Q&A: A Number You Can Trust

Professionalism and VoIP

Updated: June 06, 2016

Caller IDQ: When I call a customer, they see my VoIP phone number in their caller I.D., and I would rather it showed my business number that I've had for 25 years. I have a lot of repeat customers who have seen my business number for years and they know it's me. This new VoIP number really throws them a curve ball. Is there a way it can show up on the customer's phone as my normal business number?

A: Thanks so much for your question! Making the move to a VoIP phone system provides your business with flexibility and a wide variety of helpful features, but you are absolutely right that an unrecognized number on your customer’s caller ID can cause confusion and even result in losing important business.

Since you have a very well established business and a loyal following of customers, you definitely want to make sure that your customers recognize your phone number as one they know and trust. Fortunately, most VoIP phone system providers offer the option to port over your existing phone number when you establish service. This will ensure that your customers see your ported business phone number on their caller ID whenever you make a call.

Depending on your VoIP provider, the exact steps for porting a line may vary, so you may find some value in contacting their customer service department to ask what information they need to begin the process and have them walk you through their specific steps and guidelines.

However, here are the basic steps you can expect to follow when you port a number to your VoIP service:

  1. Check with your VoIP provider to make sure that your business number can be ported onto their service. Most often, your provider will have no issues porting your number, but there are some local or regional restrictions that may apply.
  2. Gather the necessary information and documents needed to begin the porting process. Most will require a Letter of Authorization (LOA) and a correct billing phone number at minimum.
  3. Submit a request to your VoIP provider. With many providers, you can do this from within your account.
  4. Plan on keeping your current number active during the time it takes to transfer your business phone number onto your VoIP service. Depending on your provider, this can take anywhere from ten days to four weeks.
  5. Porting over your existing business phone number will require you to discontinue your service with the provider on that line. Plan to pay your account balance and any termination fees if you’re under a contract for that phone line.
  6. Begin using your new phone number as soon as your provider notifies you that it is active and ready to use.

I hope this information is helpful as you port your business phone number to your VoIP service and ensure that your customers always pick up because they know it’s your trusted business calling.

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Image courtesy of Freepik from Flaticon, licensed by Creative Commons BY 3.0.
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