Many people out there, especially those with their own businesses, have likely wondered where they can get their hands on a toll free number. After all, there are few better ways to get people to call than for them to realize they can do so at no cost no matter where they are and ask questions. But how do you go about getting your hands on one of these precious numbers? We can answer that for your right here.
Toll free numbers are assigned on a first come, first serve basis, so you may not be able to get the number you want. The folks doing the assigning, meanwhile, are called RespOrgs, or RESPonsible ORGanizationS, and can in turn be anybody from a telephone company to another such similar service. If you want one of these, you’ll be able to contact a RespOrg and make the arrangements yourself.
Chances are you’ve heard about movements in the toll free number industry, such as 1-800 FLOWERS selling to the company of the same name for a substantial sum of money. But lest you get to thinking that these are a lot like domain names, and there’s profit to be made in buying and holding, you’d be mistaken. See, toll free numbers are ultimately regulated not by the RespOrgs that issue them, but rather by the FCC, which means things like hoarding–buying up several numbers to hold on to them to resell–or warehousing–reserving numbers you have no intention of using to keep others from having access to them are both illegal under FCC rules.
Still though, considering the sheer number of uses for toll free numbers, and their relative ease of obtaining (assuming you only want one or two and plan to put them to use immediately so as not to draw the FCC’s ire) your small business could likely use one. And they’ll prove especially useful should your small business focus heavily on customer contact in a radius wider than would typically be covered by a local calling radius. Making it easier for your customers to speak to you can’t help but pay dividends in at least public perception, and good perception is the kind of thing that helps drive sales.
Related keywords: FCC, customer service, domain names, local calling