To contract a 900 line is to have free advertising

Many companies have been enjoying the advantages of contracting a 900 line for some years now. In fact, among those that are usually perceived as the most prestigious, there are many companies that use this telephone resource. To tell the truth, the secret of these companies and their managers is that they understand the advantages of using toll-free lines to serve the public.

The 900 lines are quite attractive due to the free of charge they represent. But beyond this, they bring a very powerful added value to business life. This has become a symbol of good customer service. Of course, any company wants to be well regarded by its customers and by the rest of society. Below, we will explain the secret behind hiring a 900 line.

What are 900 lines?

 

900 lines are characterized by the fact that they are free of charge for callers. The traditional logic of telephone communication indicates that the caller pays for the service. This is the case even with the local line at home. In contrast, numbers with the «900» prefix are paid for by those who receive the telephone contact.

For this, the company that contracts the service pays a fee for each minute of call received. It is very similar to what happens with local calls, only in reverse. Generally, there is a fee for calls received from local numbers and a slightly higher one for calls made from cell phones.

Some companies have the budget and the willingness to hire a 900 line. In addition, many telephone companies with this service offer rates and plans that can be very positive. In fact, this can be very bearable and although it implies a certain monetary expense, it also generates very good benefits in terms of attention, perception and the possibility of getting new customers.

Contracting a 900 line generates more interaction

There is no better advertising than what many firms do when contracting a 900 line. Evidently, the first point in favor is the guarantee that the customer will be able to call and it will be completely free. And even if the call is made from a local number and is cheap, free is powerful, it is like a gift that cannot be wasted. Most people simply want to make a profit.

The fact that a call is free allows that:

The customer is encouraged to call the company: this way, it is much easier to solve their problems and also sell them new products. Business communication increases because of the free call.
Non-customers also dare to call: One of the secrets of hiring a 900 line is that non-customers are encouraged to call. If they want to ask about a service, price, or anything else, it is easier to encourage them to call.

But beyond encouraging communication in an objective way, hiring a 900 line is a marketing element. This is so for many reasons and, of course, it will depend on how the entrepreneur uses this element to his advantage.

Projecting a positive business image

Nowadays it is known that companies with toll-free telephone lines are better perceived by customers. It is understood that their use is, from the outset, a manifestation of goodwill on the part of the companies. The 900 line can be perceived in some cases as a kind of social contribution to citizens as consumers.

In addition, historically, the toll-free strategy has been used by large and prestigious companies. Therefore, 900 lines are associated with such successful companies and corporations that treat their customers well. In fact, their hiring is something that impacts the public almost always in a positive way.

In fact, firms that contract 900 lines tend to instantly improve their perception in the eyes of users and customers. This is a phenomenon that has been studied in the field of advertising and it is enough to internalize some particular cases to understand the positive effect of this telephone service.

Contracting a 900 line: Service-oriented companies

900 lines are also associated with help services. For several decades, public administrations in Western countries have been implementing toll-free hotlines to facilitate communication with their citizens in case of emergency. Probably the most emblematic example is the 911 line in the United States.

911 is synonymous with help in the midst of emergencies of any kind and that is a notion that exists, even outside the United States. This idea is so anchored and so powerful that many countries have adopted this telephone number for their own medical and police assistance services. Almost anyone has memorized this number and associated it with the possibility of calling the state in case of an emergency.

This is the most emblematic example of the influence that the toll-free number has on people’s perception, but it is not the only one. If a citizen needs help, he or she understands that the number to call will start with this prefix. This reference is almost universal, so having this type of line positions the company as one that is service-oriented.

Two powerful ways to take advantage of the 900 line

Hiring a 900 line implies making the business service number an advertising piece. The first reason for this is that 900 prefix numbers are easier to learn. Knowing this fact, people only focus on memorizing the last part of the numbering. This represents an advantage over companies that maintain local phones.

When a business owner contracts this type of service, he or she can assign the numbering he or she wants. This is similar to what happens when we buy a cellular line. Some ingenious firms have used this resource to advertise themselves and generate association between the telephone number and the company. The trick is basically to «substitute» numbers for letters.

Have you ever seen on TV commercials where numbers like «900 E-M-P-R-R-E-S-A» appear? As we all know, the keypad also contains a number of words assigned to it. What some companies do is to ask for numbers that, when dialed, form a word associated with the company or its activity. This also ensures that the phone is more easily memorized by consumers.

Complementing advertising

The good thing about the 900 line is that it complements the company’s advertising efforts very well. It is not unusual for some of the companies with free telephone services to invest in television campaigns. This is because the reach of this type of advertising linked to the telephone number is much greater.

An example of this can be seen in many bank and insurance company advertisements. By paying for television spots, people begin to learn the number, even without being regular customers of the company. It is also positive to make these advertisements on the radio, although it will always be much better to have the visual element.

This is how the 900 line ends up becoming one more element of the brand. If the number is easy to learn and has a simple and catchy combination of letters, the commercial spectrum of the company will be amplified without limits. This is a strategy that has served many firms that now dominate their respective markets well.

Looking for good prices

The important thing when contracting a 900 line is to do so with a telephone company that has good rates. The problem with some traditional companies is that they have very high prices. Certainly, working with an experienced company ensures good telephone service. However, there are many other alternatives on the market with more reasonable costs.

For example, at Neotel we have a rate of 0.019 € per minute for incoming calls. In the case of communications made by mobile telephony, the value per minute amounts to only 0.049 €. To tell the truth, our company has extensive experience in the business telephony sector.

In this case, the advice is to look for several options in the market and verify which contract is more convenient for the company. In the case of Neotel, we also offer excellent call center software at a good price. The goal is to help companies to switch to IP telephony, which is much more modern and cheaper. Of course, it is always important to consider whether this type of line is profitable for the type of business.

If you still don’t know what a virtual PBX is, you can check some of our last articles. This is an element that allows to unify the communication of the company, without installations or investments and providing tools to improve business communication. This program also has very effective telemarketing tools and works very well with the 900 line.