I find it curious that a growing number of business start ups are not publishing their phone number. I experience this when I’m counseling new entrepreneurs, working on projects for new clients, and when I’m researching service providers.
The response I get tends to fall into one of these categories:
- I don’t want to get junk calls.
- I don’t want my boss/employer/co-worker/relative to discover my business.
- I don’t want to make my cell phone number public.
- I don’t like talking to people.
TIP: You can get a free local phone number from Google Voice. It’s free. It’s easy. You can forward the number to your cell phone. I have no idea how Google makes money by giving phone numbers away, but this service works very well. Try it if you’re afraid to put your cell phone number on your website.
Should You Trust A Business That Hides Their Phone Number?
Seriously, what kind of signal does that send you, the prospective buyer? If they make it hard to contact, what happens after you become a client and need customer support?
I strongly believe that hiding your phone number on your business website sets a negative perception and quite possibly is the reason you don’t get as many prospects contacting you through your website.
While I recommend displaying your phone number, I recommend to hide your email address. The last thing you need is more junk email. Instead, use a Contact Form to collect your prospect’s vital information and submit that to you. Plus, it forces the prospect to give you required info to quickly research them before first contact.
Permit Communication In The Way Your Prospect Prefers.
Ultimately, business conversation dynamics are changing and you need to adapt — or fall behind!
- Phone
- Email Contact Form
- Social Media (Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook)
- Texting
- Collaboration Tools
If your prospect wants to establish initial contact with you via social media, then do so. You can always migrate them to a more appropriate method later.
I hope you find this advice helpful.
-Roland
For example with Google you can actually text GOOG (4664) with the 10 digit number and it will send you a text back with the name and address. If you don't want your information known you can unpublish it from your local telephone company.