A Guide to Business Phone Numbers

With many years of helping business owners connect to their customers, we understand the value of getting a great number, and know how to get you through the process smoothly. 

That’s why we’ve packed our knowledge into this simple guide–with the insider’s scoop on everything you need to know to find the right custom phone number for your brand.

The benefits of choosing a specific phone number for your business

Going with the run-of-the-mill number assigned by your phone carrier passes up a major marketing opportunity. A competitive business can’t afford to miss out on it.

There are several key advantages to investing some thought into your business number:

• Memorability – an easy way to ensure your marketing response and conversion rates hit the mark– is to choose a contact method that stays at the top of your customers’ mind. 
• Digital marketing – Even in a digital world, phone leads have a higher conversion rate than web leads. Some phone numbers even double as websites (1-800-CONTACTS anyone?)
• Better brand recognition – Your phone number is an opportunity to remind people about your brand name or value proposition.
• A contact method and call-to-action in one – It’s no secret that attention spans are on the decline. While you have your audience engaged, why not maximize the opportunity?
• Lifetime marketing campaign – Ads don’t run forever, people lose business cards, but a memorable phone number is future-proof.
• Incredible ROI – with a low start-up cost and a low risk, a vanity phone number is a high-quality asset that pays for itself in a matter of weeks!

Where do businesses promote their phone number?

A memorable phone number marketed across all channels is one of the most effective ways to increase inbound calls. 

Companies today have more options than ever for reaching their audience. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Your website
• Print materials (eg. business cards, fliers)
• Social media (eg. LinkedIn, Facebook)
• On and offline ads
• Search engines
• Email
• Television
• Radio

What to consider when picking a phone number

Where’s a good place to start? We suggest asking yourself these helpful questions to help you hone in on the right phone number:

• Can you incorporate your business name?
• Can you incorporate the service you offer?
• Who is your target market?
• How would they describe what you do?
• Is it a memorable phrase?

A well designed vanity number is easy to learn, share, and use. The following guidelines will help you get you there. If you need some expert support, RingBoost’s concierge-level sales team can assist you through the process of choosing a business phone number.

Brand Strategy

When utilized strategically, a phone number that reinforces the company purpose or service provides many benefits for a burgeoning business. A great phone number reaches your target audience, which is the first step to building brand recognition. 

Projecting consistency across your brand and making it easy for customers to reach you is a simple and effective way of enhancing user experience. A satisfying user experience is fundamental to customer retention. 

Memorability

The best business phone numbers are the unforgettable ones you can recall in an instant, when you need to. If you needed to order a fresh bouquet of flowers on the fly, you could do it in one cohesive thought just by picking up the phone and dialing 1-800-FLOWERS. That’s the power of a great business phone number.

Here some actionable tips for enhancing memorability:

• Aim for simple. The key to making your phone number easy-to-dial and commit to memory is simplicity.
• Make it easy to spell and easy to say. As you choose a business number, prioritize options that are easy to communicate to just anybody, anywhere.
• Leverage patterns and repetition. People have an easier time usually recalling numbers that have repetitive numbers (444-4444, 1010, 2000) and linear sequences (789, 4321)

Features

The right value-added features will maximize the functionality of your business line. Find a phone number provider that offers the option of integrating the practical features you might need into your telecommunications plan.

RingBoost offers valuable features with all tiers of their call-forwarding plans

• Real-Time Call Reporting & Analytics
• Call Notification Emails
• Caller ID Display
• Faxing
• Voicemail to Email
• Conference Bridge
• Multi Call Forwarding 
• Simultaneous routing

Value

These days, custom and vanity phone numbers are in high-demand and some businesses end up paying premium prices for the number of their choice. When it comes to value, not all numbers are created equal. 

Consider your needs and your budget before buying–a great number doesn’t have to break the bank. The RingBoost inventory has the widest selection of available phone numbers to fit any budget. 

Choosing the right type of phone number for your business

Toll-free, local, or vanity… These days, you can have any kind of number you want. Here are how those types of numbers differ..

Toll Free

Even in a modern marketing landscape, the classic toll-free number carries a legacy of trust and widespread familiarity. Particularly effective as vanity numbers, toll free numbers have the advantage of providing a nationwide branding opportunity and are available in many options beyond the original 800 and 888 prefixes. 

Logistically, it’s important to note that a toll-free number can not be purchased as your own, but can be licensed to your business for a low monthly fee.

Local

A ‘local’ phone number is tied to a geographic location and identified by its unique 3-digit area code – even though you can purchase a local number regardless of your location. A local area code builds credibility with local people and can impress people far away as well. 

Because specific area codes come in a finite supply, the more popular ones are in high-demand due to their rarity and the prestige of the cities they represent. NYC’s 212, Miami’s 305 and D.C.’s 202 are all “exhausted” area codes and are unavailable from your standard phone company. 

Vanity

Vanity numbers allow you to spell a memorable word or phrase that reinforces your brand. You also have the option of choosing an ‘easy-dial’ sequence of repeating digits if it’s more fitting for your business. 

The #1 benefit of choosing an effective vanity number is memorability. Your customers will never have to look it up to get your business on the line. By design, a well placed vanity number will improve your response and conversion rates.

How to search for a business phone number

RingBoost offers omnichannel support and the largest selection of easy-to-search inventory, making it simple to find the perfect phone number. Our search engine lets you conveniently search by:

• Keyword
• Area Code
• State

If you’re just starting your search, browsing by industry and browsing by state are a useful way to quickly come up with fresh ideas.

Implementing your new business phone number

Purchasing and activating your new number requires a few key decisions, and no special technical knowledge. Here are the main steps.

1. Purchase

Once you’ve picked your new number, you can pay for it online through our secure payment portal. RingBoost accepts most major credit cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay on your device of choice for convenient checkout. 

2. Activate 

Put your new number into operation ASAP or at a later date with any of the following options.

Port

Porting a number is simply the process of moving a number from one carrier to another. You’ll need to port your new number if you want to use it with your current carrier. RingBoost can walk you through the process with ease. Plan for the process to take a few days to clear from one carrier to the next. 

If you need to cover your business line in the interim, ask us about a temporary call-forwarding plan while your number gets ported.

Pick a call forwarding plan

RingBoost offers call-forwarding plans to fit every budget. To activate your fresh digits to your existing line, just select the plan that works best for you and we’ll do the rest.

Park

If you’re not yet ready to activate your newly secured phone number, you have the option to park it. Parking it allows you to make your purchase and retain ownership at a fraction of the cost of a plan.

3. Promote

There’s just one more thing left to do: updating your website and marketing materials is the crucial last step to putting your new phone number into action.

For your convenience, the RingBoost support team is available for assistance with marketing your new number and integrating it into your communications plan

Find a custom phone number for your brand

Toll-Free Phone Numbers for Business | RingBoost

Local Vanity Phone Numbers for Sale | RingBoost