So yesterday Tom and I had a discussion and asked each other these two questions. The surprising thing is we had the exact opposite answer. What about you?
Question: When you are calling a local company that has both a local phone number and a toll-free number, which one do you typically call?
Question: When you search on the web, and you see a sponsored link for a company and a natural search optimized link in the results, which one do you click on?
8 responses to “Question: Toll Free Phone Numbers and Paid Ads”
1. Probably the toll-free number. Makes me feel like the company I’m calling is more professional. More serious.
2. I generally click organic results. I would say that I’m mostly blind to the sponsored links.
I will usually click the organic results rather than paid just because they should pay for what they earned.
Regarding numbers probably toll free if i haven’t talked to them before. Local if i have.
Calling the toll-free number or clicking the sponsored link is ever-so-slightly mean to the company, since you are costing them some money. That’s my view. Of course, one person is just a drop in the bucket, so it doesn’t make that much of a difference.
1. Local.
2. I don’t notice the sponsored links much so would probably click the natural link. If I notice, then I click the sponsored to “show some love.”
What are organic results? Are those Links that grow as you view them or are we talking free range search results here? 🙂
I always will choose a company that lists toll free numbers VS companies that only have a local number to call… Toll free numbers basically say PROFESSIONAL and ESTABLISHED and a local number says SMALL and TEMPORARY.
see: http://www.tollfreenumber.org
Also, regarding the search results, the organic results are better than he PPC results.. Have you ever heard of the F rule?
see: http://searchenginewatch.com/showPage.html?page=3488076
Hope that helps
Also, a toll free 800 number only costs the company a few pennies per minute for you to call it… At the end of the month, your call will probably only cost the company less than $0.50 or so… Successful companies don’t sweat the toll free bills because they are so small. Even if you run a small company with a toll free number – you wont sweat the bills because the less calls you receive, the smaller your bills will be.
http://www.tollfreenumber.org/toll-free-numbers/
1. Local. I would say call the local number if the company is local and 800 number if they are national. It’s interesting to think about who is saving money in the end, because when using cell phones daytime minutes are minutes. I only have a cell and don’t do a lot of transactions at payphones. 🙂
Side note, notice godaddy doesn’t have a 800 posted online… I would guess the hope is to forward people to FAQs and email support.
2. Organic. Money can’t buy you love.