Advertising Research Studies with
Toll-free Custom 800 Numbers

2008-2009 Toll-free Vanity 800 Numbers & URLs
in Advertising:

Consumers have a 45% higher recall rate of vanity 800 numbers over URLs.
As many as 40% of survey respondents cite “Research the Competition” as their first step after visiting an advertiser’s Web site.
Less than 10% of respondents would communicate with the advertiser as their first step.
Advertisers will benefit by providing both a URL and a vanity 800 number in their ad campaigns.
60% of consumers prefer to dial a vanity 800 number vs. a numeric toll-free to reach a local business.

* Based on recall rates and online research behaviors, it is essential for companies to include a vanity phone number in addition to their URL in advertising campaigns for optimal lead generation.

Consumer Recall Rates in Advertising:

Advertisers can expect up to 84% improvement in consumer recall using a vanity 800 number in outdoor and print advertising vs. a numeric toll-free number.
Consumers are 9x more likely to recall vanity 800 numbers in broadcast ads vs. numeric toll-free numbers.

72% of consumers correctly recalled a vanity 800 number after hearing one 30-second radio ad compared to just 5% who correctly recalled a numeric toll-free number.
58% of consumers prefer to dial a vanity 800 number vs. a numeric toll-free to reach a local business.
94% of consumers identify 800 as toll-free, vs. 70%, 56% & 55% recognizing 888, 877, and 866 as toll-free, respectively.

Television Advertising:

82% of phone numbers in TV ads are toll-free.
64% of toll-free numbers used in TV advertising are vanity toll-free phone numbers.

Radio Advertising:

Radio ads featuring a vanity 800 number yield 58% more calls than a radio ad using a numeric toll-free.
Almost 60% of study subjects recall a vanity 800 number after hearing it only one time.

Billboard Advertising:

Over 70% of the total telephone numbers used on billboards are toll-free.
75% of the total toll-free numbers used on billboards are vanity toll-free numbers.

Fortune 500 Companies:

93% of all the companies with a toll-free number have one with the 800 prefix.
50% of all the companies with a toll-free number have at least one vanity number.

If you would like a full report on any of the studies above, please send an email to jlandau@800response.com.