A History of Toll Free 800 Numbers
If a phone number starts out 1-800, it means that dialing it will not cost you a single penny. Sure, you will have to pay your monthly phone bill for basic telephone service, but unlike long-distance numbers, a 1-800 number (toll free number) charges the recipient of the call and not you. Toll free 800 numbers were first introduced in the 1960’s by AT&T. They were marketed to businesses that wanted a way for their customers from across the country to be able to contact them free of charge. The idea was that many people were hesitant to do business with non-local companies because they would have to pay for the phone call to get things started. Toll free numbers allowed the businesses to pay for the calls that would ultimately generate more business and revenue for them in the long run. The concept caught on quickly among large companies. They were once considered too expensive and hard to set up; however, toll free numbers quickly became available to the masses as an easy and convenient way to improve company communications.
Over the next few years, many companies implemented toll free numbers into their corporations. Companies were even started because of the toll free number technology. It became common knowledge that the typical American consumer trusted and preferred to do business with companies that had 800 numbers. By 1984, there were over 3 million 800 numbers in use. Other communications companies wanted a piece of AT&T’s toll free number pie and started to create their own services. However, companies couldn’t change phone services without giving up their number, and since many companies had numbers that were easy to remember, like spelling out words with the numbers, new companies could not immediately cash in on the toll free craze.
Soon, thanks to the SMS/800 system, toll free numbers became portable and a company could now keep their number while switching telephone service providers. This allowed companies much more flexibility and independence and most of the 7 million possible 800 numbers were taken. There became a supply/demand situation where telecommunications companies could not provide as many 800 numbers as businesses wanted and so 1-888 numbers were created in March of 1996 as the new 800 number prefix. This offered millions of new numbers to choose from, but by this time, most business knew that to increase profits, they needed a phone number that was not only toll free, but easily remembered. In response to the 238,000 monthly requests for 888 numbers, 877 numbers were introduced in 1998and 866 numbers in 1999. The prefixes 855, 844, 833, and 822 are also reserved for possible use in the future.
The Benefits of Real Toll Free 800 Numbers
Toll free 800 numbers are the original thing. While 888, 877 and 866 accomplish the same end result, 800 numbers are the most memorable and most prestigious prefixes. Consumers are more likely to trust a company with an 800 number instead of one of the others. While 888 has become widely accepted and most people understand that they are also toll free, 877 and 866 numbers tend to generate a lot of confusion and are not nearly as successful. People just don’t see many companies using them and so they don’t seem as trustworthy. Also, they tend to be less memorable and user-friendly. The 1-800 prefix has become a brand name associated with stability and soundness. Today, an estimated 90% of Americans say they use toll free numbers and more the one-third of Americans estimate they make over 60 toll free calls every year.
By Stacy Hinojosa