Have you been using your personal phone number to handle your small business communications? As your business and team grows, you’ll find it’s much better to have a dedicated business phone number attached to your company. This makes it easier for customers to call your business. As well as ensures that your calls are recognised by contacts you call.
Find out all you need to know about getting a business phone number as a small business in this article:
Why should I get a business phone number?
The main reasons small businesses should get a business phone number are to: enhance professionalism, improve customer service and increase organisation.
A business phone number demonstrates professionalism, whilst making it easier for them to reach the business quickly. Which in turn helps improve customer satisfaction and loyalty. Furthermore, separating personal and business communications through a separate business phone number keeps businesses organised. This prevents confusion between personal and business communications, leading to the delivery of better customer service.
What are the ways to get a business phone number?
There are several ways for small businesses to get a business phone number, depending on their needs and budget:
- Landline phone service: This is the traditional option. Landline phone service requires the installation of physical equipment (telephone lines, PBX systems and handsets). The phone will be at a fixed place eg. at an office.
- Mobile phone service: Many small business teams begin by using their personal phones for business purposes. However, this can create confusion between personal and business communications. So small businesses may consider setting up mobile contracts and using a separate handset for work.
- VoIP phone service: Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is a digital phone service that uses the internet to transmit calls. VoIP is often more affordable than landline phone services and can be used with traditional desk phones or mobile phones.
- Virtual phone system: A virtual phone service is a cloud-based phone service that allows businesses to manage their calls and texts using the internet. Virtual phone systems are a great option for businesses that need a professional phone number and want to manage their calls from anywhere. Businesses can get both mobile or landline phone numbers using a virtual phone system. You may wish to get a landline business phone number to sustain a professional, location specific branding.
What is the difference between VoIP and virtual phone systems?
Although VoIP and virtual phone system services both use the internet to make and receive phone calls, there are some key differences between the two:
VoIP phone services are typically focused solely on providing phone service and may be offered by a standalone VoIP provider or as part of a larger telecommunications package. With VoIP, users can make and receive calls using their internet connection and a mobile phone or a traditional desk phone with an adapter. VoIP phone services can offer a range of features such as call forwarding, voicemail, and call recording, but may not include additional business communication features such as messaging, and team collaboration tools.
Alternatively, virtual phone system services are a more comprehensive business communication solution that includes a range of features beyond phone service. Meaning virtual phone systems can better meet the communication needs of small businesses and provide a more unified and streamlined communication experience. Virtual phone services are usually delivered through an app. This can be installed on your personal phones however the communications will be kept separate as they’re only accessible through that app.
What are the benefits of a virtual phone system?
There are numerous advantages virtual phone systems provide to small businesses. These include:
- Cost-effectiveness: Virtual phone systems are generally more affordable than traditional phone systems. This is because there are usually no set up or hardware costs involved. Providers may also have flexible pricing plans that allow businesses to pay only for the features they need.
- Scalability: Small businesses can easily add or remove users and features as needed without having to invest in new hardware or software. Meaning the virtual phone system can be scaled to suit your business needs.
- Mobility: Teams can make/take calls from anywhere because the virtual phone system can be installed on the personal phones of employees. This makes it easy for small businesses to facilitate remote or hybrid working. Additionally, ensuring your business is reachable anywhere.
- Advanced features: Calling features like call forwarding, call grouping, and auto attendant are particularly useful to growing businesses. These features streamline customer communications as well as improve productivity within your team.
- Professionalism: A professional image can be achieved through features like auto-attendants, call routing, and voicemail. These features make it easier for customers to reach the business and elevate your brand’s image due to increased customer satisfaction.
How to get a business phone number with a virtual phone system?
To get a business phone number for your small business, research different providers and their functionalities, and consider the pricing carefully. Virtual phone system plans can be contract or subscription-based, with varying lengths for contract plans. Be sure to choose the right plan for your business needs, as breaking a contract can result in high costs.
On the other hand, subscription plans for virtual phone systems typically roll over monthly or annually and allow for cancellation before the next billing period. This pricing plan is ideal for small businesses that want to try out a service before committing to a long-term plan.
Once you have signed up with a provider, a new telephone number is usually provided. Alternatively, if you’d like to keep an existing number but upgrade your communications method to a virtual business phone system, you can opt to port your phone number to the provider.
When setting up a virtual phone system for your team, your team members will be assigned different phone numbers. However, with call routing, you’ll be able to direct inbound calls made to a specific number, to various devices on the virtual phone network.
Explore Devyce for your business phone number solution
Devyce is the smarter, more reliable choice for your virtual business phone solution. While virtual phone systems already save your business money, save even more with Devyce. 70% more to be specific. How we do this is down to our exclusive deal with a UK mobile network. Meaning we are able to provide virtual numbers at a much lower cost than other providers, so we can keep your prices low.
We believe in transparency in our pricing and have therefore made it easy for you with 3 simple plans. Our plans are flexible and suitable for businesses of all sizes, from small to medium enterprises. The best part? We don’t offer contracts! Meaning you’re welcome to stay with us for as long as you want.
We’d love to show you why Devyce is the smartest choice to get a business phone number… So feel free to book a demo with us!
