Operating Virtually
If you don’t already know it, an 800 number is not an expensive proposition. I have used a site for a few years that costs $2 per month for a standard 888, 877, or 866 number plus usage rates of 6.9 cents per minute. An 800 number increases your base rate to $5 per month. There are also vanity phone numbers available.
You can also use a service such as RingCentral.com to manage multiple numbers including fax lines and employee extensions. Ring Central is a better choice if you plan on a decent volume of calls or plan to add numbers for additional employees or services.
Kall8 is a good choice if you don’t anticipate much activity, but have a need for a number at a very low cost.
If you are a company who is trying to project a presence beyond your local area, an 800 number is good idea. It isn’t always the cost to your consumer, it is really the perception that you are a larger company.
If you need to project a different story to a consumer, well, you can do that too. Are you located in Orlando, but want the customer to assume that you are in Chicago? I said assume. You can obtain a local number much the way you would an 800 number. This might be the item that pushes your consumer to purchase something from you rather than from a competitor. If you have a customer who wants an item fast, and you can provide that, he or she might have the impression that it takes longer for the item to reach them from Florida rather than Illinois.
Along with an inexpensive toll free number, or local number, you could consider a Virtual Office. With a virtual office, you can project an image that will win you customers simply due to the image that you project. I am not suggesting that you are dishonest with anyone. If asked, make it clear that your business address is a shared executive office facility and that you are not there on a daily basis. As a growing company, it is not a surprise to move once or twice in the first year or two. A virtual office address will not only provide a better image than using your home address, or a foreign address, but it will allow you to keep a single address during your growth phase. This will save you some time and money in updating letterhead, business cards, web sites, directory site listings, map listings, local business listings, and more (in the event that you move your physical location).
Consider a virtual office with a local number. It can help your business to grow.
Resources:
RingCentral.com (Affiliate relationship)
WaldenVirtual.com (My virtual office solution)
Apple May Be on the Verge of Kneecapping the Cable Industry
I have a theory… the new apple tablet device that has been rumored for quite some time. Will not only do everything that the iPod does, but will also do everything the Kindle does (but better) and everything the Nook does (but better) and everything that….
It feels like convergence is here. I watched a football game on my iPhone while trying to get to sleep the other day. I would have loved to have a device with 2x screen size. I would love a tablet that allowed my eyes (quickly getting old) to read with a little less strain.
Apple is working with the content providers just as they did with the record labels pre-itunes. Once you have the content, the device makes sense.
Apple may be on the verge of gaining two key television network agreements, according to The Wall Street Journal. Specifically, CBS and Walt Disney DIS which runs ABC are said to be considering a proposal by Apple to offer a subscription-based TV service over the Internet.
How would you like a portable TV that allows you to time shift and watch your shows anytime anywhere? The tablet could be many things and also a portable TV. A good one. A good one with top tier content, not the limited stuff you find on a Media Center PC. I checked out the media center content 4 years after getting my first media center PC and it was pretty disappointing. An apple tablet that worked with the Apple TV device much the way a Slingbox works with your devices is not a stretch.
Have you noticed the number of portable (over the air) TV’s that have come out across the past 6 months? Coincidence? Why is Comcast scrambling to offer your content in unique ways?
Kindle was able to get a flat fee, all you can eat wireless plan. It it possible that Apple is going to be offering the same? Will this need 4G? If so, we are just about there.
A lot of questions. I can’t wait until the answers start rolling in.
via Apple May Be on the Verge of Kneecapping the Cable Industry — Seeking Alpha.