Cultural expectations of toll free numbers

One of the fun parts of running a global business is trying to adjust to the different cultural and business expectations of different countries. If you’ve ever worked with the people from the far east you know what I mean, but sometimes even the most inconsequential items tend to make a difference.

In United States, companies are expected to offer toll free numbers, for everything. Unless you want to be bundled into the “I work from my spare bathroom” and “Ask me about making $2K a week from home painted on the back window of my car” types of companies, you spend the extra $8 a month and get a toll free number. It is more than a business identity that separates real companies from scammers on prepaid cell phones, it is an expectation set long ago that customers contacting the company for service should not do so at their own expense. It’s a matter of courtesy, an invitation if you will. Don’t think about the long distance charges, just call us, we’ll foot the bill. Yes, we’ll eat all 6 cents of it to earn hundreds of dollars in business. It’s just good business.

Brits don’t see it quite that way. Totally opposite, actually. Earlier today I was setting up the UK trunks for Shockey Monkey support and the UK telco offered me 0800, 0845 along with every city code in UK. Naturally confused I called one of my partners, James Cash, and asked about the dialing options (and opinions). Apparently, unlike in US, UK companies tend not put a lot of emphasis on toll free use:

0870 is quite expensive to call and should be avoided, 0800 is free to call, 0845 is local rate. I’m pretty sure that 0870 and 0845 are being phased out and replaced by 0844 numbers

Thinking that James may be messing with me I decided to ring up the telco. They said the very same: “Unless you are purely interested in making a sale, 0800 numbers are very few and far in between.

Talk about the opposite world on something so little. What generally indicates a shady operation in USA is the norm in UK where the toll free numbers likely indicate you’re about to be harassed by a slimy sales person.

Pleasing them all… I am not sure where courtesy stops and ridiculing begins but I am all of a sudden more self-conscious about my choice of phone numbers.

You learn something new every day. Not necessarily useful…