International call forwarding seems like a dry and dull topic. That is until you realize how this kind of service can make your business seem strong, international, or cosmopolitan. Today’s technology allows companies of almost any size to have an international reach, which can make almost any business seem global.
The New (Phone) Cosmopolitan
Let’s pretend you have a healthy, active business that sells a great product or service which can be bought and sold internationally. Physically, your business is located in your home or perhaps just located in a city that would not rank amongst cities that are generally referred to as “cosmopolitan.”
In the old days, you would need to separate phone numbers in Luxembourg, New York and Tokyo (to name a few examples) to do business there. You may have needed physical space there — or at least, some room where your phone lines can sit.
You would have needed a phone company to come out, hook up, and list your new number. You may have even needed a small staff to man the phone lines.
Call Forwarding Changes the Landscape
Call forwarding eliminates the need for all of that, allowing you the benefits of seeming international (and even being international) without the costs of actually being international.
Global Call Forwarding allows you to set up multiple contact phone numbers around the globe, and allows you to do it from where you are, and to handle calls from where you are.
Rates vary depending on the location, but they are generally much lower than having a full, established line in each country. You can literally have phone lines in multiple cities for only a small increase on your phone bill if that’s what your business needs.
Present Your Business as Larger at a Smaller Cost
If you’re looking to do business globally, maybe cost is a not your greatest concern. For you, maybe it’s just as important to look “local,” so that wherever people call, they feel like they’re getting a neighborhood business.
One of the great things about having international call forwarding, or virtual numbers, is that your New York number has a New York Extension, or your Melbourne, Australia number looks (and is) a Melbourne number. Nobody, for example, in Saudi Arabia wants to feel like they are calling you in Cleveland, Ohio or New Jersey.
There’s nothing wrong with these cities of course — it’s just that people around the country want to do business with someone local to them.
Best of all, those callers are making toll free calls to your forwarded number, so there’s no added expense in calling you. Of course, if cost is a concern, you don’t have to make the call toll free to your international customers, but it’s an option if you need it.
Most reputable international call forwarding companies will have relationships with major international phone provides. Numbers may come from IMB, Citrix, Novartis, Verizon, and others, at a much-reduced rate than what you would get ordering all these numbers from these providers on your own, individually.
Other Number Options
In some cases, you may want to pay extra for a “vanity” number, which allows you to choose a special number which is still local, but which may spell a specific word or phrase relevant to your company, or have a unique pattern of numbers which are easier for customers to remember.
Another benefit of getting an international call forwarding number that’s often overlooked is marketing and marketing metrics. Because you can get multiple lines even in the same company, you can track the success of any given business campaign.
Have you decided to run a few TV ads and newspaper ads in Belgium? You can give each a different number so you can see which marketing campaign is working best for you. Maybe you are comparing the benefits of TV ads in Dubai to Magazine ads in London. Just use a different number on each and compare the effectiveness of the campaign.
The ease of getting and maintaining numbers makes these marketing “tests” a very easy and affordable experiment.
One Number Fits All (if You Want it to)
We know that a number in Melbourne is not like a number in Borneo. But what if you just want one or a few numbers globally? Maybe you’re doing business in so many different places, you just want one number that anyone can call your from anywhere, even if that number is not local or even toll free to a particular region.
No problem on that either. The technology exists to give some numbers just an extra digit allowing a local number to be used internationally.
Virtual Numbers
Virtual toll free or virtual international numbers are the same thing. Because they exist on the internet, they exist everywhere. They are not tethered to or connected with any one region.
Just as important as where internationally-forwarded calls end up, is where they originate. With international call forwarding, they can start from almost any kind of phone line, including mobile, or VoIP numbers.
Look Established Without Spending a Fortune
Today, you don’t have to be cosmopolitan or international to look that way, and to attract customers in some of the richest countries in the world.
They say the world is getting smaller, but it’s also getting more affordable for businesses who want to attract international customers. Obviously, the internet is everywhere, broadcasting services and providing products for those who need them, so there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be.
If you’re a large company with lots of employees, Global Call Forwarding can help you show the world you are a company of international appeal and total access. And if you’re a smaller company but with a business and product to sell that appeals to many places on the globe you no longer have to spend a fortune to reach your client. You can just as easily pick and choose which areas you will and won’t do business in, while you achieve the appearance of a much larger, more established company.
