Recently in Consumer recall rates Category

We realize it's not a new concept - tracking ad response rates, but we wanted to reiterate the power and level of knowledge that ad tracking, and specifically phone call tracking, brings to you and your business.

Imagine spending thousands on your ad campaigns with no way of measuring the results.  (Yes, a closed sale is a measurement, but you also need to measure in terms of leads generated.)  Knowing how many leads a campaign generates empowers you to make decisions on future ad campaigns and media buys.

Real-time tracking and recording features provide you with the knowledge you need to make strategic decisions when it comes to advertising campaigns; whether it be decisions on creative elements, your offer, the call to action, and the media outlets you advertise with.

With a call tracking service you can hone in on the fine details of who is calling your business, what their average household income is, their average home value, as well as when they are most likely to call your business.  How?  With detailed tracking reports that capture data on each incoming call.  Call tracking reports like:

• Addresses & Demographics will build your lead database.
• Zip Code Summary shows you the hot spots, where your callers are calling from; home, work.
• Repeat Callers Detail reveals who is calling you often, or more than once for information or to hire you.
• Missed Calls is a huge eye-opener for many businesses, they can monitor how many leads they are losing with a report like this.
• Hourly and Daily Call Summary reports show when your business lines are most active so you can determine the necessary staffing levels and monitor response to radio campaigns, TV ads, etc.
• Top Cities and Top Area Codes reports also drill down on where your callers are located.

With all of this data at your fingertips, you'll be able to more accurately plan out marketing and advertising campaigns, and get more return for your advertising investment.

Find more information about call tracking, call recording, and vanity toll-free numbers here.

MYTH: Good Vanity 800 Numbers Must be Expensive

If you (or your client) think they cannot afford a vanity 800 number - think again! No matter what the size, if your clients are not including a vanity 800 in their ad campaigns, then they're losing a significant portion of incoming leads - like 25-50%!

FACT: Custom 800 number costs are minimal compared to your clients' overall advertising budgets. In fact, a quality vanity 800 number is typically just 1% of a broadcast ad budget.

A vanity 800 number will increase the leads and sales from ad campaigns, providing a healthy advertising ROI.

Your clients can't afford NOT to have a Custom 800 (a.k.a. vanity 800) number. Don't take our word for it though. We work with businesses in many industries that experience more incoming calls and sales after they add one of our Custom 800 numbers to their ad campaign.

Here's what just one of our career college customers has to say about advertising with a Custom 800 number...

"I could not be happier with the response we get from our advertising. Using the vanity 800 number is an inexpensive way to increase the number of applications we process.  I would not give up 1-800-NEW-CAREER for anything."

An independent research survey of 1,000 consumers tested recall of vanity 800 numbers and URLs in advertising. Study results show that consumers of all ages have a higher recall rate of toll-free vanity 800 numbers compared to Web addresses.

Survey results suggest that advertisers will benefit from featuring a memorable toll-free number in their advertising campaigns regardless of the age groups they target.

Key Findings

• Consumers age 18 - 24 years have a 32.2% average higher recall rate for toll-free vanity 800 numbers, compared to URLs.

• Respondents age 25 - 34 years have a 31.4% average higher recall rate for toll-free vanity 800 numbers.

• People age 35 - 49 have an average of 45.2% higher recall for toll-free vanity 800 numbers.

• Consumers age 50 - 64 have an average higher recall rate of 62.5% for toll-free vanity 800 numbers.

• Survey respondents 65 years and older have a 98.2% average higher recall rate for toll-free vanity 800 numbers.

The Proof is in the Research!

Market research study shows that consumers have recall rates of vanity 800 numbers when they are used 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.

Television Advertising, Toll-free and Vanity Numbers:

·         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 & Toll-free Numbers:

·         Radio ads featuring a vanity 800 number yield 58% more calls than an identical radio ad using a numeric toll-free.

·         Almost 60% of study subjects recall a vanity 800 number after hearing only one time.

Billboard Advertising, Toll-free and Vanity Numbers:

·         75% of the total toll-free numbers used on billboards are vanity toll-free numbers.

Remember these stats when you're developing your next advertising campaign!

Visit http://www.800response.com/vanity800numbers/studies for more research studies conducted on the effectiveness of vanity 800 numbers in advertising.

According to an independent research study, conducted by Infosurv, Inc...

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 (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).

• 60% of consumers prefer to dial a vanity 800 number vs. a numeric toll-free to reach a local business.  

Read more research studies on consumer recall rates and vanity 800 numbers in advertising.

1. Awareness: A vanity 800 number will help foster awareness by enhancing the branding component of your ad campaigns. For example, using a number like 1-800-NEW-ROOF reinforces the type of services a roofing contractor provides, and will build awareness of the company over time if used consistently in advertising and promotions.

2. Consideration: Many consumers are more likely to consider a purchase from a company who offers a toll-free phone number, and a vanity one at that. Research studies show that 60% of respondents who are presented with the option of dialing a local phone number from the Yellow Pages, or a vanity 800 number, will choose the company who advertises the vanity 800 number.

3. Purchase Intent: Getting a prospect to call an easy-to-remember phone number brings you that much closer to having a solid conversation, and building a relationship.

4. Purchase: Strong relationships and a level of comfort are two major factors consumers take into account when they decide which business they want to purchase from.

5. Loyalty: With a branding vanity 800 number, your customers will easily remember how to contact you, and will call your business in the future when they need to re-purchase or schedule a service.

Advertising and media channels are ever-changing. This makes finding the right advertising mix a moving target. All the while, many businesses still rely on their sales teams, gatekeepers and receptionists to track where their leads are coming from - not the best way to accurately measure advertising response in an increasingly complex advertising environment.

To effectively track response rates your advertising needs to include a response measuring tool. There are several out there, and some are easier to implement than others.

Here are five tricks to easily ensure that you will be able to track your ad response, and hone your marketing efforts to generate more leads and sales.

1. Include a Timely Offer and Strong Call to Action

Give people a reason to call you and get them to act fast! Include an offer that will make prospects and customers call you right away. Put a deadline on a current promotion, or tell them what they will get right now from your service. For example: "Call 1-800-NEW-FLOOR to receive $100 off your first order."

2. Use a Phone Number as the Direct Response Tool

It is imperative to the success of your business to give people an easy way to contact you at once after hearing a commercial, viewing a billboard, or watching TV. The best way to do this is with your phone number. Getting someone to call means you are one step closer to making a deal. By offering a phone number, you are offering a one-on-one customer experience - giving prospects a direct route to your selling team.

3. Feature a Vanity 800 Number as the Direct Response Tool in all Ads

The phone number will not be much help if folks cannot remember it (really, who has a pen handy when hearing a radio ad, or seeing a billboard?). Get a vanity 800 number, and make it memorable, like 1-800-NEXT-HOME. A vanity 800 number that relates to your business, in this case real estate, will assist in reinforcing your brand, delivering a consistent message, and will always give consumers the ability to contact you immediately (and is also great for word-of-mouth referrals). Plus, someone who hears your radio ad featuring 1-800-NEW-HOME may be looking for a house three months down the road. They will recall your vanity 800 number from the radio ad and call you before they call your competition!

4. Prominent Placement of your Direct Response Tool

Feature your vanity 800 number prominently on the screen, and leave it there throughout a television commercial. Mention it at least three times in a radio ad, and make it the focal point of a print ad. Make sure it is easily heard and understood - visible and easy to read - and your ads will pull higher response rates.

5. More Impressions will Pull More Responses

One-off ads will not work. Make sure you (or your agency if you use one) have a moderate to heavy ad schedule, whether it be radio, television, print, outdoor, or a combination of many of these channels. Buying more time or space will decrease the cost per ad, and your vanity 800 number will increase your ability to generate leads and sales. Delivering a consistent message multiple times will ensure consumers remember you.

Finally, if you can find a vanity 800 number that correlates with your business type, for example a real estate agency and 1-800-NEW-HOME, or an auto dealership and 1-800-NEW-AUTO, then snatch it up quickly! These numbers are rare - and hard to come by. They can cost your business as little as a few hundred dollars a month, and they can increase your incoming call volume two or three-fold. And, we all know that more calls equals more opportunities for sales.

Laura Noonan has 16 years of experience in the vanity 800 number and telecommunications services industry. She coaches hundreds of clients each year on using toll-free vanity 800 phone numbers as direct marketing tools to increase advertising response rates. Laura can be reached at lnoonan@800response.com or by calling 800-NEW-SALES.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Laura_Noonan

Call Tracking Is Easy and Produces Great Results

21 Feb 2010 • 07:08 AM • Business

Tracking business incoming and outgoing phone calls helps companies in many ways, is easy and inexpensive to set up, and provides proven results in several areas. Many different businesses from a wide range of markets are using a call tracking service. Realtors, hotels, mortgage companies, and lawyers have used the system and increased customer loyalty as a result. Working with available technology can be of great benefit to large and small businesses alike.

Using this call tracking system permits the company to maximize investment returns and change mere leads into increased sales. It also measures customer response to the various advertising techniques being tried, breaking it down into data that can be managed and compared, line by line. Doing these things will support decisions based on cost per lead and avoid waste. Another benefit of this strategic tracking is to measure staff performance. The owner can easily listen to sales pitches given by workers to increase constructive criticism for improvement. This can multiply motivation and productivity within the company, and also eliminate staffing problems.

Capturing data from phone system usage is easy and requires no special equipment. This does not require changing your phone service, either. Simply request the toll free numbers you would like to use and insert these numbers in your print media, website, TV spots, coupons, and radio advertising. Next, when customers respond to your advertising the calls are smoothly forwarded to the business owner and the ad and call data is collected without any involvement of the proprietor. Then, when it is convenient, log into the account, listen to calls, analyze data received, and make better decisions for your company.

All of this provides the results you need. Easily follow trends in your industry, identify issues with employees, see which ads are the most profitable, know where your calls are coming from, and receive an email alert when you have missed a call. These gain the trust of your clients and improve your conversation ratings. Generate more effective leads and stop wasting money on campaigns that don't work, all while using the same equipment you've always had. 

Call Tracking software comes with toll-free vanity 800 service.  Set up a Custom 800 number, like 1-800-NEW-CARS, which is easier for people to remember than a numeric toll-free, access call-tracking data, and improve your overall advertising campaign performance and easily monitor your ROI.

By The Denver Post

Posted: 02/18/2010 01:00:00 AM MST

Updated: 02/18/2010 02:04:06 AM MST

It didn't take long for scammers to latch on to the recall troubles at Toyota and turn the company's headaches into a rip-off payday.

The scam relies on consumers misdialing the car company's toll-free telephone number by a single digit. Instead of the vehicle-recall folks, callers get a recorded message quickly telling them of a surcharge they'll pay for calling yet another number, the Better Business Bureau warns.

Toyota's recall number is 800-331-4331. Consumers who call receive information regarding the vehicles subject to the massive recall regarding sticking gas pedals.

The scammers grabbed the toll-free number that ends with 4431, hoping some callers would simply misdial.

They are directed to another number because of the volume of calls. The other number charges them $5.96 and asks for personal information such as a Social Security number.

BBB officials warn consumers to ensure they have the right number.
David Migoya, The Denver Post

Perhaps this is an example of why Toyota should have set up a VANITY toll-free number.  People wouldn't misdial because they would recall the letters and word in the vanity number better than they recall the numbers of the numeric toll-free. 

Call 1-800-NEW-SALES to learn more about how a vanity number, like 1-800-NEW-PARTS, could have saved Toyota's customers time and money.