Vodafone encourages small businesses to abandon landlines

Stuart Corner
Monday, 12 December 2011 14:10

Business IT - Networking

Vodafone has launched a service for small businesses that enables them to advertise a landline number and have that directed to their nominated Vodafone mobile with no call diversion charges.

Vodafone suggests that business "ditch their landline but still keep their old landline number alive so their business continues to benefit from the years of investment in advertising or marketing of their fixed line number in business directories, websites, business cards and other promotional material."

The services costs $28 per month per line on a 12 month contract, is available only to businesses with up to 10 employees that are customers of Vodafone Single Business Cap and Vodafone Infinite Business mobile voice plans and only in metropolitan and major regional areas.

Vodafone suggests the service is also good for companies that want to advertise a local number rather than a 1300 number. "Il Espresso, a wood roasted coffee wholesaler and retailer, whose founder and managing director, Kim Loupis, says that a local Sydney number was much more attractive to him than a 1300 number both in perception and cost'¦'We chose Vodafone Unite mainly because a fixed number on the side of our delivery vans makes us look more established, but with all the benefits of calls going through a mobile phone' [Loupis said]."

Andy Malakooti, head of business products at Vodafone, said: "Some of our customers' clients just feel more comfortable calling a business on a landline, rather than a mobile or 1300 number." (He did not mention the, controversial, high cost of calling 1300 numbers from mobile phones.)

Vodafone suggests also that the service can be used instead of a fixed landline in the office. "Hamilton G Heading, a South Australian-based advertising, marketing and creative communications company has opted for Vodafone Unite and Vodafone Infinite on a Huawei mobile deskphone. This gives the company the flexibility of positioning their office deskphone wherever they wish in their office and if or when they decide to relocate they don't need to disconnect and reconnect their service."

(iTWire has attempted to obtain information on the 'Huawei mobile deskphone' but has so far been unable to do so).