Why It’s Time to Switch from Using Your Personal Phone Number to Using Business Number?

When first setting up a business, business owners will often use their personal mobiles for work; it’s cheap, easy, and often just happens out of habit. It may work perfectly fine, so you may think that there is no reason to overcomplicate things by getting a separate phone for your business. However, there should be some separation between personal and business as, ultimately, they do require different approaches. Here are five reasons why using your personal phone number for business isn’t a good idea.

Your Business Will Come Across As Professional

Customers expect a certain level of professionalism, and answering the phone while you are eating dinner, watching the tv, or out of a jog doesn’t seem very professional. When you answer your personal phone, you are often more relaxed, and this is evident through your tone and language; even though you may do your best to screen the calls and act accordingly if you don’t have the number saved, there is no real way of knowing if the number calling is an important client or not. The way to fix this is by having a separate business phone number; when that rings, you’ll always be prepared to speak with a customer, and if you can’t take the call, they will be sent to professional voicemail letting them know you will call them back in a timely manner.

Using Personal Number For Business Can Limit Your Ability To Scale

A personal number may be ok when your business is first starting out, but what happens when you need to scale and employ additional staff to take care of your customer support or join your sales team. You can’t go handing your personal number over to your new employees as it is linked to all your personal accounts, plus it is counterproductive to forward the calls to the right team member each time you get a business call. Technology plays a vital role in the efficiency of day-to-day business operations, and unlike most regular phones, business phones are equipped with a number of features designed to make your workdays more productive. Business phone systems have important features such as advanced call transfer, IVR Menus, and music on hold, as well as the ability to host conference calls and set business hours.

You Can Enforce A Work-Life Balance

There is nothing quite like switching off after a long day of work or, better still, when you are on holiday, but if your work phone and personal phone are combined, there is no chance of that happening. While you want to be accessible to your clients, it is completely fine not to answer after hours and return the call the next day. Work-life balance is important; having a separate work phone enforces that. If you are worried that your customers may have an emergency and you will miss the call, you can always add instructions on who to call in case of emergency on the voicemail message.

You Can Keep Track Of Employee and Customer Interactions

The key to a successful business is understanding your customer and ensuring that they are getting a high-quality service. However, if work calls go through personal channels, you have no way of knowing who your employees are speaking to or how they are dealing with your customers. Along with the lack of quality control, if your employees use their personal numbers to deal with customers, you are unable to track metrics and know the volume of calls that are coming in. It is important to keep track of the volume, quality, and efficiency of your calls as that directly relates to sales targets, customer satisfaction, budgets, and goal setting.

Business phones can be integrated with your CRM software, enabling you to provide a more comprehensive service to your customers by quickly pulling up customer information and allowing you to monitor and track customer interactions. Integrating your business phone with your CRM provides you with data insights, enabling you to identify what areas of your customer service or sales strategy may be ineffective and giving you the knowledge to make the changes necessary.

You Can Protect Yourself From Spammers and Hackers

An essential part of running a business is ensuring that you have adequate channels for customers to contact you should they need to ask a question or reach out for help, meaning that you need to have a contact number visible on your website. However, having a number visible online means that anyone can access it, including spammers and hackers; therefore, using your personal number for business means that you are leaving yourself vulnerable to calls from robocalls and spammers.

Not only does having your number visible online leave you open to unwanted calls, but it is also likely that your personal number is linked to your personal email account, your cloud hosting, or your online banking, which a skilled hacker would be able to access by using your phone number. Simply having a separate business phone can keep your personal number in the hands of only those who you want to have it, keeping your data safe and limiting the number of spam calls you receive.

Business Phone Options

Now you know how important it is to have separate work and personal phone numbers; it is time to pick one for your business. Here are the three main options available to business owners who are looking to set up a phone for their business.

Local Landline Business Phone

A local business phone is a number set up with your local provider, where the calls go directly to the phone or to a switch box on the premises. A landline phone is a reliable, tried, and tested system; however, there is a lack of flexibility as they are not moveable and will need to be monitored at all times. An affordable option, the landline business phone system is best for large corporations, companies that need a multi-line system, and those without high-speed internet.

Mobile Phone Business Number

Mobile phone business numbers provide your employees with more flexibility than landline as you are able to take it off the premises and use it remotely. Convenient and easy to use, mobile phones can also access email, project management tools, and other apps while on the go making them a great option for employees who are in and out of the office. However, it can be more expensive as you will need to set an individual plan up for each employee and provide them with an additional mobile phone. Mobile phone systems are ideal for businesses that need flexibility and may not have access to high-speed internet at all times.

Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

A cloud phone system powered by VoIP is increasingly becoming the most popular choice for business owners as it is fast, flexible, and easy to set up. VoIP is a technology that allows you to make calls over an internet connection rather than a phone line, with the ability to use it through your computer or existing mobile phone. A comprehensive communication channel, a VoIP system allows for integration with other programs, keeping all your company’s interactions in one place. It also has advanced features such as automated receptionists, call forwarding, call screening, and toll-free numbers. VoIP systems are best for businesses of all sizes who have access to high-speed internet and are looking for flexibility, integration, and the ability to scale.

Conclusion

If you want your business to succeed, you need to have a good communication channel between you and your clients; while it may be initially convenient, personal phone numbers are not made for business. Along with being inconvenient, using your personal phone for work can impact your scalability and even put your personal data at risk. Investing in a business phone system will give you the power to monitor and track calls, protect your data from scammers and preserve your work-life balance while making your company look and sound professional to any potential customers.