Marketing By Numbers

There has been a lot of controversy and mis-information in the press in recent months about 0870 numbers. Much of this has focussed on the cost of calling these numbers. The perception seems to be that they are expensive to call and have been compared to premium rate numbers and even referred to as “Rip Off” numbers.

The truth is that they were originally set up as a National Rate number. They would cost the same to call as a standard BT national rate number but would have all the customer service benefits of the local rate 0845 numbers. The cost today of calling an 0870 number from a BT line is around 7.6p per minute (including vat).

However, there is now a problem in 3 specific areas with regard to call pricing: Read the rest of this entry »

0845 numbers differ from freephone in that the caller pays for the call. Calls are charged by BT at standard local rate though charges may differ if calls are made from a mobile phone or using an alternative service provider.

The benefit to the caller has traditionally been that a local rather than a national rate charge is made regardless of the location of the caller within UK.

There is a further benefit to the caller which is not widely known. Most 0845 numbers are linked to a call management system which can handle multiple simultaneous calls. This means that there is a much greater chance of your call being answered at busy times rather than just getting a busy tone. Read the rest of this entry »

Many UK business owners are unaware that the UK Telecoms industry provides a huge range of tools to help them to market their goods and services. This series is designed to educate businesses and consumers to the benefits of Marketing By Numbers.

Let’s start with the basics. Most people know about Freephone numbers (known as toll free in other parts of the world). Customers know that a call to a freephone number is free of charge, hence the name! Because of that, they are more likely to call an advertiser with a freephone number, if they have the opportunity. Similarly, many businesses know how well customers respond to freephone numbers, so they use these numbers to attract more business. Simple really! Read the rest of this entry »

Marketing Numbers in UK consist of the telephone number range beginning with 08…

The primary ones are:

0800 Freephone

0845 Local Rate

0870 National Rate

In addition you will sometimes come across:

0844 - primarily used by ISPs (internet service providers) or to route calls abroad

0871 - often used as a charging method for recorded information.  More expensive than 0870 but cheaper than premium rate numbers (09….)

I shall deal with each in turn in separate articles

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