Past Tense

Small business startups and entrepreneurs have something in common. A vision of David and Goliath. Both invest a lot of resources into taking down the Big Bad Corporations that enabled them to start their own business. These small businesses and entrepreneurs possess the skills and right approach. They commit themselves (rightly) to the customer. Ultimately, they have all of the tools and attitudes needed to succeed. But then something happens. Either a few slow months or some kind of “spooky” incident drains these folks of their steam. When we ask what happened, we often hear that they just couldn’t compete with the Big Boys (or in some paranoid cases we even get a “they had it out for me” excuse). Come on, who really believes this?

Small businesses have several critical advantages over large corporations. From a financial perspective, they have less layers of management. They can provide a more intimate approach to customer service without having to worry about bureaucracy. And while small businesses competing with larger corporations don’t have the same deep pockets, they also don’t have the extraordinary expenses. Small businesses truly stand to profit from the inefficiencies of larger corporations. So why don’t they?

In more cases than not, small businesses project the presence of a small company. While the customer experience might be exponentially better than that provided by the Big competitor, how can someone with a small presence attract a customer in the first place? After all, a customer looking to spend money on a product or service that is offered by a company whose phone number is 1-800-BUY-OURS will have a much easier time locating the bigger competitor. As a result, this business gets sourced to the bigger company. So how can the small business or entrepreneur compete with a Big Presence Almighty Corporation? There are several ways that we recommend to Build Presence, but the one item that is too often ignored is the toll-free number! Imagine that.

A toll-free number lends a “large” presence to any enterprise. A consumer who has no other resources than a telephone book will choose a local provider who lists both a toll-free number and a local number in their listing. Can you blame the consumer? Especially where larger dollars are involved, a customer will want to know that he can reach you for support from anywhere. He might buy locally, but when he travels out of state, he can reach you. Think about it…

A big benefit with a toll-free number is that the costs are relatively minimal. Given recent technological advances, toll-free numbers can be arranged within minutes. More impressive is that the best service providers actually re-route your calls to any number of your choosing. Yes, that can be your cell phone while you are out on the golf course or shopping (or, more likely, traveling from visiting one account to another). That means no missed calls, no more idle time at the office waiting for a phone to ring while you could be doing so much more. Can a service like this help your business better focus on developing and cultivating existing relationships?

The service we recommend costs $39.99 per month. For this fee, you get a no-frills solution with unlimited minutes. Calls received at your toll-free number get routed to any phone of your choosing.

For the very small business owner who is serious about tackling larger competitors, a toll-free number provides a valuable customer service advantage. Suddenly, the story of David and Goliath rings true.