As much as I disagree with 0845 numbers I have got one for my business as it does show an increased sized business.

However on my website I have decided to post up my 0845 number, my geographical landline number and my freephone number.

I am surprised that more companies do not do the same. It shows that you care for your customer and don't want them to incur needless charges.

Resisting the temptation to make some awful Bond-related joke, one must ask if you have considered the possibility of using a 03 number for the same purpose.

It should give the same image as the 0845, but cost no more to call than your geo number. Landline callers would still be keen to know your 0800 number.

The difference between 03 and 0845 is that you pay for the features and the image, rather than your callers.

i haven't considered it but on my new business card and website I will be publishing the following numbers
0845 519 1007

0114 321 6319

and 0800 883 0720

the information commissioner openly publishes (Call us on 08456 30 60 60 or 01625 54 57 45. Our helpline is open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday) on its website https://www.ico.gov.uk/Global/contact_us.aspx so why can't others follow suit. I think that there is no excuse for it.  It shows your customer that you care for them so that unless they have a call package like mine which gives free calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers that they don't incur needless costs.

If a company only publishes an non geographical number then I will email them saying that unless they provide me with a geographical number or agree to call me then I won't call them and they lose business. Its amazing how many will then provide you with the number.

agentq wrote on Sep 5^th, 2009 at 4:23pm:

... If a company only publishes an non geographical number then I will email them saying that unless they provide me with a geographical number or agree to call me then I won't call them and they lose business. Its amazing how many will then provide you with the number.

That is exactly what the 03 range is there to avoid. It enables use of a single non-geographic number (reflecting or projecting a national presence) without obtaining subsidy from callers and with regulatory support for the fact that no telephone company may charge more than the cost of a call to a 01/02 number.

03 numbers are underused, because the absence of the subsidy makes them more expensive to adopt, even though every 084 user has the equivalent 034 number reserved for them. Furthermore, BT has clouded the issue by charging all Call Plan customers for the premium on 0845 calls, by making them inclusive in its packages. Some have copied this dodgy cross-subsidy idea, whereas others continue to properly reflect their costs by charging a premium for 0845 calls.

Nobody includes 0844 numbers (as used by GPs) in their inclusive packages.