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Feeling Vain?

By Brandi Cummings  -  March 1, 2007

Vanity: something that is vain, empty or valueless.

This is how the dictionary defines vanity, but when it comes to a vanity number for your business this is far from the truth.  Why you ask?  It’s simple really.  Could you tell me a number to call to have a fresh flower arrangement delivered to my mother for her birthday?  Or what number should I dial if I want to make a collect call?  It is no coincidence that most people will respond with 1-800-flowers and 1-800-collect.  A vanity number can give you a stronger market presence and boost your brand.  Right or wrong, consumers feel that a company with a toll free number is more professional and established.  By making your toll free number a vanity number, you increase this feeling 3 fold.  This is especially important in online businesses where consumer confidence is lowered by the virtual aspect of it.

A toll free vanity number can also increase the response rate from your advertising efforts.  90% of the television commercials during the Super Bowl, that included a toll free number, were vanity numbers.   A vanity number can be a series of numbers that spell something out, such as 1-800-vanity, or an easily remembered series of numbers like 1-800-555-1000.  Numeric vanity numbers aren’t usually as easily remembered as a number that spells something out.  However, they are especially good in certain circumstances such as situations where your market audience may span several languages or if you change clients repeatedly and want to recycle the toll free number.  Numeric toll free vanity numbers can also be easier to dial.  Regardless of which kind of vanity number you use, it will be a valuable advertising tool that will give you a strong market presence, boost your brand and increase confidence with your current and potential clients.

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Reader Comments

Jeanne says...March 14th, 2007

A recent study also shows that listeners are more likely to respond to a radio ad that lists a vanity 800 phone number (e.g. 800-NEW-CARS) than an ad with a numeric toll-free number.

The radio study analyzed the use of a vanity 800 number (800-TRADE-NOW) versus a numeric 800 number (800-954-2828) as the direct-response method.

The resulting response rates showed a notable difference when using a vanity 800 number, with 58% more calls going to the ad featuring 800-TRADE-NOW than the ad listing the numeric toll-free number.

And, in 2005 a similar study was conducted for television media where results showed that despite the growth of the Internet over the past eight years, the use of toll-free numbers in television advertising continues to grow, with:

35% of TV ads including a phone number as a direct response tool,

82% of those phone numbers were toll-free, and

64% of those toll-free numbers were vanity numbers, or numbers that spelled something.

So, the proof is in the results. Vanity number generate more response to advertising.



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