I had an interesting call last week from a customer response person who left me with her direct phone number in Montreal. Apologizing that her toll-free number was not yet connected, she told me to call collect – just in case I needed to get in touch.
Call collect? When long distance rates are this low, if not free, think about it: when was the last time you needed to call collect?
Fast forward to this week when I was speaking with a colleague about a project she is working on to implement a toll-free network, replacing a regime of collect calling. What do people do when they are in need of help – at a payphone; on a cell phone; in a hotel; away from home. In other words, vulnerable with less than optimal control over their costs.
On the flip side, think of some of the complications with collect calling these days. Numerous local carriers – VoIP, mobile, resellers, MVNOs, Skype-in. Many new service providers don’t even have billing systems that could handle collection agreements. Some new phone companies don’t have operators to allow you to place a collect call.
How does a distant phone company get confirmation that when you accept charges, your phone company will actually be able to bill for the call and collect on their behalf? Number portability, that allows migration of landline and wireless numbers, adds more complexity.
For most people, domestic long distance is so cheap that you might be embarrased to call collect. Alternatively, there is always toll-free, although these numbers usually only work within a country code. In an age of global commerce, what does a service provider do to provide easy global access? [My daughter was overcharged by an overseas cable TV provider while she was away at school last year. The cableco’s only published number is a domestic toll-free line. I can’t call them, even though I would be happy to pay for the call.]
Are we seeing the end of collect calling? Maybe it will evolve to a more uniform system of payment by commercial credit or debit cards. Thoughts?
Problem of calling collect is the cost and the fact that you can’t call a cellphone collect. Text Collect is an easy way to make collect calls to cellphones billable as premium text message SMS. Rates are reasonable since there is a cap on how much you can charges by premium SMS.