Choosing the right number for your business

When it comes to choosing a telephone number for your business, it’s important that you choose one that best suits the type of service that you provide.

There are generally two types of number in the UK that you would use for your business; geographic, or non-geographic.

What is a geographic number?

A geographic number, is one that is registered against a particular area of the country. Each area generally has a 4 or 5 digit area code assigned to it, and you will likely know what your local area code is. Some common examples include 0161 in Manchester, and 0121 in Birmingham. There are some exceptions to this though, especially in very large areas, such as London which uses the 3 digit code of 020.

With this in mind, if your business offers a local service, for example if you’re in the building trade and just serve customers in the same area, you would likely choose a geographic number. This helps to give callers confidence that they’ll be speaking to someone that is, as the number suggests, located geographically close to them.

What is a non-geographic number?

A non-geographic number is the opposite; a national number that does not link to a particular area in the UK.

Non-geographic numbers have a variety of different prefixes, such as 0800 for freephone, or the now-less-used 0845/0345 prefixes for national companies. More commonly used now, is the 0330 prefix. As a direct equivalent of a geographic number, calling an 0330 number will the cost the same as an 01 and 02 number.

This means that if your business doesn’t tie to a local area, i.e. you’re a mail order company that ships parcels to all parts of the UK, a non-geographic number may be best for you.

Landline Anywhere can provide you with an 01, 02, or 03 number that diverts all incoming calls straight to your mobile. For £9.95/month you’ll get a number of your choice, 1000 minutes of forwarded calls, and a full-featured voicemail box.

Take a look on our website for more information.

Or, if you have any other questions about our services, please do get in touch.