According to a recent study, the use of toll-free phone numbers in television advertisements has increased despite the Internet's rise over the previous seven years, showing that the telephone is still a common response method.
The 2005 Toll-free Numbers in Television Advertising survey, commissioned by 800response, found that 82 percent of the phone numbers shown in television advertising are toll-free, accounting for 35% of all phone numbers in commercials. Additionally, the 800 prefix is used in 74% of toll-free numbers in television advertisements. 61 percent of the 800 numbers are "vanity" numbers, which spell out a word or business name.
A related survey from 1998 found that 24% of TV advertising had toll-free numbers. Only 55% of 800 numbers at that time were vanity numbers.
A 2005 analysis of 5,524 television commercials from four networks in four major regions revealed a 6 percent increase in the prevalence of vanity 800 phone numbers. Over the 866, 877, and 888 prefixes, the 800 prefix continues to be the top as a direct response tool. According to the report, these prefixes are used in television advertisements at rates of 6 percent, 8 percent, and 12 percent, respectively, significantly less frequently than the 800 prefix.
According to Mitchell Knisbacher, president of 800response, a company that offers vanity 800 numbers and toll-free service, "during the previous seven years, advertisers continue to learn that utilizing a unique and distinctive mechanism in television advertising enhances their response rates." "The two TV tests conducted over the previous seven years demonstrate that the use of vanity and 800 toll-free numbers in advertising is both persistent and expanding. Despite the Web's phenomenal development, advertisers still give their customers their phone numbers so they may speak to a live person.