How Call Centers Find and Verify Phone Number Lists

Inaccurate phone number lists can incur significant costs for call centers, including phone charges and the opportunity costs of agents not reaching potential prospects.

Some estimates suggest inaccurate phone data can cost businesses up to 12% of their revenue. This is why it’s important to find and verify phone number lists.

Plus, the cost per contact, or each interaction with a customer, can range from $3 to $7. This means, when you find real phone numbers for your marketing and sales campaigns, you can save on operational costs and increase agents’ efficiency and productivity. 

Reaching real people also lets you enhance customer satisfaction, comply with regulations, improve the reliability of your call center metrics, and maintain a positive reputation for your business.

In this blog, we’ll explore methods and databases call centers can use to find and verify phone number lists—so you can get the right person on the phone, every time. 

Key takeaways: 

• Accurate phone number lists are crucial for call centers to save operational costs and improve agent efficiency. 
• Call centers can find real phone numbers through third-party vendors, web scraping, existing customer databases, and collaborative partnerships. Each method has its benefits and challenges. 
• CloudTalk’s virtual and VoIP phone numbers help call centers make a great first impression.

Importance of Accurate Phone Number Lists

While the money you save on operations is a significant benefit, accurate phone number lists can have a positive impact on both calling agents as well as call recipients.

For example, by partnering with integrated AI business calling software CloudTalk, on-demand courier service Glovo increased call volume by 82% and decreased missed calls by 24%. This means agents can focus on connecting with more potential customers, leading to increased sales opportunities, while call recipients enjoy a more streamlined and responsive service experience.

Here are three more reasons why an accurate phone number list is important: 

1. Improved customer engagement and satisfaction:  Accurate phone numbers ensure that calls reach the intended recipients, leading to more meaningful and satisfying interactions with customers.
   
2. Reduced call bounce rates: With accurate phone lists, the number of calls that fail to connect or reach the wrong person decreases, improving overall call success rates. 
   
   This improves the reliability of call center metrics and KPIs, enabling better decision-making and the creation of optimized outbound calling strategies.
   
3. Enhanced operational efficiency and productivity: Agents spend more time engaging with actual customers and less time dealing with wrong numbers, boosting agents’ efficiency, productivity, and morale.

In case you’re still thinking about winging it, here are three adverse consequences of using incorrect or outdated phone numbers:

1. Increased costs: Unsuccessful calls to invalid or out-of-service phone numbers can waste resources, leading to higher operational costs.
   
2. Regulatory issues and penalties: Incorrect numbers can result in calls to individuals who have opted out or are on do-not-call lists, leading to potential legal penalties and compliance issues.
   
3. Damage to brand reputation: Repeatedly contacting the wrong individuals or failing to reach intended recipients can harm the call center’s and company’s reputation.

Methods Call Centers Use to Find Real Phone Numbers

Below, we discuss four methods call centers use to find real phone numbers:

Purchasing from Third-Party Vendors

Call centers often rely on third-party vendors to provide extensive lists of new numbers. These vendors specialize in collecting and maintaining up-to-date contact information segmented by various criteria. But are they reliable?

Reputable vendors make phone number lists segmentable by categories, such as demographics, interests, and other criteria. They also update their lists regularly to maintain accuracy. 

Benefits: 

• Purchasing phone numbers can save time compared to collecting and verifying numbers independently
• Reduces the need for internal resources to manage and update customer phone number databases

Challenges: 

• The accuracy and recency of data can vary significantly between vendors. Low-quality data can lead to high call bounce rates and wasted resources
• Using purchased lists may risk non-compliance with regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, or TCPA
• Premium quality lists can be expensive, and there’s always a risk of not getting a good return on investment if the data is inaccurate or useless

Scraping from Publicly Available Sources 

Web scraping is a method in which call centers use automated tools to extract phone numbers from public online sources. 

While this cost-effective approach can yield a large volume of data, it requires careful management to avoid legal and ethical pitfalls associated with unauthorized data collection. 

Here are some pros and cons of scraping from publicly available sources:

Benefits:

• More affordable than purchasing lists
• Enables targeted data collection based on specific criteria

Challenges:

• Can lead to legal issues if data is collected without consent
• High call bounce rates owing to outdated or inaccurate public data

Using Existing Customer Databases

Leveraging data from existing customer databases is a powerful method that uses contact information already provided by customers, ensuring high accuracy and relevance.

Benefits:

• Existing databases usually contain up-to-date contact information that has been provided directly by the customers, ensuring higher accuracy
• Capitalizing on existing data allows call centers to personalize interactions based on past interactions, preferences, and purchase history
• No additional costs are involved in acquiring new data, making it a cost-effective method

Challenges: 

• Customer phone numbers may have changed over time, leading to inaccuracies
• Mistakes during data entry can result in incorrect phone numbers

Collaborative Partnerships

Forming collaborative partnerships with affiliated businesses lets call centers share resources and access new data sets. 

However, they require meticulous handling of data privacy and integration to ensure compliance and maintain trust between parties. Here are some benefits and challenges of building collaborative partnerships to find and verify phone number lists:

Benefits:

• Provides new customer segments and comprehensive data
• Economical resource and data acquisition for cost-sharing
• Combines data for detailed customer profiles and better targeting

Challenges:

• Requires strict adherence to privacy regulations
• Technical challenges in ensuring data compatibility and accuracy
• Depends on mutual trust and clear data use agreements

Verification Methods for Phone Number Lists

We have discussed methods to find real phone numbers above; however, that’s not enough. Once you find accurate telephone numbers, you need to verify them for contact legitimacy.

Here are the three main verification methods you can use to obtain accurate phone number lists: 

Manual Verification

Manually verifying phone number lists involves human agents personally checking each contact to ensure its accuracy. This thorough process includes:

• Calling numbers to confirm validity: Agents call each number to verify if it is valid and reaches the intended recipient.
• Cross-referencing with other data sources: Agents cross-reference numbers with other databases or publicly available information to confirm their accuracy.
• Updating records: Inaccurate numbers are corrected or removed from the list, and accurate numbers are confirmed and updated to ensure data accuracy and compliance.

Pros:

• Ensures precise data validation
• Detects subtle errors automated systems might miss
• Reduces legal risks with thorough verification

Cons:

• Slow process for large lists
• Difficult to scale for large databases
• Expensive due to labor intensity

Automated Verification Tools

Automated verification tools streamline the process of validating phone number lists, leveraging technology to quickly and accurately confirm the accuracy of contact information. 

These tools use algorithms and databases to check the validity of phone numbers. 

The process involves:

• Cross-referencing: Comparing phone numbers against extensive databases to confirm their validity.
• Data validation: Validating numbers in real-time by checking for active status and correct formatting.
• Error detection: Identifying and flagging inactive, or incorrectly formatted numbers.
• CRM integration: Integrating with CRM systems to automatically update records with verified information.

Pros:

• Verifies large volumes of numbers quickly
• Reduces the need for manual labor
• Provides uniform validation without human error.

Cons:

• Can be expensive to implement
• May miss nuances that manual checks can catch
• Raises privacy concerns since it relies on third-party data

Real-Time Verification Systems

Real-time verification systems leverage advanced technology to provide immediate validation, enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of call center operations.

These tools use various methods to check the validity of phone numbers instantly, including:

• API integration: These systems integrate with existing databases and CRM platforms via APIs to perform real-time checks.
• Cross-referencing: These solutions compare phone numbers against large, up-to-date databases to confirm their validity and activity status.
• Carrier lookup: These systems identify the carrier and check if the number is active, ported, or invalid.
• Format verification: These solutions ensure numbers adhere to international and regional formatting standards.

Pros:

• Instant feedback ensures current information
• Handles large data volumes quickly
• Connects with existing systems seamlessly

Cons:

• Depends on external database accuracy
• Can be expensive to implement
• Potential privacy concerns with third-party data

Reliable Databases for Finding Real Phone Numbers

Take a look at the table below comparing the features, costs, and user experiences of the contact databases and services highlighted in this section.

Here is a brief overview of top databases that can help you find real phone numbers to use for sales and customer support initiatives: 

Whitepages Pro

Whitepages Pro is a reliable database for finding phone numbers. It identifies the number as active or invalid and provides additional data points, such as name, address, and demographic information about the number owner. It also has a robust set of fraud detection tools that minimize potential fraud risks by assessing a number’s activity and history.

Experian Data Quality

Experian Data Quality software ensures the accuracy and validity of contact information. It sources data from over 200 telecommunications providers to make sure they’re correct and helps businesses maintain clean and reliable contact data. This helps call centers improve their operational efficiency and customer engagement.

Neustar

Neustar is an advanced phone number verification service provider ensuring contact information is accurate and up-to-date. This helps businesses enhance their communication strategies and maintain compliance with regulatory standards.

Melissa

Melissa Data helps you verify and correct phone numbers at the point of entry, making sure only accurate information is stored in databases. Additionally, Melissa’s Premium Phone Verification feature confirms if mobile numbers are live and connected, which is crucial for maintaining effective communication and reducing costs associated with invalid numbers.

Finding real phone numbers for prospects is important for call centers and the companies they are associated with, as it powers the success of their cold-calling campaigns. However, it’s useless if the people you’re calling reject your phone calls or their carrier service registers your business phone number as a private number. 

This is where using a professional business phone number can work wonders for your call center.

Let’s see how CloudTalk’s Virtual Phone Numbers can enhance your call center operations.

How CloudTalk Enhances Call Center Operations

CloudTalk is the perfect call center software for gaining unparalleled control over your customer’s experience in order to exceed expectations. 

Our business calling software lets you create intuitive and customized call flows that connect your customers to the right agents every time, and make real-time adjustments to your automations so you never miss a call again. 

CloudTalk lets you easily scale your operations to accommodate fluctuating call volumes. Whether you’re experiencing peak periods or quieter times, you can adjust your resources without the need for additional hardware. 

Let’s get into the specifics. 

With CloudTalk, you benefit from: 

• VoIP services and virtual numbers: CloudTalk offers crystal-clear call quality and low call rates under its VoIP phone services. You can also get access to vanity, toll-free, and local phone numbers.
  
• International number availability: CloudTalk provides access to the largest global coverage in the market with 160+ international numbers and establishes a local presence worldwide. This helps businesses improve global accessibility, enhance customer trust, and boost pick-up rates in other countries.

• AI-Powered Call Recording: This helps you capture and analyze customer interactions to optimize outbound calling strategies. Managers also get access to voicemail transcription for gauging and improving the effectiveness of call scripts.

• Call Monitoring: Cloudtalk allows call center monitoring for managers to seamlessly listen in on customer calls in real time, assist agents if they need help with their scripts, and assess agents’ skills to tailor customized training plans.

• Skill-Based Routing: This allows call routing to agents based on appropriate skills instantly, thus improving call center efficiency and eliminating customer frustration from multiple transfers.

• Interactive Voice Response (IVR) System: This enables you to guide callers through a set of more than 10 predefined routing options that provide 24/7 automated FAQs through self-service options. 

• Integration with CRM and other tools: CloudTalk offers powerful and easy one-click integrations to improve your day-to-day workflow.

Call The Right Numbers With CloudTalk 

Once you’ve found real, verified phone numbers to contact, you’ll need to find a way to call them. If you want a virtual phone number for your business, try CloudTalk for free. This call center software provides businesses with a virtual phone number that isn’t connected to any specific device, SIM card, or location—all you need is Wi-FI. 

With features like built-in analytics to help you track important call metrics and the ability to intelligently route calls, CloudTalk streamlines call management and enhances communication quality with customers. This leads to greater customer satisfaction, more efficient operations, and better overall business performance.