Business Tips:

Getting a 1300 Number; Is it Good for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses?

A 1300 number is a useful tool that bolsters your business communication potential, allowing your office to take on multiple calls and craft a more quality overall customer service experience.

It may seem natural to assume that this feature-rich number will come at a higher cost, but the truth is quite the contrary.

A 1300 number can help stimulate the cash flow of small and medium businesses (SMBs), regardless of the sector. It not only drives revenue and growth, but it can also be used to trim costs in various areas of your business.

If you want to capitalise on a 1300 number, you’ve come to the right place. Here are eight ways a 1300 number can help enrich your business and lower operational costs.

Let’s hop right in!

1. Cost-Effective Customer Support

If your business is booming, a 1300 number can accommodate this catapulting increase in demand in a more cost-effective manner compared to personal numbers.

Think of it this way: with a personal number, customers can only reach you with one single line. If multiple callers want to contact you, then they’ll have to wait for an unspecified amount of time to get in touch. 

This is undeniably a frustrating experience on their part, and this can cost you business sales and credibility as well.

You may opt to get a second or third personal phone number to meet this demand. However, that would require you to spend hundreds of dollars on the initial technology and even more when paying for the annual phone plans.

Fortunately, the aforementioned case won’t be a dilemma for 1300 number holders. With a 1300 number, you can accommodate multiple callers simultaneously because of the built-in routing features present in every 1300 number. 

This allows you to set up your receptionist system to redirect customers to open lines automatically, streamlining the customer support experience and doing away with expensive bulk phone purchases.

2. Multiple Plan Options

Another perk of a 1300 number is that you can select a range of phone plans based on your business’s current needs. 

For instance, if you’re switching from a personal phone number but don’t want to commit to a full-scale 1300 business plan, then you can start with the most inexpensive plan your chosen provider is offering, such as the $20 per month unlimited promo from Telcowork’s 1300 small business plans.

However, if you need a more responsive and capable plan, then you can choose one of the higher plan options.

The good news is that you can switch your plan anytime you’re subscribed to your provider by simply going to their website and updating the subscription status. 

Alternatively, you can call their number and inquire about a plan switch. They’ll be more than happy to consider your requests—typically with no questions asked.

This degree of flexibility is useful for small businesses since it allows them to manage their costs more tightly, according to their needs. 

More specifically, businesses that need to cut costs may opt to switch to a smaller plan, whereas businesses experiencing a surge in demand may consider upgrading their current plan to a more capable one. This scalability makes your business more agile. 

3. Reduces Missed Calls and Voicemails

A 1300 number is capable of handling multiple calls, making it highly effective in capturing consumers and responding to their inquiries.

When a customer’s query is quickly resolved, this can boost your business’s reputation, thus leading to return sales. It can also increase your business’s popularity as these people may be inclined to spread the word. This works regardless of your industry.

Conversely, being met with a busy line can be a frustrating ordeal for any customer. 

Your small business suffers too—as it could be missing potential opportunities to improve operations and generate more revenue simply because a customer or partner’s call wasn’t answered on time.

When a customer’s query is quickly resolved, this can boost your business’s reputation, thus leading to increased sales. It can also increase your business’s popularity, as these people may be inclined to spread the word.

4. Augments Marketing Efforts

A 1300 number creates a single, memorable point of contact for all your marketing campaigns. You don’t have to print out and distribute different campaign materials for, say, every territory in the country. You can just keep it uniform throughout.

Not only is it easier for you to market your business more consistently in both physical and digital advertisements, but it’s also much cheaper since you’re not tracking different phone numbers with monthly plans.

Furthermore, your business can also use multiple 1300 numbers under one account to split-test different ad campaigns to assess which campaign has better conversion rates. This data can inform your business where to redirect its marketing efforts, which can make it easier for you to profit from your strategies.

On top of all of that, a 1300 number also pushes out a professional and reputable front for your business. This can increase the likelihood of your target audience engaging with your business, which can ultimately drive more leads and conversions.

5. Centralises Your Business Line

Since your business line is centralised at one number, this makes call management a much easier task. This is especially true for 1300 numbers since they come with a built-in dashboard with features like call forwarding, IVR systems, and data tracking.

Having a centralised point helps you reduce errors and discrepancies in your business processes. Receptionists, customer service agents, and other call handlers will also have more free time to engage in other productive tasks as this business line has the tools to handle multiple administrative functions.

In some cases, a 1300 number can also reduce staffing costs by eliminating certain functions like manually routing calls and managing a complex call distribution. This, in turn, can help you keep your business expenses low.

6. Tax Deductions

Another perk of using a 1300 number is that you can claim tax deductions from it. 

If your personal phone number is used for both personal and professional calls, then you generally can’t claim tax benefits from it. 

However, a 1300 number is easily fileable as a business expense. This can indirectly lead to savings, allowing you to reinvest your earnings in other areas of your business. You can also have a lower overall taxable income with this number.

If you want to improve your business’s financial health, then consider getting a 1300 number and filing taxes for it appropriately. Be sure to also hire a competent tax specialist and accountant to ensure you’re operating through legal means.

7. Cost Distribution Between Business and Customer

The cost structure of a 1300 number is that the caller pays the local rate of a call, while the business pays the remainder. 

It’s not cheaper for the business per se, but the cost of calling your business is much cheaper for your customer compared to calling your business through a personal number.

This fact incentivises customers to reach out to you regardless of where they are in the nation. This drastically increases your reach and can help scale your company.

Furthermore, nationwide reach also scales up demand, which can cut the cost per call drastically by way of an increase in call volume. 

8. Opportunity For Data Analysis

Finally, a 1300 number also presents a valuable opportunity to glean important information regarding your customer’s profile and the general reception of your business. 

This is done by tracking customer data and call history, particularly call patterns, customer demographics, and customer behaviour.

By utilising data from past calls, you can find patterns and craft more targeted strategies to connect with your target market. This can help you train staff better, boost performance, and drive growth more efficiently.