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The Simplest Way to Get a Business Phone Number
The simplest way to get a business phone number is a virtual landline that forwards calls straight to your mobile. Here is how the main options compare.
Read article →Before the sign-writer picks up the phone, or the wrap goes on, get this one decision right. You won't get an easy second chance at it.
If you're pricing up van signage or a wrap, you've probably already picked your colours, your logo, your slogan. The number is normally an afterthought. Usually whatever's in your pocket. That's the one decision on the whole job that's worth pausing on.
Why this decision matters more than it feels like it does
Everything else on your van you can change later without much cost. A re-print of a magnetic sign or a small decal is doable.
The number is different. It doesn't just sit on the van, it ends up saved in phones, written on the backs of business cards, stuck to fridges. Change it later and none of that follows you. Every customer who saved your old number now has one that doesn't ring through to you, and most people won't go looking for your new one. They'll just call the next van they see.
Your van is also doing more advertising than almost anything else you own. It's parked outside every job, driving through every town you work in, sitting in traffic where hundreds of people see it a day. Whatever number is on it needs to work for years, not just look good on day one.
Your two real options
Your personal mobile number
The obvious choice. It's already in your pocket, it's free, and there's nothing to set up.
But once it's on the van, it's public. Anyone who's seen your van can now call, text, or save your personal number, permanently. You lose the ability to separate work from personal calls. And a mobile number on its own doesn't say much about your business; it just says "someone with a phone."
A local business number
A local landline number: a 0161, 0117, 01273, whatever fits where you work. It forwards straight to your mobile. Customers dial a normal-looking local number. It rings your phone exactly like a call does now. Nothing changes for you day to day.
What does change: your van now advertises a proper business number, not your personal line. Customers searching locally are more likely to trust a business with a recognisable local number. And because it's not your actual mobile, you keep control: you can redirect it, hand it to someone else, or manage it without your personal number ever being involved.
What to actually put on the van
If you're weighing it up: put a local business number on the van, not your personal mobile.
It takes minutes to set up, and once it's live it behaves exactly like your normal phone. You don't need an app, a second phone, or anything to remember. The only difference is what's printed on the side of your van, and what happens to your privacy the day someone decides to call it at 11pm.
Get the number sorted before the sign-writer does
The order matters. Don't get your van signed first and figure out the number after. Get your number, confirm it works, then hand it to whoever's doing your signage or wrap.
A local landline number that forwards to your mobile takes a few minutes to set up. Pick your area code, connect it to your mobile, and it's ready to go straight on the artwork.
The bottom line
Your logo can change. Your slogan can change. The number on your van is the one thing that's genuinely painful to change once it's there.
Get a proper local business number before the signage goes ahead and it'll still be working for you long after the first job it brought in.
ProperLine gives you a local landline number that rings your mobile. Pick your area code, connect your mobile, and it's ready before the sign-writer calls you back.