If two new mobile operators who offer the same pricing plans with similar network coverage, one asks you to choose a mobile number from a restricted list of 10 or 20 and the other one gives you more freedom to choose your favorite number, which one you prefer?
Next to having a fancy number like 9898989898 or 8888844444, is to have more freedom and better option to choose one’s favorite number. Small business owners might prefer to have their mobile numbers similar to their landline numbers. Home delivery based business will prefer to have a readable number like 98-RAJ-MEDIC, 9-WANGS-HOME for better retention.
Youngsters would like to have their nicknames or make style statements with their mobile numbers. They can use the numbers to express love, with their loved ones date of birth or name as their vanity mobile number. They won’t be interested in spending thousands to get a fancy platinum or gold number from the mobile service providers like Airtel, Reliance or Vodafone, but won’t mind paying a hundred or two to get a value for money vanity number.
Even now if you try hard you can get a good vanity number for free, but the interface is not that easy to be used as a strategy for brand advantage. It’ll be easier to weave a marketing strategy with this kind of number play, but the problem will be in the execution, particularly in the prepaid segment.
Will the next Indian mobile service provider think out of the box and plan in advance and goes for this vanity number strategy?
Lots of businesses are not realizing the marketing capability of a vanity toll-free phone number. How I wish mobile phone numbers can have phonewords as well.