Hi all. So sorry if I ask a question that is completely unrelated to this forum. Please feel free to scold me but Im really stuck. In process of launching my bookkeeping business and am interested in having a virtual landline number (if thats the right term) that gets diverted to my mobile. I think a landline number will look more professional than a mobile especially to begin with.
Any recommendations for any companies? Ive seen tons online but no idea whats good and not. I tried Vodafone as my mobile is with them and its £10 a month exc vat so hope a company would be cheaper.
Again - sorry if this isnt that kind of forum. But appreciate any help or advice.
Hi Ally
Nothing is off limits here! Have you read any of the totally daft, totally non work postings? We have had discussions about some really random stuff like moving out of the UK, bank holiday quizzes, baking, something dodgy about securicor vans (yes!), milk tray adverts (the site was almost a dating site at one point with the flirting that was going on!), or the ones that just start with 'aaagggghhhhhhh'.
Anyway - the virtual landline question has come up before. Ive heard of folk using Voip and Vonage.
Have a look at these posts - oldies but still relevant re a business phone line generally and the reasons why folk use the above. Personally Ive only ever advertised my mobile phone and its never stopped folk from ringing me (I only wished it would sometimes!)
Thank you Joanne!
I was not sure if I would be told off for posting a silly question! :)
Those links are really helpful. Need to give those a read. The internet is amazing but sometimes too much info makes my brain go into overdrive so its great to have a starting point.
I was not sure if I would be told off for posting a silly question! :)
Only thing folk get told off for on here is rudeness - not saying thanks to folk or not acknowledging a response is a common crime on here (and other forums) that is not tolerated generally (by me at any rate!). Ok spammers get a hard time as well. But there is no such thing as a daft question. Work on the basis that if you need to ask, I can guarantee that there are at least a handful of others who need to know the answer and were too afraid to ask, so you are helping them as well.
Of wait, yes we tell off freeloading business folk as well. Oops the list is growing.
Hope its going well!
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Joanne
Winner of Bookkeeper of the Year 2015, 2016 & 2017
Thoughts are my own/not to be regarded as official advice,which should be sought from a suitably qualified Accountant.
You should check out answers with reference to the legal position
The way that I use it is a lil black box attached to my landline which diverts the call to wherever I want it (set up on a control panel through my PC) including to multiple phones simultaneously.
Doesn't matter if I pick up on my landline or mobile. From te clients perspective they just call one number.
The one issue that I have found was certain forms expect you to put down you landline and mobile and when they are the same number they have a hissy fit so even though the landline calls the mobile I still need to put the mobile number down... I now have absolutely no idea what my real landline number actually is. lol.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Hi Shaun
Thank you for your reply.
If you dont mind me asking, how much do you pay for vonage?
And also, when you make calls from it, will the dialling number be your mobile or landline?
I have a system which uses a mixture of Chrome and VOIP and can ring on a mobile. It then uses the landline number for the calls from the mobile (or laptop). This is software I have written and if anyone wants to use it they can try it out for free. I am not looking to charge for it at the moment (unless there are expensive calls). From October 1st 2019 I am changing my account with the wholesaler so that the landline numbers can be advertised at the moment they are experimental.
Hi Shaun Thank you for your reply. If you dont mind me asking, how much do you pay for vonage? And also, when you make calls from it, will the dialling number be your mobile or landline?
Glad you have no issues with them though.
Thanks again.
Hi,
you actually make calls through vonage (although you don't notice any difference. You just dial / receive calls as normal) so the number that the caller see's is the vonage number. Not your landline or mobile number.
An interesting thing is that the vonage number is not programmed to your landline but rather you can unplug the box and plug it in to any landline and then you are using your vonage number through that line (and paying less for calls).
My package is years old and I do not know whether its still available but with calls I only spend about a tenner a month and my landline is now only line rental (which is still too bloody much!).
My eldest son uses them and his business is quite telephone intensive. He was complaining about them costing him about £35 per month! He should try using the phone as much as he does with BT!
Anyway, it's just a pointer. I got my vonage box back in 2012 and I've been happy with it / them. Others experiences may be different but I hink that they are worth investigating.
All the best,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
There is still quite a long way to go with phone systems. What I aim to do is to integrate the phone system with a CRM so that you know which client is phoning and what the issues are when they phone. This is software that I have is not yet completely finished, but if anyone wants a try with it they can have free calls (not expensive ones) to go with it. Ie free national calls. I need to check the costs, but I may also be able to include free calls to mobiles.
We do use it ourselves, however.
-- Edited by johnhemming on Friday 27th of September 2019 06:15:24 PM
-- Edited by johnhemming on Friday 27th of September 2019 07:52:58 PM
I use a company called Voipfone, one of the best in the business in my opinion. I have a voip number which then rings on a voip handset I have in my office and the voipfone app on my mobile. I can also dial out from the handset or the app as well.
You can divert to a landline or a mobile by logging into voipfone website, but a word of warning; with any voip service if you divert to a mobile you'll pay the mobile rate for the call, which will be around 10p a minute, to another landline will be about 1.2p a minute.
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John
Any advice given is for general guidance and professional advice should be sought applicable to your circumstances.
I have sorted this out now and now can do all of this. If Ally or anyone else wants to try out my software I will provide these services for free. (obviously there is a limit on the numbers of people).
The complication was that I need to write software to record people's addresses to send them to the emergency services so that if people dial a 999 call then the emergency services can have the address. That, of course, is a bit difficult when someone is having a landline number either directed to a mobile phone or indeed registered as an account on a website where they can log in from anywhere and make phone calls. (much like Skype).
