What are the numbers 1-877?
Do you want to know more about 877 numbers? The biggest misconception about 1-877 numbers is that if you call the same number with 1-800, you’ll get the same company. However, this is not the case at all. Toll-free numbers with different area codes are for totally separate businesses.
What is so confusing sometimes is when multiple companies choose the same custom number, but with different prefixes, including 866, 877, 800, or 888. You may think you are calling a lawyer in your city, but if you dial the wrong prefix, you you can get a totally different person across the country.
Like their 800 cousins, 877 numbers are completely free for the customer to dial. Along with that, they provide many benefits to the end user, such as ease of use, affordability, and a sense of professionalism.
Let’s back up a bit to find out more about these friendly digits. Toll-free numbers actually date back to the 1960s, but their purpose was much different than today. The toll free number was initially created as a way to reduce the use of telephone carriers. The process was also created to give customers more choice instead of collect calls.
On top of that, they were normally controlled by the major phone companies. It wasn’t until the 1990s that the FCC helped consumers gain more influence in this area and keep their 800 numbers even if they changed phone service.
Later, 800 numbers associated with vanity phrases became very popular. This new recognition furthered the need for more than 800 prefixes. That’s when additional area codes like 877 appeared (circa 1998).
As businesses and the global economy have grown, the need for more area codes has never been more urgent. In addition, longer vanity characters were also in demand. Newer free prefixes like 866 and 877 became highly sought after for their longer and broader vanity selections.
Some of the digits in area codes can be interchanged with alphabetic letters, while standard 800 numbers cannot. For example, with an 877 or 866 area code you might have the custom number 1-US-RENOVATIONS.
Vanity numbers, even with the toll-free prefix 1-877, attract salespeople. First, they offer more vanity options, which stick in consumers’ minds more than numerical value phone numbers. Plus, like any toll-free number, they’re easier to call, have branding benefits, and can increase response rates.
A toll-free number with an 877 area code is yours forever. Even if you move, you can still keep the exact same number. The same is true for the other prefixes as well. In the old days, a business that moved usually lost customers.
Even today, communicating your new information proves to be a challenge. You can send as many reminders or “we’ve moved” emails and still get missed calls. Email can be snatched up by spam filters and anything that looks like “spam” in your regular mailbox is usually thrown away. So classically, people have viewed 800 numbers as an asset.
In general, today an 877 number is just like any other toll-free line, but you can get more vanity options.