most familiar to the general public. In fact, “toll-free number” and “800 number” are often used synonymously.

If your customer base is relatively local, then a toll-free number may not be justified. On the other hand, if you’ve got a national customer base or have an e-commerce website, you may want to consider getting one.

“If you’re getting a lot of orders over the phone, a toll-free number is probably necessary,” said Luanne Mayorga, an MBA faculty member at Southern New Hampshire University.

What do toll-free numbers cost?

The cost of a toll-free number depends on your calling plan. A good estimate is $10 to $15 per month. Calls to the number will cost you between $0.06 and $0.30 per minute, depending on your plan.

If you aren’t sure you want to pay the extra cost of a toll-free number, you’ll take comfort in knowing that plenty of business experts think toll-free numbers are increasingly unnecessary.

“We don’t think toll-free numbers are as important as they used to be because the internet and cell phones have driven down the cost of making a long-distance call,” said Fred Manuel, co-founder of Golden Circle Advisors. Even if you have a toll-free number, cell phone users will still have to pay their regular rate to call it.

However, companies that offer services should always have a toll-free number, Manuel said. “If you’re trying to talk a customer through a problem that is going to take a half an hour, you want to give them a way to make that call for free,” he said.

Mayorga said that an alternative option would be to use online ordering and offer a live chat function on your website. That would likely cut down on the number of calls to a toll-free line. [Read related article: 7 Live Chat Practices to Offer Better Customer Service]

How do you get a toll-free number?

To get a toll-free number, you must find a toll-free service provider. A variety of business phone service providers offer toll-free numbers alongside hardwire and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calling options. Grasshopper is one example of a virtual phone system vendor that also supplies toll-free numbers, vanity numbers and local numbers.

Other worthy vendors to consider for toll-free numbers are Nextiva and RingCentral, which, along with Grasshopper, are included in our roundup of the best business phone systems. To learn more, read our full Nextiva review and our detailed review of RingCentral.

Many business phone system vendors include toll-free numbers in their packages, which typically cost more than a singular toll-free number because they come with a bevy of additional communication features, like call analytics. You’ll need to factor that in when weighing whether these providers are right for your budget and your company’s needs.

How do you choose a toll-free number?

In order to choose a toll-free number for your business, you must check to see what’s available. You can use a website tool like the one on somos.com to find out what numbers are unassigned. The site relies on data from the SMS/800 Toll-Free Number Registry, which tracks the more than 40 million toll-free numbers currently in the North American Numbering Plan.

There are many factors to consider when choosing a toll-free number. From vanity numbers that can be especially easy to remember to numbers that match your local business number, you want to choose a toll-free number that makes sense for your company. You also want to prevent market confusion by avoiding numbers that may be too similar to those of other businesses.

How can you use toll-free numbers for marketing?

Your toll-free number can be a vanity number, as in the case of 1-800-GOT JUNK, 1-800-FLOWERS and other companies that use clever number combinations to create phone numbers their customers won’t easily forget. As a result, the numbers serve as a marketing technique.

These vanity numbers, which sometimes involve numerical patterns instead of words, are often available at the same price as a regular toll-free number. You can search to see if the one you want is available on your local or long-distance phone carrier’s website.

Did you know?: Toll-free numbers have uses beyond voice calls. For example, if you’re implementing a text message marketing platform, your account will often include a toll-free number through which you can send SMS messages.

What are the pros and cons of using a toll-free number for your business?

Using a toll-free number can increase your availability for certain clients. For more and more customers, though, toll-free numbers are wholly unnecessary. Below are the pros and cons of using a toll-free number for your business.

Pros of using a toll-free number for your business

Extended service: Just under 2 in 5 homes still have a landline phone, according to AARP. But if you learn that many of your customers call you via landlines, then adding a toll-free number can help you expand your service. That’s because landline customers can call your toll-free number for any reason without worrying about being charged for the call.
Marketing uses: Think of the jingles you heard in TV commercials during your childhood. You probably still remember the phone numbers in the ads – and that’s exactly the point. Toll-free numbers are often so memorable that they basically serve as their own form of marketing for your business. If someone knows your number more quickly than they know your competitors’ numbers, they’ll call you first.
Illusion of a larger business: Since toll-free numbers were once a staple of large companies’ TV ads, using a toll-free number can make your business seem bigger. That, in turn, can make your company appear more authoritative and trustworthy.

Tip: Just as members of the general public have to decide whether to use landlines or cell phones, your business may need to choose between landline and VoIP phone systems. Your decision will likely come down to cost and reliability.

Cons of using a toll-free number for your business

Imperfect for local businesses: Local audiences often want to feel confident that you and your business are rooted in your shared community. Toll-free numbers achieve the opposite effect since they start with non-local area codes. That fact alone can cause a mental division between you and the customers in your backyard.
May appear spam-like: Do you automatically send calls from unknown 800 numbers to voicemail? Your customers might too. If a toll-free number makes it unlikely clients will answer your call, you probably shouldn’t use one.
May no longer be necessary: Per Pew Research, a whopping 97% of Americans own a cell phone. These phones typically come with plans that allow for unlimited calling. That inclusion negates the customer cost savings of toll-free numbers, rendering them increasingly unnecessary.

Should you get a toll-free number?

For customers who still use landlines, toll-free numbers can make your business much more accessible. And even with cell phones now being nearly ubiquitous, a toll-free number can be a marketing tool in and of itself. Plus, toll-free numbers are relatively inexpensive, so if you use them right, they can be a low-hassle way to better connect with your customers. And that’s always the end goal.

Max Freedman contributed to the writing and reporting in this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

What happens if you answer a toll

It's a term that a lot of people use, but what does toll-free mean? With phone calls, a “toll” is fee that must be paid by the person placing the call, typically for long-distance calls. When a call is toll-free, the person dialing the number isn't charged. Instead, the person receiving the call foots the bill.

Do I get charged if I answer a toll

The person or business that owns the number is billed for both incoming and outgoing activity, so anyone can call a toll-free number from a landline without incurring any charges.

What does it mean when caller ID says toll

Toll free numbers are telephone numbers with distinct three-digit codes that can be dialed from landlines with no charge to the person placing the call. Such numbers allow callers to reach businesses and individuals out of the area without being charged a long-distance fee for the call.