Excerpt from:  800 Toll Free Voice Mail Systems
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August 26, 2007

Small Business Marketing: How to Promote Your Business

Maximize your vanity number or toll-free phone number with simple marketing strategies

The use of vanity or toll-free phone numbers has continuously proven to pull more responses and generate more leads when used in advertising. In fact, many business owners experience at least a thirty percent increase in ad response, and some are doubling, even tripling their responses. They attribute success like this to using a vanity or toll-free phone number in all forms of advertising, like broadcast, print and outdoor.

If you want to make your vanity or toll-free phone number work for you, consider the following ideas to generate business leads and maximize your advertisements.

Repetition is key. Even though this sounds so obvious, the more you use your number in printed and audio advertisements, the more effective they’ll be. Especially when it comes to vanity phone numbers, the more your audience hears or reads it, the more the number will become synonymous with your product or service. In printed pieces, make sure it is prominently displayed and easily found. In radio or other audio messages, make sure your number is repeated and emphasized so that listeners can jot it down or easily remember it while they reach for the phone.

Don’t be shy. Your phone number is one of the most important things to communicate to potential clients. Don’t hesitate to put it on every single type of promotions, whether it's on your company vehicle, your coupons, or the most basic of promotional items. Using your phone number consistently, especially vanity numbers, provides a constant message and increases your opportunities for business leads and new customers.

Jingle it. If you had to, you could probably come up with at least three or four advertising jingles from your local community that includes a phone number. It might be from the most obnoxious car dealership advertisements, to the pizza chain on the corner. Even the most annoying of songs stick in the minds of customers, and if your phone number is part of that jingle, you could see big payoffs. As you plan your advertisement expenses, consider making a jingle part of your campaign.

Pick a winner. When you choose a vanity phone number, make sure that it appropriately ties in with your product or service in a very obvious or direct way. Make sure your vanity number is a clear indication of what you are selling. And follow the simple marketing formula of stating your company name, describing your offerings, calling a customer to action, and stating your phone number and other ways to get in touch.

Track your results. Once you’ve put an advertising or marketing strategy in place. You’ll need to know if it’s working. One way to do this is to create two different ads, one showing the local numerical phone number, and the other displaying your vanity or toll-free number. Track the response rate you get form each one. You’ll be able to test your ad campaigns and identify which ones work best for your local markets. Or you can just rely on the findings of countless other tests which verify that vanity and toll-free numbers increase response, and ultimately business.


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