Worldwidephone - Telecommunications for the 21st century
In about 98% of the cases you can transfer your existing toll free service to another vendor and KEEP YOUR SAME NUMBER. You have a TF number out in the market place where you customers know how to reach you, therefore keeping your number means more than saving a few bucks switching vendors. we understand that.
MORE GOOD NEWS: During the transfer time you will not experience any downtime. You will still be with your old providor right up to the second it happens. Once the switch happens, it is like a flick of a light switch, instantanous. We care that it gets transferred right and no downtime for you.
MORE GOOD NEWS: You will save money by the switch. Improving the bottom line is always good.
It takes a minimum of 7-9 business days, sometimes longer to do the paperwork and the set up. This is STANDARD within the industry. Anybody who tells you differently is lying to you. Again nothing happens to your service during this set up time period. When the switch happens its instananous. One moment your with the old provider, the next you are with the new.
MORE BAD NEWS: It takes EXACT paperwork to make the transfer happen. If the transfer form (called resporg) does not EXACTLY match how the account name and mailing address read with the old vendor, then it will bounce. Problems like this are avoided when a copy of the front page of your existing vendor phone bill is included with the order. Most of my vendors require it. An order could be bounced if your account reads Fred's Garage Inc and you fill out Fred's Garage. They are that picky.
You can have multiple toll free numbers with the same ring-to-number (RTN). Some businesses choose this to record activity from different marketing sources. Other choose this becuase they do not like their existing toll free number but do not want to give it up. They could get a new vanity number and begin using that in all their advertising while still having active the old toll free number. A best of both worlds.
You can add more toll free numbers to your account. InThe cost to set up and obtain a specific toll free number, called vanity, varies from vendor to vendor. The BCN Program and Touchtone Program offers the fastest service (usually two days) and neither charges a set up fee. Most of my other vendors take 5-7 working days and charge between $5 and $20.
If you do not wish to choose a specific number, a random number is assigned. With most of my vendors you can ask for any "800" or any "888" or "877" or "866", and this will NOT be classified as a vanity request. Usual time to activate a random toll free number is less. The quickest is Toll Free Express. With a credit card, a NEW Toll Free number, non vanity request, can be obtained and activated in less than 30 minutes. Toll Free express also offers a free list to choose from as you are signing up. A nice feature.
This is sometimes referred to as a STAND ALONE. What this means is that you do not have to change your present long distance carrier to set up a toll free account. While all most of my vendors offer long distance at the same rate as the toll free quote, none of them require you change your long distance. They offer the STAND ALONE .This could be important in your decision process.
Where you want your toll free number to ring in on (or some people incorrectly use the term "forward" to) is the called the RING TO NUMBER or RTN. Who the local phone company that gives you that phone number determines which of my programs you could choose from. The BCN program requires the RTN be a former "baby bell" (RBOC). Otherwise the 2.9 rate is not valid.
Toll Free directly to Cell Phone is not available through BCN. This is common in the industry. However I have three vendors: TouchTone , Toll Free Express and NET, that will allow a cell phone as a RTN.
What everyone advertises is the state-to-state (called Interstate) rate. Few tell you, except in small print, that the In-State (called Intrastate) is different and almost always HIGHER. For every vendor the INTRASTATE is different for each state. Some states are high some are low. Therefore in choosing a program you should consider how much of you calls are going to be from within your state. If your state has a high rate and more than 50% of you calls will be coming from in-state then check out Toll Free Express. It has a program with a pre-paid rate of 4.2 cent program for instate calls for ANY state.
