My work uses an 0870 number

Tracyk_2

They have been using an 0870 number since 2002 when they set up a seperate line for catalogue orders. They aren't getting any money back from BT and didn't know anything about it.
Is there somewhere I can start to find out what is happening to the revenue (if any) that has been generated?

mynamesnotdave

I'm not sure where they can find this out.

In some cases, a third party company will have provided the number to your work for free, in return for them keeping the revenue.

A_Nice_Englishman

Assuming the 0870 is provided by BT then ask your BT Account Manager.

Does the 0870 number just connect callers to an ordinary 01 or 02 number or does it do 'clever' things like connect to a different office at certain times or if all the lines are busy? If you don't need the extra facilities why not just advertise the 01 or 02 number? Many people are reluctant to call 0870 numbers so you may be losing business.

Tracyk_2

I think it just connects to our 01 blah blah number.

We sell to schools - so I don't think they know/care about 0870 numbers. Is it costing the callers more money?

A_Nice_Englishman

0870 does cost more to call than 01 or 02 for domestic customers. It may not for business customers depending on whether they are local to you and what tarriff they are on.

People in schools probably don't worry too much about the cost of calls (well they don't in the one I work in anyway!) so perhaps you don't need to worry about that aspect.

You should be able to get a share of the revenue but this may mean changing from BT to another provider which in turn may mean a change of number. Is it worth the hassle to gain a penny or two a minute? Only you / your bosses can decide that!

Tracyk_2

I only started asking questions here - cos of Martin's blurb on the subject. And I wanted to make sure that someone else wasn't creaming off money without us/customers knowing.
I shall call our BT manager and see what the score is. Thanks.

A_Nice_Englishman

No problem