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Your Landline Alternative: A TextNow Number

Erin

Erin

 

January 25, 2021

Your Landline Alternative: A TextNow Number

Remember back when people had landlines and a home phone number was shared by all of your family members? Granted, I do know a handful of people who still have a landline, but for most of us, a landline is just another monthly payment that we have no desire to make and seems to only connect us to telemarketers that we'd wish would put us on their "do not call" list.

So why do some families still have a landline? There must be some benefit you'd think, or wouldn't your mobile number already be the perfect landline alternative? Turns out there are benefits you get from a landline, which you can also get from a TextNow phone number --- for free! Let me explain.

What makes a TextNow number different than others is that it is linked to your TextNow account, not a specific phone. This means that if you have the TextNow app downloaded on your phone, and you want someone else to have access to the same number, they need only download the app on their phone as well and login to the same account.

But now you're asking, why? Why do I want to share a number with someone else when I can have my own? Well, you came to the right place for answers, my friend.

Yellow rotary phone

Benefits of a Shared Phone Number

As a kid I remember going over to a friend's house after school and then occasionally needing to call home to beg my parents to allow me to stay later. Lucky for me, cell phones weren't the norm yet so I'd call the family home phone and someone was always bound to answer, whether it be mom or dad. Those were simpler times. Now if I want to talk to either of my parents I almost always have to call both separately on their different numbers, leave each a message and then hope one calls me back. More often than not, when I get the return call from one, the other is trying to call too... parents, am I right!

Are you yourself a parent? If you are, I'm sure you've had to provide a contact number to your child's school in case of emergency. Well, how about instead of providing separate numbers for both you and your partner, you give the school one number that the school can call and whoever is more readily available can take the call and go to the aid of your child without the inefficiencies of telephone tag between two numbers?

Still not sure if a landline alternative from TextNow is a worthwhile option for you, just wait, there's more!

During the mess of the Covid-19 pandemic, 54% of Americans started a small business or side hustle to help keep them afloat. A benefit to any business is having a support line that your customers can use to place orders or inquire further about your business --- so of course a phone number is crucial. If your side hustle is more than just a one-person show, a shared number that can be easily accessed by you and your business partners could be a key to success. Don't leave your customers, or potential customers, waiting! With one number for your side hustle, you and your partner(s) can take time to breathe knowing that incoming calls will still be answered.

So now that you've read through all that, you're thinking, that makes sense but then why wouldn't I just get a landline? There are two reasons. First, landlines aren't free. The TextNow app is free. Not much else to say on that front. Second, your TextNow number will live on your mobile phone, which means you can take it with you wherever you go. No fear of leaving your home office and missing an important call, making it the ultimate landline alternative.

When you're ready to try out the TextNow app, download it for Android or iOS for free!

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