Aware of its many benefits, companies are currently rushing towards renting an online phone number. With a virtual number, it is indeed possible to ensure smooth and lively communication with your customers. First, when they need help and additional information. But also, when you want to build their loyalty.

In business, customer loyalty is of capital importance. Nowadays, there is no shortage of competitors. This means that without concrete loyalty-building actions, you risk losing your best customers quickly. While it is true that to prosper, a company must attract new customers, succeeding in keeping current ones is just as necessary.

Are you also looking to build customer loyalty using a virtual phone number? Octopush gives you the how-to guide.

What is an online phone number and what are its features?

To keep it simple, note that a virtual phone number is a phone number that is not directly associated with a landline. Instead, because this type of number is attached to an information system, it can be used on multiple internet-connected devices. Notably smartphones, tablets, computers, etc.

Note, however, that the features of online phone numbers differ depending on the providers offering them.

At Octopush, for example, we only handle sending and receiving SMS via a specialized platform. The platform in question allows you to ensure a smooth and lively exchange with your customers, but also with various third parties, including partners. And this, not only in France, but throughout Europe: Germany, Switzerland, Poland, the United Kingdom; and also in the US and Canada.

In short, with a virtual phone number you can:

• Be there for all your customers : they can easily contact you and send you messages in case of problems or when they need additional information.
• Contact your customers to build their loyalty: with the right customer database, you can send SMS to ensure good after-sales service or to check on their satisfaction.

How do you get your customers' phone numbers to build their loyalty?

To collect as many phone numbers as possible, there aren't a dozen ways to do it: you have to succeed in convincing your customers to give them to you. Which is logical, since you cannot force someone to provide you with such personal information. A number isn't given to just anyone, and without a reason.

That is why, to succeed in convincing your customers to give you their number, they must be able to get something out of it.

Promoting future products or offers

To obtain your customers' numbers, using the pretext of wanting to inform them about new offers can be a good idea. Indeed, if these are customers who are interested in your products (who have already purchased in the past), they might want to be notified by SMS when an out-of-stock product or a brand-new product becomes available.

In this context, asking for their number is perfectly appropriate.

Organizing contests and competitions

Alternatively, to collect even more phone numbers, there’s nothing stopping you from organizing various contests and competitions. The idea here is simple: before they can enter the game, your customers must fill out a short form (virtual or physical) providing a few essential details, including their phone number.

For customers, there is nothing more exciting than the chance to win a prize. It would be a waste not to try this method. At Octopush, we highly recommend it, especially if you want to build a large enough contact list to make the most of your online phone number.

Offering in-store promotions

Last but not least, to convince your customers to share their numbers, you can also offer in-store promotions. You can explain to your customers that if they agree to provide their phone number, the lucky ones will be eligible for discounts and exclusive offers.

Similarly, this tactic works perfectly for ensuring your customers are responsive to SMS during online conversations via the Octopush platform. The most responsive users will be rewarded, which encourages others to do the same.

How do you get an online phone number via Octopush?

Now that you know how to gather as many customer contacts as possible using your online phone number, we invite you to sign up on our platform to get your own virtual number.

The steps are extremely simple once your registration is confirmed. First, you need to choose the location for your phone number. Keep in mind that at Octopush, we offer you no fewer than 33 locations or countries. Next, simply choose from the available virtual numbers. Finally, all that’s left is to contact the customer numbers you collected earlier.