tech-company, mobile-apps, communicationMy co-founder and I have been working together creating some small mobile apps. We do have a registered LLC to manage ownership, but it’s still at the stage where it’s more of a side project and we’re not ready to invest heavily.
When registering for various services, we’ve had to provide a phone number. So far we’ve just used one of our personal numbers. We don’t need to talk to customers over the phone, but would it be a good idea to invest in an official company phone line for these situations?
If it is necessary, are there any cheaper alternatives to a landline or cell?
I think for this small business scenario there is probably no need for getting an additional (more costly) business phone line. It’s sufficient to sign up for some cheap or even free phone number that redirects to your phone(s).
One provider is Google Voice that currently offers free phone numbers for the United States (instructions: https://support.google.com/voice/answer/150640?hl=en).
I signed up for one of those numbers and set it up to redirect to my mobile phone during business hours. It’s a solid service that you can even use as a “concierge”. People can leave behind a message that gets automatically translated into a text message that is sent to you by email. So, I don’t think you really need an additional business phone line for that, just a number that redirects to (both) your phone(s).
The only downside is that Google has a history of being quite flaky with their services. They have no problem with ditching anything that doesn’t suit their business, so this service may be cancelled by them at any time and you may have to find a new number from a different provider and print new business cards again.
Albeit a bit late in answering, in my experience, in early phase when it is more about internal capability building it is fine to use your own cell phone numbers. However as you get into sales mode, I would not like to give my private number on websites for people to call any time.
Currently there are many tech solutions available that can come handy and are affordable. Braango (http://www.braango.com) is one such solution which provides a virtual number and allows for voice calling and two way texting using your existing device(s). You can mask multiple devices behind the same virtual number and the system automatically routes the call/text to appropriate device based on prior conversation history.
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