How a Virtual Phone Number Can Benefit You

What is a virtual phone number?

A virtual phone number is a telephone number that rings to wherever you want it to ring. For example, let’s say you have a business in Kansas, but your products/services can be used all over the country. You don’t want to pay for phone numbers in every state, that would be quite expensive. With a virtual phone number, you can have a local presence with an area code that maps to whatever location you desire.

How do virtual numbers work?

A virtual number works the same way any other phone number works, except you don’t have to actually ‘live’ in the location your number rings to. As in the previous example, I can live in Kansas and have a virtual number in Phoenix, AZ. The phone number, when identified on the receiving phone, has an area code consistent with that location. You’re still living in Kansas, but you’ve just presented yourself as having a location in Phoenix with an area code of 480 or 602.

What's the difference between a virtual phone number and a regular one?

When you live in a certain location, like New York, NY, you have a local phone. You probably have a desk phone and a mobile device with an area code for the city you live in. That’s great! You can do business locally and everyone knows you’re a local vendor and they feel comfortable doing business with you.

A virtual phone number gives you the opportunity to do business outside of your area. Let’s say you run a small marketing firm that does award winning website design. Eventually, your market share will become smaller and smaller if you continue to do business only locally. When you’re ready to expand your business to Maine or California, a virtual number gives the person you’re calling the comfort of knowing you are from their area because your phone ID is identical to theirs or a surrounding city.

Benefits of Using a Virtual Phone Number

Affordability

Having a phone number is a great way to communicate with the outside world, right? So, what if you want to communicate with a wider population in the outside world? Do you create an office in every city in every state throughout the United States? That would be a very costly venture. Why not reduce expenses and simply have an HQ in Washington and have several virtual numbers throughout the US? A lot more affordable to do business.

Synced Communication Across Multiple Devices

Having the ability to communicate via a desk phone that resides on your desktop in your office is awesome. But, what if you need to leave the office for a few hours? You need to be able to conduct business anywhere and on any device. This includes the ability to make and receive calls on your laptop with a softphone. Virtual numbers give you the ability to travel and move offices whenever it makes sense for your business. Move your office from New York to Michigan, but maintain the New York relationship you’ve nurtured for 10 years by utilizing a virtual phone number.

Remote Work Opportunities

Working remotely has its advantages. You can live in one town, but, with a virtual number, you can do business in another town across the country. Let’s take Jan. She started her remote work in Portland. Unfortunately, she needed to relocate to care for her terminally ill mother, who lived in Miami Beach. Jan was able to relocate to Miami Beach to care for her mom, and also take along the virtual number she’d had for business for over 10 years. Virtual numbers give remote workers the opportunity to live and work in the places they desire without the restrictions a landline phone number handcuffs you to.

App Integration

Access to various apps like voicemail, digital fax, auto attendant, and teleconferencing, to name a few, is just another aspect one must consider when deciding on whether a virtual phone number is right for you. To maintain flexibility and productivity in your workforce, a business must provide the tools a remote worker needs to succeed at his/her trade.

Shared Phone Numbers

Perhaps the most powerful aspect of a virtual number is that you have the ability to maintain as many as you need, but they all ring to the phones you choose. Let’s say Albert has a business in Houston, but he needs to have a local presence in Amarillo, El Paso and Dallas. He doesn’t want to have to manage different phones for each location, so a virtual number is just the ticket. He has one phone and it is attached to each virtual number. And, when he places a call, the caller ID his phone transmits is the one he chooses for each instance.

Getting Your Virtual Phone Number

If you're ready to learn more about how you can get a virtual phone number for your business and begin to see the benefits that using a virtual phone number can have, learn more about the process here. Or schedule a time to get a quote for your own virtual phone number.