So we’ll tell you our top pick straight up. It’s OpenPhone

Yes OPENPHONE, an all-in-one-phone-system for teams provides a web dashboard and apps for both Andriod and Apple, to allow teams to make calls and join together to collaborate on conversations with customers, or whoever you are calling.

Here’s a link to a BLOG post by Meagan Shelley

Meagan Shelley

Meagan is a professional writer in VA that has covered business phone communication since 2021. If she’s not helping companies navigate VoIP technology, she’s helping companies craft their own stories.

9 best VoIP providers in Canada for business in 2023

March 14, 2023

 – 25 mins read

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After completing any initial research, you’ve likely seen there are dozens of different Canadian VoIP providers. If your business is based in Canada — or you’re looking to expand to the Great White North by getting a Canadian number — this in-depth guide covers the top phone options. 

Here’s everything you need to know about the nine best Canadian business VoIP providers of 2023, including their prices, features, and limitations.

Contents  hide 

The best VoIP services in Canada compared

1. OpenPhone

2. RingCentral

3. Vonage

4. Ooma

5. 8×8

6. AVOXI

7. GoTo Connect

8. Dialpad

9. CallHippo

How did we find the best Canadian VoIP providers?

8 key features to look for in a Canadian VoIP phone service

Get a number that supports your presence in Canada with OpenPhone

The best top Canadian Voip Providers compared

Want to see how the best providers for getting a Canadian VoIP number (whether you’re based in Canada or outside the country are) compare? Check out this comparison chart to view their major features at a glance:

1. OpenPhone 

OpenPhone is a modern business phone service designed to scale with you as your company grows. All you need is an internet connection to start taking calls from your computer, smartphone, or tablet — and from almost anywhere in the world.

With OpenPhone, you can get as many Canadian numbers as you want on our Standard plan ($13 per user per month). Then, just add more phone numbers as your team expands. Each user on your plan comes with one free Canadian, US, or North American toll-free number. Any additional numbers with OpenPhone are $5 per number per month.

Why businesses use OpenPhone 

Every OpenPhone plan comes with free calling and texting to Canada and the US. You can assign team members to their very own number, or work together from a shared number. With shared numbers, every member of your team can review the same inbox, see the same contacts, and split responsibility for incoming calls. Plus, you can collaborate with team members using internal threads and mentions, which make it easier to delegate tasks and follow up with customers.

OpenPhone helps growing teams work faster, smarter, and more efficiently — including saving you time while texting and personalizing your touchpoints with customers. For example:

• Scheduled text messages can help you hit send at the best possible time for every contact, regardless of their time zone. This means your contacts won’t get texts in the middle of the night, and you don’t have to stay up until 11 PM to press send.
• Speaking of not having to stay glued to your phone, tools like auto-replies instantly connect with customers while you’re off the clock or away from your desk. Every missed call and voicemail triggers an automatic message with a short text letting customers know you got their message. You don’t have to end calls early just to pick up another, or stay attached to your phone all day.
• If you spend a lot of time answering similar messages, you can create message templates with snippets and instantly send them to customers in the future. It’s easy to personalize canned responses on the fly, which means you can consistently answer customers, send timely responses, and save yourself the trouble of typing the same thing a dozen times.

Thousands of brands use OpenPhone to connect with Canadian prospects and clients. We’re listed as the #1 business phone solution on G2 — and our customer reviews speak for themselves:

“Customer service is great! I live in USA and OpenPhone works very well for my business in Canada. I can text and call from my different phone numbers without a problem.” – G2

“As a contractor, we made many contacts and partners while working in Canada. However, we are required to move out of the country and we did not want to lose our primary contact numbers. OpenPhone was able to port our numbers to their solution free of charge and allow us to keep communicating with partners.” – G2

“Many of my clients in Canada primarily use cell phones who do not have out of country calling plans. Per use long distance charges for Canadians is particularly expensive. By having Canadian OpenPhone numbers to go along with our US cellular plans, our Canadian contacts can reach us without incurring expensive and unexpected charges on those phone plans. It also gives us a local presence so that when we call them we appear to be local to them.” – G2

How to get a Canadian number in three steps with OpenPhone

You can get a Canadian phone number from OpenPhone in just three steps:

1. Create an OpenPhone account and sign up for a seven-day free trial.

2. During sign up, select your city or area code in Canada to choose a specific local phone number. Otherwise, you can get a North American toll-free number.
3. Provide your credit card information.

Once you’ve confirmed OpenPhone is a good fit, you can also port any Canadian, US, or toll-free numbers your business already has for free. 

OpenPhone key features

• Local or toll-free Canadian phone numbers
• Free calling and texting in Canada and the US
• Integrations with HubSpot, Zapier, Salesforce, Slack, Google Contacts, and more
• Shared phone numbers
• Internal threads and mentions

OpenPhone pricing

Standard

• $13 USD per user per month
• Access call recording, voicemail to text, basic IVR, and one new local or toll-free Canadian or US number per user

Premium

• $20 USD per user per month
• Get call transfers, advanced IVR, analytics and reporting, and our HubSpot and Salesforce integrations

Enterprise

• Custom plan and price
• Unlock audit logs, priority support, and dedicated account managers

See for yourself why thousands of businesses have a Canadian virtual number with OpenPhone by signing up for a free, seven-day trial.

2. RingCentra

RingCentral is a cloud-based phone system offering video, chat, and calling tools. On the market since 1999, it’s one of the oldest VoIP solutions still on the market.

You can use RingCentral to make unlimited calls in the US and Canada. However, this only applies to local numbers — toll-free numbers are limited to an undisclosed amount of minutes depending on the plan you buy. 

This is just the first arbitrary limitation on the RingCentral platform. When you look a little closer at the service and its features, you can see many more limitations:

• You can only send 25 texts per user per month on the basic plan. And since the platform only stores 5,000 texts per user, past messages with customers will eventually be deleted.
• Each user on your plan only has access to 1 GB of free data storage. Every GB after that is billed extra.
• A free trial of RingCentral is limited to just five users and two desktop phones. You can’t use SMS at all, and you only have 50 minutes of call time per user — a max of 250 minutes.

If you want a VoIP platform with fewer limitations on phone calls, text messages, and media storage, you should look for a RingCentral alternative.

RingCentral key features

• SMS support
• Local and toll-free Canadian numbers
• Voicemail to text
• Document sharing
• Call log reports

RingCentral pricing

With RingCentral, the more team members you have on one plan, the less you have to pay per user. If you have a team of 20 users or fewer, here’s what you can expect to pay:

Essentials

• $24.99 CAD ($19.99 USD) per user per month (max of 20 users)
• Make unlimited calls in Canada and the US, access voicemail to text, and message team members internally

Standard

• $29.99 CAD ($27.99 USD) per user per month 
• Unlock unlimited internet faxing, on-demand call recording, and integrations with Google Workspace, Slack, and Microsoft 365

Premium

• $39.99 CAD ($34.99 USD) per user per month
• Access automatic call recording, CRM integrations, and hot desking

Ultimate

• $54.99 CAD ($49.99 USD) per user per month
• Get unlimited storage, device reports, and status alerts

3. Vonage

Vonage is a VoIP provider serving both residential homeowners and enterprise brands. At the beginning of their business in 2004, Vonage was primarily used to replace PBX systems (desk phones) and landline phones. Today, they offer unified communications tools like chat, video, and voice conferencing.

But Vonage is not a cheap solution, especially for companies that aren’t huge corporations. Although you can purchase a Canadian local or toll-free number for your small business, you have to worry about hidden taxes and fees that are hard to find on the website. Plus, you have to pay for expensive add-ons to customize your calling experience — many of which are included on the standard plans of Vonage’s competitors. A few examples:

• Automatic call recording: $49.99 per month
• Shared texting inbox: $9.99 per month
• Local digital fax: $14.99 per month

Vonage’s plans also come with their own set of limitations. The standard plan doesn’t let you purchase any phone numbers unless you sign up for a one-year contract. Even then, you can’t access auto-attendants or CRM integrations without paying for the Premium plan ($29.99 per line per month). You can’t even have voicemail transcriptions without maxing out at a whopping $39.99 per line per month.

Vonage key features

• 20+ integrations on the basic plan
• Mobile and desktop apps
• Internal team messaging
• Unlimited calls and texts in Canada and the US
• IP desk phones available for additional charge

Vonage pricing

Like RingCentral, Vonage forces you to pay more if you have fewer users on your team. If you’re signing up for 1-4 users, you have to pay the following rates:

Mobile

• $19.99 per line per month
• Get unlimited calls in Canada and the US and 20+ integrations

Premium

• $29.99 per line per month
• Access multi-level auto-attendants, CRM integrations, and IP desk phones

Advanced

• $39.99 per line per month
• Unlock on-demand call recording included in your plan, as well as call groups and visual voicemail

4. Ooma

Ooma is a legacy cloud communications company that serves two separate audiences: home phone owners looking to buy residential VoIP numbers, and small business owners looking for virtual phone solutions. Their business line, Ooma Office, is available in the US and Canada.

Ooma’s Canadian platform has some significant differences from the US version. For example, if you live in Canada and want to buy a Canadian number, you won’t have access to text messaging at all — a major problem as your business starts to scale.

Plus, many of the basic features you get with Ooma don’t make sense for distributed teams without a set office space. Features like overhead paging, analog fax machine support, and intercom systems are built into the price of your phone plan, even if you don’t use them once.

Ooma’s best features are locked behind higher paywalls. You can’t access the desktop app unless you pay for the Pro plan ($24.95 per user per month), meaning you have to do all your work on your phone unless you want to pay extra. Even then, you won’t be able to access CRM integrations unless you pay for the Pro Plus plan ($29.95 per user per month).

The bottom line? Ooma is an expensive softphone solution that requires you to upgrade to access its best features. But no matter how much you pay, Ooma doesn’t provide text messaging on a Canadian VoIP number, unlimited toll-free minutes, and other key features.

Ooma key features

• Ring groups
• Music on hold
• Digital fax
• Call transferring
• Voicemail transcriptions (requires upgrade)

Ooma pricing

Ooma charges different prices depending on where you’re located. If you’re buying a Canadian number while based in the US or Canada, here’s what you can expect to pay:

Essentials

• $24.95 CAD ($19.95 USD)  per user per month 
• Get virtual receptionists, ring groups, and music on hold

Pro

• $29.95 CAD ($24.95 USD) per user per month 
• Access the desktop app, call recording, and call analytics

Pro Plus

• $34.95 CAD ($29.95 USD) per user per month 
• Unlock call queuing, hot desking, and integrations with Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics 365

Keep in mind there’s a one-time activation fee ($49.95 USD) required for all phone numbers.

5. 8×8

8×8 is another cloud-based VoIP provider in Canada tailored to call centers and other larger companies. They removed their small business plan, Express, as of March 1st, 2023. 

A virtual number from 8×8 unlocks unlimited calling in 14 countries, including Canada and the US. However, that’s really all you can get on the basic plan. 8×8 is more focused on unified communications than calls and texts, which results in many features being more limited than its competitors. Call recordings, for example, are held for just 30 days unless you upgrade to the X4 plan (an extra $20 per user per month). Even then, this upgrade only comes with 130 days of call recording storage. 

There’s no way to unlock unlimited storage at all, which could be an issue when trying to get context from past customer interactions.

Plus, 8×8 doesn’t offer unlimited texting on any of its small business plans. It costs 0.00695€ to send a text in Canada, and even then, you still have to use their SMS API just to set things up the way you want.

Other texting limitations with 8×8 include:

• No SMS support on toll-free Canadian numbers and shared virtual numbers
• No support for group texting
• No international text support (you can receive international messages from outside the US and Canada, but you can’t respond to them)

If any of this is a dealbreaker for you, you might want to consider some 8×8 alternatives.

8×8 key features

• Unlimited calls in Canada and the US
• Auto-attendants
• Hot desking
• Unlimited internet fax
• In-app team chat

8×8 pricing

8×8 retired their Express plan ($15 per user per month) as of March 1, 2023. This leaves you with just two plans to choose from:

X2

• $24 per user per month
• Includes hot desking, unlimited calls to 14 countries, and unlimited users

X4

• $44 per user per month
• Unlocks supervisor analytics, unlimited calls to 48 countries, and call recording storage for up to 130 days

6. AVOXI

AVOXI is a cloud communications platform specializing in international numbers. The company offers virtual phone numbers in 170+ countries, including Canada. Although their goal is to help global call centers manage multiple international numbers, you can still use AVOXI to set up a single Canadian number for your small business.

Unlike many other VoIPs, AVOXI estimates the amount of minutes you can use on each plan depending on where you forward your incoming calls. You have dozens of different forwarding countries to choose from, as well as virtual forwarding through Microsoft Teams, VoIP, or SIP. 

However, the only way to know how many minutes you get is to enter your specifics into their checkout page.

Even if you’re willing to pay high prices to buy an AVOXI number (more on this below), you should know most of their texting and calling features are limited at best. Text messaging, for example, can’t be done in-platform. All texts are forwarded to your email inbox, which you can only reply to through your email’s reply function. Even then, you can only forward texts to your inbox from 11 countries:

1. Australia
2. Chile
3. Czech Republic
4. Denmark
5. Finland
6. Netherlands
7. Poland
8. Romania
9. Sweden
10. Thailand
11. United Kingdom

You can’t use an AVOXI Canadian number to text your clients at all.

Other AVOXI restrictions could affect how and where you decide to get work done. For example, only users with a Contact license can access the mobile app — meaning the rest of your team has to stick with their internet browsers. There’s no desktop app available at all.

Plus, AVOXI doesn’t provide all of its best features up-front. Many of its most mission-critical features are locked behind even more paywalls, including:

• Call recording: $6.99 per line per month
• Call Insights (aka call analytics): $10 per line per month
• SIP trunks: Starting at $19.99 per trunk
• Extra phone minutes: Starting at $0.031 on the basic plan with a Canadian toll-free number (but not an 800 number)

To summarize: AVOXI is confusing, expensive, and inaccessible to small business owners. If you want a less expensive Canadian number with better features for the price, you’re better off looking for a different service provider.

AVOXI key features

• Guaranteed caller ID
• International numbers in 170+ countries (including Canada)
• Direct routing to Microsoft Teams
• External call forwarding
• Auto-attendants

AVOXI pricing

AVOXI’s prices are extremely confusing and hard to find. The price you pay for a Canadian number depends on the area code and where you want to forward your number. You also have to pay for user licenses to give your team members access to the platform. 

The features you get with an AVOXI number depend on the type of user licenses you want to buy. There are three different types of user licenses available with AVOXI:

Launch

• $0 per user per month (one user minimum)
• Users get external call forwarding, guaranteed local caller ID, and an auto attendant

Contact

• $19.99 per user per month (three user minimum)
• Users get 20+ integrations, unlimited local calling in the US and Canada, and access to the mobile app

Engaged Enterprise

• $49.99 per user per month (three user minimum)
• Users get unlimited storage, custom integrations, and callback functionality

Once you purchase AVOXI user licenses for each member of your team, you need to purchase the actual Canadian number you want to use.

AVOXI’s pricing and minute limits depend on the type of Canadian number you choose (and where you what to forward your calls). For example, a local number in Antigonish costs just $7.99 per month and comes with 430 estimated minutes when forwarding to a VoIP number. In contrast, a local number in St. Catharines enabled with TrueLocal costs $9.49 per month and comes with 341 included minutes when forwarded to a phone number in the US.

Here’s what you can expect to pay if you buy a toll-free number (but a non-800 number) and forward calls through VoIP.

Connect

• $16.99 per line per month for 1032 minutes (extra minutes cost $0.031)

Standard

• $25.99 per line per month for 1895 minutes (extra minutes cost $0.026)

Advanced

• $43.99 per line per month for 3888 minutes (extra minutes cost $0.017)

Premium

• $70.99 per line per month for 7523 minutes (extra minutes cost $0.014)

There are several other price considerations to keep in mind.  AVOXI requires you to pay a $9.99 platform fee per customer account. You also have to pay an additional one-time fee of $149.99 to add up to six licenses to your account. If you decide to add more user licenses to your business, you have to pay an additional $24.99 per license. There’s also an INTFEE cost recovery charge — a 21.1% tax on your monthly subscriptions and call traffic for regulatory compliance.

7. GoTo Connect

Jive has rebranded to GoTo Connect, a VoIP service provider available to businesses in Canada. You can use the platform to make calls and texts and set up virtual meetings using video conferencing tools.

But GoTo Connect is somewhat limited compared to other business VoIP providers. The platform doesn’t offer unlimited calling to the US and Canada, and limits the amount of toll-free minutes you can use per month — no matter how much you upgrade. Plus, you can’t text customers outside the US or Canada. You’re also limited to just 40 SMS per user per month on their standard plan.

Plus, GoTo Connect’s standard plan only lets you have up to 20 users. That means you may get forced to upgrade before your business is ready, and you’ll be forced to pay out of pocket for features you don’t need.

GoTo Connect key features

• Local, vanity, and toll-free Canadian numbers
• Unlimited extensions
• Additional numbers for $5 per line per month
• Auto-replies (to first time callers only)
• Desktop app and mobile app

GoTo Connect pricing

Basic

• $24 per user per month (capped at 20 users)
• Access 40 SMS credits per user per month and basic integrations with Outlook and Google Workspace

Standard

• $29 per user per month
• Unlock unlimited users, 80 SMS credits per user per month, and call recordings

8. Dialpad

Dialpad is a business VoIP service that features AI-powered phone tools. For example, contact centers and other large support teams can use AI coaching tools to teach new agents how to talk at an effective speed.

The biggest benefit to a Canadian number with Dialpad is unlimited phone calls in Canada and the US. However, there are several missing features not available on the standard plan.

With Dialpad, you can’t:

• Add additional numbers unless you upgrade to the second plan ($25 per user per month), which also requires a three user minimum
• Integrate with tools outside of Google Workspace unless you pay for the Pro plan ($25 per user per month)
• Guarantee 100% uptime unless you pay for the most expensive plan (custom price)

Dialpad’s inability to guarantee your uptime could be a major problem as your business expands. Since a 1% loss in uptime could cost you thousands of dollars, Dialpad may be a more expensive and less reliable option compared to other Canadian VoIP providers.

Dialpad key features

• SMS and MMS support (international texting requires upgrade) 
• Unlimited calling in Canada and the US
• Video conferencing tools
• Voicemail transcriptions
• Call recording

Dialpad pricing

Standard

• $15 per user per month
• Get internet faxing, auto-attendants, and voicemail transcriptions

Pro

• $25 per user per month (three user minimum)
• Unlock multiple numbers, most integrations, and international text messaging

Enterprise

• Inquire for a quote (100 user minimum)
• Unlock 100% uptime, unlimited ring groups, and dial-by extensions

9. CallHippo

CallHippo is a VoIP solution built to accommodate both small brands and enterprise companies. More than 50+ international numbers are available for your business through CallHippo. They also offer basic features like IVR, integrations, and SMS support.

But CallHippo may not be a scalable option for businesses finding their feet. You can only have five users on the Starter plan before getting forced up to the Professional plan, which nearly doubles your monthly costs per user. 

Even the Enterprise plan ($30.99 per user per month) comes with a 50-user cap. Once you’ve hit user number 51, you’ll need to upgrade to CallHippo’s more expensive call center solutions.

CallHippo’s greatest limitation comes before purchasing a plan — there’s no free trial available for office phone system users. This means you can’t try CallHippo at all before you buy, and have to eat the costs if it’s not a great fit for your team.

CallHippo key features

• Unlimited calls in the US and Canada
• Basic IVR
• Ring groups
• Set business hours
• Desktop, web, and mobile phone apps

CallHippo pricing

CallHippo offers two distinct plans: a call center solution, and an office phone system.

Here’s what you can expect to pay for the office phone system:

Starter

• $12.99 per user per month (five user max)
• Get one local Canadian number, unlimited calls in the US and Canada, and ring groups

Professional

• $21.99 per user per month (50 user max)
• Access call recording, voicemail to email, and country-specific blocking tools

Ultimate

• $30.99 per user per month (50 user max)
• Unlock custom greetings, customizable integrations, and professionally recorded greetings

If you’re an enterprise brand with a higher call volume, you could choose to pay for the call center solution. This unlocks advanced features that are more applicable to bigger brands, including tools like role-based access control.

There are four separate tiers:

Basic

• $0 per user per month (you only pay for numbers)
• Get click to dial, call forwarding, and SMS support (additional charges apply for outbound SMS)

Bronze

• $16 per user per month
• Access shared numbers, shared inboxes, and recorded voicemails

Silver

• $24 per user per month
• Use call recording tools, basic IVR, and set individual working hours for each user

Platinum

• $40 per user per month
• Unlock multi-level IVRs, call whispering, and conference calling

How did we find the best Canadian VoIP providers?

Our team took a deep dive into the most popular and top-rated VoIP phone systems available in Canada. After evaluating all the features businesses need from a phone service, we landed on these nine VoIP providers based on eight factors:

1. Customer support
2. Cost-effectiveness
3. Features
4. Integrations
5. Customer reviews
6. Scalability
7. Security
8. Ease of use

We also reviewed customer ratings on sites like G2 and Trustpilot to reinforce any themes gathered from specific platforms.

8 key features to look for in a Canadian VoIP phone service 

There are lots of different Canadian VoIP providers to choose from, but only a few provide the tools and features modern businesses need.

Here are eight key features you should look for while narrowing down your list:

1. Shared numbers

Everyone on your team needs to work together to tackle your daily to-do list. Thankfully, shared numbers make this easy.

With shared numbers, all members of your team can split responsibility for incoming calls and messages. Everyone on the shared number can collaborate in-platform and delegate tasks when they run into problems. Plus, your supervisors can have clear oversight into all the conversations between your team and your contacts.

If your Canadian VoIP provider doesn’t offer shared numbers, you should consider crossing them off the list.

2. Call routing options 

Your VoIP provider in Canada should be able to help callers get where they need to go. This means offering plenty of call routing options, like:

• Creating shared numbers for specific teams or departments
• Round-robin calling features that ring multiple devices with an incoming call until someone picks up the phone
• Self-service phone menus that help customers reach the right department (i.e., ‘Press Three for Billing)
• Call transferring tools that can help you send live calls to a teammate

3. Voicemail transcriptions 

Gone are the days of calling a number to listen to audio-only voicemails. Today, you can partner with a Canadian VoIP service to get written transcripts of your voicemails without having to listen to the audio file. 

With OpenPhone, you can easily review a voicemail transcription in line with the rest of the conversation history. Plus, push your transcriptions to apps already in your tech stack.

Keep in mind some providers place voicemail transcriptions behind their premium plans to force you to upgrade. You should keep an eye out for any telling phrases like ‘add-ons’ or ‘with upgrade’ and ask for more details before signing any contracts.

4. Free calling to the US and Canada

Your business should be able to reach US and Canadian customers without paying extra for inbound or outbound calls. But as you can see in the guide above, not all VoIP providers in Canada offer free unlimited calling.

Paying extra to reach these countries should be a dealbreaker. That way, you avoid overage fees, hard minute limits, and unnecessary red tape that can bloat your phone bills.

5. SMS and MMS support

Customers expect businesses to meet their needs faster than ever before. And if you can’t send texts or messages with rich media, you’re already falling behind.

The best Canadian VoIP providers offer both SMS and MMS for your business. They should also offer texting features on both local and toll-free numbers since not all companies support messaging on both types.

But basic text messaging support is only the beginning. . .

6. Automated texting options

Automation is a great way to save time for you and your team — especially while texting. Not only can you put more focus on more complex tasks, but you can look more professional to contacts and show that you genuinely care about great customer experiences.

Canadian VoIP services like OpenPhone offer texting automations on the Standard plan ($13 per user per month). Depending on what your business needs, you can:

• Use auto-replies to let customers when your team is out of office
• Schedule text messages to contacts outside your time zone
• Automate specific touchpoints (such as appointment reminders texts) and keep customers in the loop

7. Call recordings 

Call recordings are no longer a nice-to-have extra — they’re a critical component of small business success. If you can’t look back on recordings for context, coaching, or quality assurance, you might struggle to answer questions quickly or get new agents up to speed.

The Canadian VoIP provider you choose should offer call recording features without having to upgrade. You should also have unlimited storage for all your media without arbitrary retention periods or time-based limits.

8. Conversation threads

You shouldn’t need to flip between different apps just to send messages to your coworkers. You need to be able to connect with your team immediately if something comes up or if you need more clarification.

Platforms like OpenPhone can help you collaborate with your team without hopping between different tools. All call recordings, texts, and voice messages are kept in a single thread so everyone knows where to look for past communications. 

Best of all, if someone needs a second pair of eyes while answering a question, they can tag other team members to help them review and follow up on the conversation faster.

Get a number that supports your presence in Canada with OpenPhone

There’s a lot to consider before buying a Canadian number and dozens of factors to weigh while picking the right phone service. But if you’re looking for a competitive VoIP provider with flexible plans and a user-friendly interface, OpenPhone ranks at the top of the list. We’ve helped companies big and small build better relationships with their customers through automations, third-party integrations, and shared numbers. You can buy as many Canadian numbers as your team needs or to support different cities from Vancouver to Toronto. Then, delight your customers with an equally delightful app.

Start a seven-day free trial to see why thousands of brands use OpenPhone for their business phone communications.

5/5 – (2 votes)

Meagan Shelley

Meagan is a professional writer in VA that has covered business phone communication since 2021. If she’s not helping

companies navigate VoIP technology, she’s helping companies craft their own stories.

Thanks for reading our blog post.

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From setting simple goals to taking breaks effectively, these tips will help you get more done in less time. So read on for inspiration and start making the most of your day!

I have three areas of productivity, with 4 hacks for each area.  The first 2 sections are like everyday meat and potatoes, and the last 4 were critical to my success.  I suggest reading all 12 hacks, but you can skip to any section in this outline.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Section One:  Personal Habits

1. Set simple, achievable goals
2. Take breaks effectively
3. Eliminate distractions
4. Reward yourself

Section Two: Utilize tools and Technology

1. Use these top five software tools that work for every business
2. Digitize your business and Utilize cloud storage
3. Outsource and use Virtual assistants
4. Keep it Simple using Google Docs. NO FORMATTING ALLOWED

Section Three: Hacks to train your brain

1. Create catchphrases – buzzwords for your business goals
2. Write out your plans: NO FORMATTING ALLOWED
3. Prioritize, Prioritize, Prioritize
4. KEEP SCORE

4 HACKS RELATED TO YOUR PERSONAL HABITS 

Set simple, achievable goals

One of the best ways to stay productive is to set simple, achievable goals. Whether completing a project by a specific deadline or increasing your sales by a certain percentage, having particular targets in mind will help you focus and get things done.

For example: rather than saying, “I want to be more productive today,” set a goal like “I will work on this project for 2 hours.”

Rather than saying “I want to make more sales,” set a goal like “I will contact three potential clients today.”

Take the time to plan out your day, week, or even month in advance. By knowing what you need to do and when you’ll be able to focus on each task without getting overwhelmed.

For example: rather than looking at your to-do list and trying to figure out what to do first, try creating a schedule of tasks for each day

Take breaks effectively

It’s essential to take breaks throughout the day, but it’s also important to take them effectively. If you step away from your work for a few minutes every hour or so, you’ll lose focus and productivity.

Instead, try to take a break that’s long enough to get up and move around but short enough that you don’t lose focus. For example, you could take a 10-15 minute break every hour or so or take a complete 30-minute break once or twice a day.

One of the best ways to stay productive is to set a routine for yourself. Establish specific times for work and breaks and particular tasks that you will complete during each part of the day. By doing this, you’ll be able to focus better and get more done.

For example:

• Wake up at the same time each day and start your day with a cup of coffee. 

• Work on specific tasks for 1-2 hours, then take a break. 

• Work on another task for 1-2 hours, then take a lunch break. 

• Work on another task for 1-2 hours, then take a movement break. 

• Work on one final task for the day, then relax for the rest of the evening. 

Also set limits for yourself. For example, if you have a specific amount of time to complete a task, you’ll be more likely to focus and get it done quickly.

For example: rather than saying, “I want to work on this project all day,” set a deadline like “I will work on this project for 2 hours.”

Rather than saying “I want to finish this report by the end of the day,” set a limit like “I will only work on this report for 1 hour.”

Eliminate distractions

One of the biggest productivity killers is distractions. Whether it’s email, social media, or even just the general noise of your office, distractions can make it difficult to focus and get work done.

To eliminate distractions, try to create a distraction-free environment for yourself. For example: Work in a quiet room with the door closed, turn off your email notifications, or even unplug your phone.

If you’re working on a project, set a goal to complete it within a certain amount of time and then focus solely on that task until it’s done.

If you’re writing an email, turn off all distractions and focus solely on the task at hand.

Reward yourself

It’s important to reward yourself for a job well done. Rewards will help you stay motivated and focused on your goals.

For example:

• If you complete a project, take the rest of the day off. 

• If you finish all of your tasks for the day, treat yourself to a movie or dinner out. 

• If you stick to your schedule for a week, give yourself a day off from work. 

One of the best ways to stay productive is to take care of yourself and stay positive. Eat healthy foods, exercise regularly, and get vacation time wherever possible.

By taking care of yourself, you’ll be able to focus better and get more done.

For example:

• Eat a healthy breakfast each morning to start your day off right. 

• Take a break in the middle of the day, and go for a walk. Move your body. 

• Use ergonomically friendly chairs, desks, and devices. 

It’s important to stay positive and have a good attitude. This outlook will help you stay motivated and focused on your goals.

By staying positive, you’ll be able to better deal with setbacks and remain productive throughout the day.

For example:

Instead of getting frustrated, take a break to calm down and then come back to the task at hand.

When you’re feeling overwhelmed, take a step back and evaluate your situation.

Get enough sleep

It’s important to get enough sleep to function at your best. Most adults need 7-8 hours of sleep per night, so ensure you’re getting enough rest.

If you’re having trouble sleeping, try establishing a bedtime routine and avoiding caffeine and electronics before lying down.

Tip: make sure your bedroom is dark, quiet, and cool, which can help you get a good night’s sleep.

Celebrate each accomplishment, no matter how small it may seem.

These are just a few of the many personal productivity hacks that can help you get more done. By using these tips, you’ll be able to focus and achieve your goals better.

4 HACKS UTILIZING TOOLS & TECHNOLOGY

Use these Top five software tools that work for any business 

Regardless of what kind of business you run—whether providing a service, selling products or even just brainstorming your next big idea—most entrepreneurs are dealing with the same problems. These include how to schedule, track sales leads and plan ahead when necessary.

As such, here are my top five productivity software tools that I use no matter what business I’m running; I use these tools over and over. 

1. Google WorkSpace. Google Workspace which include Google Docs is the best sharing and collaborative document software in my opinion. We use Office365 for many use cases, but we use Google Docs, Sheets and Drive for simple use and sharing of high level information. The sharing is live and amazing

2. Calendly. This was a time saver. There is nothing worse than trying to schedule a meeting with someone over emails and having to hit reply 5 times saying, what ever works for you, let me know, or you suggest a time, and they’re busy.  Sign up for Calendly and add to your email signature and use it.

3. Zoho CRM. Yes, there are many CRM platforms out there, but I discovered the simplicity of the Zoho software tools many years ago. They provide the simple features and are easy to setup and are one of the more competitive in terms of pricing. The best thing I like about Zoho is all their software tools integrate.

4. Zoho Chat (SalesIQ). This is a chat bot tool.  This is easy to implement on any website and integrates nicely with the CRM tools. So you can have your team use this and close more sales and view the results in your CRM

5. AI Writing tools. If you havent tried AI writing tools, please give them a try. There are many AI software writing providers out there and most give you a certain number of words you can generate each month on free subscriptions. 

So here’s my hack for you on AI writing software. Sign up for several of them and combine the number of free words you get to give you a large number of free word inventory.  Most of them give you 1 or 2 thousand free words per month, so if you sign up for five free accounts, thats about 5 or 10 thousand free words you’ll have each month across the providers. That could be enough that you need.  So that’s my secret hack for you, so you cant tell anyone.

Aside from these 5 software tools that we use to run our business, check out some more productivity tools on our web page here.  

Things like Virtual phone numbers, legal document providers and new company formation services.  All great productivity tools we recommend here…  https://theprofile.ca/productivity-tools/

Digitize your business and Utilize cloud storage

Do you want to know what the least productive task is in your business in my opinion? The biggest time waster? Its looking for papers.  You’ve filed it somewhere, it’s in your office? Or your house, or in your laptop bag?  You have to walk across the office to the big metal filing cabinets, you get distracted on the way.  When you get there,  you find something else you lost last week and forget what you were looking for this time.  I read somewhere looking for stuff takes up to 30% of your time each day.  I would verify this fact if I were you,  but I’m thinking its pretty accurate based on my experience before we went 100% Digital. 

It takes some initial work to get this right. But if you learn how to implement a naming convention and a file folder strategy, and if you store your digitized documents in Google Drive, you can use the powerful search capabilities of Google search to find any file or document you’ve stored in seconds. Then share or send from Google Drive.

If all your receipts are scanned its easy to send to your book keeper. In fact, digitize and just share the folders.

With a digitized document,  you can now annotate and add comments, create versions and share with anyone. With DocuSign you can digitally sign and execute agreements. 

If its stored on the cloud, you can be assured now all your data is backed up and secure.  

If your business is run using online software as a service, and data is digitized and stored on the cloud, you no longer have to worry about losing a laptop or a hard drive failure.  

I’ve done many travel trips where at my destination,  I simply borrow someone’s laptop and login to my entire business.  In fact our company today can be run entirely using our mobile phones. Actually I wrote half of this blog using my phone,  using dictation software writing in a Google doc. This hack is no secret.  You can tell everyone I run my businesses using only my phone.

This simple strategy of digitizing your business and storing on Google Docs, may be your biggest productivity gain.

So please, think about this hack.

Outsource, use Virtual assistants and join a Coworking community 

As a small business owner, it’s important to delegate tasks. Give some of your work to other people to free up more time for yourself.  Try a Virtual Assistant Service

For example: rather than doing all the bookkeeping for your business, delegate to a bookkeeper.

Rather than answering all customer service calls, delegate to a customer service representative

Take advantage of technology

There are many great ways you can Outsource or use a Virtual Assistant to increase your productivity. For example:

• Use a virtual assistant to manage your calendar or planner to keep track of your schedule. 
• Use a virtual assistant to go through your data and transcribe this to your simple KPI document 

As an entrepreneur its sometimes tempting to do everything yourself. And you may say, “well I’m a solopreneur so there is only me.” 

But here is your one hack in this section.   

If your a solopreneur, find some of the above ideas to Outsource,  and use some of the freelance websites like, Peopleperhour or TopTal or Upwork.. and delegate some small tasks. 

But here is your hack. 

Get to know your outsourcing providers, do zoom calls with them and try to work closely with them. 

Like I said, it can be very small things you Outsource,  but now you suddenly have a team. Your no longer a solopreneur. 

Don’t go alone. There are many ways to do things with other people including where you work.  I definitely suggest work at a coworking space once a week and join a community. 

Keep it Simple using Google Docs. NO FORMATTING ALLOWED

I have a Google docs file I store in Drive called “TO DO”.  And basically, i write out my high level plans, my goals, my projects in very simple text. I look at this everyday, often times, staring at it for a great deal of time. These are my high level notes for everything.

I have “NO FORMATTING ALLOWED” in caps, because it is important you leave all your text unformated to leave it up to your brain and imagination for what is important or what to do. 

You don’t have to highlight tasks in yellow, others in rouge, and bold and bullet, etc.. This is nothing but a distraction.  What is easier to read?

My TASKS TODAY

1. Write blog
2. do invoicing
3. Go Shopping

or this same list with no formatting?

My tasks Today

1. Write blog
2. do invoicing
3. Go Shopping

Use the mind mapping software to get more ideas on … (in progress)

Formatting is fun, but that’s about it.  When I see point 2 about invoicing, i dont need to format this in purple colored text to get my attention. I can quickly imagine in my brain the invoicing software we use, the lists we have to export and prepare. 

And i know when we need to do this. No purple text is needed 🙂. Just kidding.

4 HACKS TO TRAIN YOUR BRAIN. 

In the opening paragraphs of this article, I mention the first sections of hacks are meat and potatoes and the last 4 hacks are critical.

These final 4 hacks were and still are critical for me maintaining success in my entrepreneur career. This is all about how you think and how you train your brain to stay focused by using your words carefully. 

Here are my 4 most important hacks.

Create catchphrases – buzzwords for your business goals

You’re familiar with your local politician talking about their mandate or platform policies. They want to help develop an area of the city, so they are pushing to build a bridge to allow easier access. So they come up with a phrase like “Build that bridge for success”

And they say this over and over and repeat at every event. Let’s “Build that bridge for success”. The detail comes later. When people begin to agree that a bridge is needed, they begin asking about how, or what are the details.  And that’s fine. Find the details and work on them, but don’t stop burning the phrase in peoples brains. “Build that bridge for success”, the detailed plan could be to hire locally and create jobs.  

You need to find your buzzwords for your company and repeat this to your staff and team over and over. Like “Let’s go Digital”.  Or “Always be Closing”

When you’re concluding your meetings, end it with saying okay folks, remember “Let’s go Digital”  It means 30% more time for everyone. And don’t forget, “Always be Closing”. It’s like in hockey, you can’t score unless you send pucks to the net. But it’s the catch phrase that you burn into the athletes brains. “Send pucks to the net”

Come up with your catch phrases, then next step is write them out.

Write out your plans: NO FORMATTING ALLOWED

This is a repeat for one of the hacks using productivity software tools. But i would like to stress this point again. 

Keep your plans simple. Write them out in a Google Docs  And don’t format the text. Read your plans often.

So add a quick URL link or shortcut on your PC or phone and open the simple doc often. It could look like this;

OUR COMPANY GOALS

• Let’s Go Digital
• Delegate to be free

MY STRATEGY

• Always be Closing
• Dress for Success

Prioritize, Prioritize, Prioritize

Know what is important to do next in your business. What is important? cleaning up the mess of a leaking roof, or having your roof replaced and repaired? Well, that is up to you to decide and prioritize. Your time may be better spent cleaning up the small water issues and focus on keeping your tenants happy and paying rent, versus moving them out to replace the roof.  Or you have to weigh the risk of losing the tenant for the inconveniences. 

You have to prioritize and that’s how you maintain your simple list.  You write them out and move them around based on your prioritizing.

Learn and know what’s important in your business to bring in the most results. Prioritize and then execute.

KEEP SCORE

Do you keep KPI data of your business? Or key performance indicators? In other words, your score data.  These are the numbers that tell how healthy your company is and if you’re doing well or not. And they’ll help you see if anything needs to change or get fixed in order for everything to work right again. Every business has their own KPIs because every industry is different. So it’s important to choose which ones are best for yours!

No one size fits all approach will ever work in business. 

So instead of trying to find the perfect measurement, focus on finding ones that align well with what matters most to you, such as your goals and industry. 

This means understanding why you’re taking these measurements, who they’ll affect when they’re out of whack, and how often they need to change (daily or monthly). 

As such, here are a few blogs that provide some indicators every small business needs to give you some ideas.

Some KPI’s that have always been important to me over time is the cost of acquiring a customer (CAC) and the life time value of that customer (LTV). These are important ones to figure out in your business, because it will provide you with a marketing budget.  

If you know what it costs to acquire a customer, say $500. Then what is the life time value of that customer? I know, simple math, but the LTV needs to be more than your CAC. 

In my experience I’ve met alot of entrepreneurs who do not know these two KPI’s that should be on the tip of their tongue or easily discussed in any conversation without having to refer to notes or files.

So decide with your team which KPIs you want to track together and record this data in a simple Google sheet. Remember,  keep the data simple, and NO FORMATTING. 

CONCLUSION

As an entrepreneur and business owner, productivity was essential to my success at staying an entrepreneur for over 25 years. But it wasn’t easy, it can be hard to find the proper techniques to help you stay focused and get things done. 

I hope some of these hacks can work for you and save you some time, money and happiness.

These hacks are real and I really do use these hacks in my life and business.  This is not just content filler and I didn’t use an AI writer for this. Ok I admit I did use an AI writer for a little bit, but just to check my grammar and some sentence structure,  why wouldn’t I?. Why wouldn’t you?

If you have some favorite productivity hacks, please let me know.  You can email me anytime. I would love to hear from you. 

Happy hacking for productivity!

The post 12 Productivity Hacks I’ve used for 25 years as an Entrepreneur appeared first on Virtual Business Address by The Profile.

If you’re like me, you can sometimes get bogged-down in small admin details. Okay, I always get bogged-down in small admin details. And if you value your free time, which I do, I’d like to propose the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant. 

They take care of small admin details.

Virtual assistants, also known as “VA’s” or sometimes “personal assistants,” are becoming a staple in many business operations. Especially with today’s growing trend of the Hyrbrid work model and the Virtual Office.

Whether you’re short on hands or just want to free yourself from menial tasks, there are benefits to hiring a virtual assistant.

I’d like to share the many benefits of hiring a virtual assistant with you, so you can reap the rewards too.

More free time

You’ll have more time to focus on the aspects of your business that need the most attention.  The time I save by hiring a virtual assistant gives me more free time to enjoy life AND more hours to work on developing new products and brainstorming new business ideas.

The right virtual assistant can also help you achieve better work-life balance, so you can focus on what matters most. If you want more personal time to spend with friends, family, and hobbies while still being productive, hiring a virtual assistant is a no brainer. It worked for me, and it can work for you.

Here’s a picture of me outsourcing swimming to this furry little piggy. You get the idea.

Multiple employees for the price of one

I love the idea of having multiple employees rolled into one! That’s what you get with a virtual assistant. In terms of skills and tasks, a virtual assistant is like having multiple employees in one. Many assistants are multi-talented, so you can invest in one to handle general administrative tasks and have them perform others as needed. Or you can have one assistant who specializes in each area of your business: sales, financial, marketing, etc.

A virtual assistant’s ability to multitask means you get more done with less time and money. I was surprised at how multi-dimensional my virtual assistants are. Hire the right one, and they can handle multiple tasks.

Outsource many admin tasks of your office

What does a virtual assistant do?

Take a look at your notebook or task list and see where the daily patterns are that take up your time. Do you do things that are repetitive, like trying to book your calendar?  Do you have a list of certain non-sales related people you call every day? Maybe to gather information or relay information. Do you open mail and scan and sort and determine who takes care of your letter mail?

Here’s my shortlist

• Bookkeeping
• Updating client records
• Filing documents
• Answering FAQs to leads
• Scheduling phone calls
• Opening letter mail and the distribution

If it’s repetitive and non-sales-related, it can probably be outsourced to a VA

Ability to scale up or down

Once I hired my first virtual assistant, I discovered how easy it is to scale up or down with virtual assistants. If your company is busy now, but you know that things will slow down in a few months, you can add more assistants to help with the workload and let them go when things calm down. It’s like having a flexible pool of employees at your fingertips.

If you are working on a huge project for the next three months and need more dedicated help than usual, hire more virtual assistants to get the job done. You don’t need to worry about training new employees or finding enough work for them when things slow again. You simply let go of the staff you no longer need. You can always hire more virtual assistants when the need arises.

Highest-quality employees (freelancers)

I love the way virtual assistants give you access to a global workforce and the ability to hire the best talent in the world! Some virtual assistants I’ve worked with have been better than employees it took me weeks to hire. Being able to compete on a global stage is one of the perks of hiring remotely. You can hire someone who’s qualified, but doesn’t live nearby. They might be oceans away but still deliver their best work to you. Virtual assistants are usually highly motivated too.

To find a Virtual Assistant, you can do the usual and search google for “Best Virtual Assistants near me”. For example, I got a link to one popular agency at Upwork.

Some of my other favourites are People Per Hour. You can select the locations of the freelancers or in this case VA’s.

Here’s my shortlist. Freelance websites I’ve hired from aside from PHP and Upwork

• Fiverr
• Guru
• Freelancer.ca

Stay ahead of the competition

Having virtual assistants has allowed me to stay ahead of the game, and that includes staying one step ahead of the competition. Some businesses already employ virtual assistants.

If you’re a business owner, or you are now operating as a Virtual Office or a Hybrid work model, then outsmart your competition and ensure your company has a competitive advantage over other companies by tapping into virtual assistants as well.

If you don’t take this step, you can be left behind, while other organizations outpace yours. I don’t know about you, but I’m not willing to let that happen!

Virtual assistants are cost-effective

Here’s the money part:

• You don’t have to pay full-time salaries or benefits
• You can hire a virtual assistant from around the world, which means they can work while you sleep.
• Working with different time zones, means having someone who can work while you sleep.
• You’ll get work done faster, and your business will grow in ways that wouldn’t be possible if you couldn’t outsource jobs.
• Remember, what is your time worth? You should always ask that question

The Bottom Line

Take it from me, hiring a virtual assistant will let you focus on other areas of your business while they take care of the tasks that are getting in the way of your company’s growth. So, whether you’re starting a new online business, looking to expand an existing small business, or working toward another type of personal or professional goal, consider the benefits of hiring a virtual assistant.

Now you know the advantages of doing so. It changed how I approach my business, and it will change yours too – for the better.

Other resources

What do I need to become a virtual assistant?

If you are curious about becoming a Virtual Assistant here are a few interesting articles to start you on your journey.

• Udemy – 21 Steps to becoming a Virtual Assistant
• How to Become a Virtual Assistant, and Companies That Hire
• How to Become a Virtual Assistant and Land Your First Job
• HOW TO BECOME A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT WITH NO EXPERIENCE (EARN UP TO $60,000!)
• How to Become a Virtual Assistant (VA) in Canada

The post 7 Benefits of Hiring a Virtual Assistant that will free your time appeared first on Virtual Business Address by The Profile.

What is Google My Business?

Google My Business is an important online tool that helps businesses manage their Google My Business Account. The importance lies with its ability to help your customers find your business easily and quickly.

All businesses, whether online-based or with a storefront, should set up and optimize their google business listing.  It’s free so take advantage of this productivity hack.

When customers search your business what do they see? The first listings that come up are Google ads, which you have to pay for. The second is the Google Maps listing where your Google My Business profile shows up – all free of charge. Your Google My Business listing may also show up on the right hand side of the search results. 

Typically the listings consists of:

• Business name
• Address
• Business hours
• Phone Number
• Website
• Directions
• Business description
• Photos that accurately represent your business

More advanced and well-optimized listings will contain:

• Timely updates
• Products or services
• Appointment booking (if applicable)

Why Should I Claim My Google Business Account?

As far as search engines go, this is prime real estate that everyone is going after. Statistically speaking, customers are far more likely to click on listings that show up on the first page. The data shows that most people won’t scroll very far to find what they are looking for. The easier you can be found, the more you will be seen, and (hopefully) the more you will sell.

So let’s run through an example. With The Profile, customers might search for a coworking office. They type in “coworking offices Vancouver” to the Google search bar and immediately see The Profile’s Google My Business listing. When they click on it, they have all the information they need. They see our products and prices. They see our COVID-19 update that tells them we are still open. They can take action by clicking on our website link or calling us right from the business listing.

Your next step is to set up your account and optimize your listing to make the most of the Google My Business benefits.

How To Claim A Google Business Account

Now that you understand the benefits of a Google My Business, the first step is to claim your Google business account. All you need is a Google Gmail account to claim your Google My Business. 

The process can be summarized with three simple steps:

1. Use your Google email address to start a Google My Business account.
2. Request your Google postcard to your business address and enter the code in your Google My Business account
3. Add your business information and optimize your Google My Business account

Using your Gmail Google email address, google the name of your business and your Google Maps listing should pop up. Within the listing, click the “Suggest an edit – Own this business?” link. This will take you to the Google My Business account setup page.

You need to enter your business address and select your business category. To make the most of your listing, you should also add your phone number, service areas, website, and a short business description.

Next, you need to verify that you own the business and the associated address. To do this, request your Google postcard on the Google My Business portal. Your Google postcard will arrive through the mail to your business address after a few days or weeks. It contains a code you need to enter in the Google My Business portal. Once that code is entered, you now own and can optimize your Google business listing. That’s it!

Can I use my home address to claim my Google business account?

When entering your address into your Google business account, there are a few things you should know. You can use your home address or business address to claim your Google business account, but not a PO box address. If you can, it’s best to use a business address to claim your Google business account. Using a home address to claim your Google business account is not best practice because it may not be the best idea for your business. Some small businesses can thrive using their home address, while others may struggle.

Although you can hide your address in your Google business listing, using your home address can still provide privacy concerns. Google will store your home address as your business address in your listing. Additionally, if you want to share an office address with your customers, you would have to provide your personal home address.

As you grow and scale your business, having a business address gives you a more formal and professional look. You may need to use your business address for registration, marketing materials, proposals or documents.

What if I don’t have a business address?

If you don’t have a business address, you still have options. Since a PO Box address won’t be accepted by Google, you can either use your home address or use a virtual mailbox address. A virtual mailbox address is recommended when you don’t have a physical business address.

Virtual Office Address

A virtual address, or vanity address, is a great solution when you don’t have a physical business address. It allows you to use a professional address without having to rent a physical office space. Most virtual addresses will also allow you to receive business mail and packages.

At The Profile, we offer virtual mailbox addresses. These are vanity addresses that businesses use to receive mail and packages, register their businesses, add to their website or business cards. And – of course – businesses use the virtual mailbox address to claim their Google business account and put the address in their listing. Each of our customers receive a business address with a unique office number. Our customers can choose between one of our virtual addresses in flourishing areas within Vancouver.

Still need help registering your business and getting your Google My Business listing set up? No problem, we are happy to help! Just contact us.

The post How to Claim a Google My Business Account appeared first on Virtual Business Address by The Profile.

When entering your business information into Google My Business, make sure you add your website, phone number, photos, business description, address, service hours and service areas (if applicable), and timely updates.

Basic Information – Website, Phone Number, Photos & Business Description

Add your website link to your Google My Business page. This could be your home page, contact page, or maybe a “request a quote” page. Some businesses that don’t have a website will link to a third-party website like their Instagram portfolio or their Door Dash order page.

Add your business phone number if your listing. When you add your phone number, people who view your listing on their phone can click to call that phone number. This may increase the amount of inbound sales calls you receive.

Add photos to your Google My Business listing. You can add a cover photo, your logo, and other photos. You should add photos that represent your business – products/services, customers enjoying your business benefits, your office space if customers visit your office, etc.

Your business description should be clear and concise. It should tell your customers about what your business is and what you sell. Leave out any information about temporary promotions or special events because there is another area of Google My Business to post timely updates.

Address & Service Areas in Google My Business Profile

If you don’t have a physical address*, you can add service areas to your Google My Business Account profile. For example, you could be an independent lawyer who works from home, uses a virtual mailing address in Vancouver, but services all of Vancouver and the surrounding area. In that case, you wouldn’t want your customers to come to the virtual office and you probably wouldn’t want them to come to your house.  Adding service areas to your Google My Business tells your customer which areas your business operates in.

*Beware of using your home address for Google My Business Account. It can work for some small businesses but you’ll want to have a business address you can use for registration, mail, marketing, etc. You cannot use a “virtual address” if the office is not staffed during standard business hours. The workaround is to sign up for The Profile’s virtual mailbox address because the office is staffed Monday to Friday, 9 to 5 to receive mail and greet your customers if they happen to stop by.

Reviews

Another aspect of Google My Business reviews. Your customers can leave a star-rated review with photos and comments. As a business, you have the ability to reply to your customer’s reviews. It is important to monitor your reviews on Google My Business (currently there is no alert system to tell you when someone leaves a review). 

The more positive reviews you receive on your Google My Business Account listing, the better your search rankings will be. Typically listings with many positive reviews will be listed higher than businesses with no reviews, making it easier for potential customers to find you. One way to get more reviews is to make it a standard practice to ask your customer for a review after you serve them. Some businesses will even offer an incentive, like 10% off their next purchase, for leaving reviews.

It’s recommended to reply to every review, good or bad, but especially be sure to follow up with negative reviews. This shows that your business is active and that you have good customer service. Also, note that anyone can post a review regardless of whether they’ve purchased something from your business or not. That is why it’s so important to monitor your reviews. When you get a review from someone who you haven’t served, simply reply to let them know they are reviewing the wrong business.

Products & Services

You can add the products or services you offer to Google My Business. This can be especially helpful for companies offering a limited number of static products. Your customers will easily be able to see what you offer and how much it costs. 

When adding products, you can add a photo, product description, and product price. Your product price can be listed as a range or a fixed amount. You can also add a button that links to your site or the product page. This can be a helpful tool to increase your sales.

When adding services, you can select from suggested services or add a custom service. Similarly to products, you can list a fixed price, a price range, or a bottom price. Though you can’t add photos to services, you can add a service description.

Post Updates

You can post updates to your Google My Business page. Currently, Google is offering the ability for businesses to post their COVID-19 updates to let customers know if there are any changes. You can also post about special offers, upcoming events, or general business news. 

It’s beneficial to post timely updates. How often should you post on Google My Business? You should try and post an update once a week that includes a photo or video. There have been companies that have seen positive results from posting every day.

Here are some examples of ideas for Google My Business posts. If you have a new photo of a product that you might put on your Instagram, you should throw that up on your Google My Business as an update. Or if you are offering a new service, you should post an update about it. If you get a new review on a platform that is not Google My Business, such as Yelp or Yellow Pages, you could post about it.

Are you still confused about Google My Business? No worries, just contact us and we can help you register your business, set up your Google My Business listing with our virtual mailbox address, and more.

Google My Business is a simple productive tool for SEO. If you are interested in more productivity solutions, check out this article. 12 Productivity Hacks

The post How To Manage Your Google My Business Account appeared first on Virtual Business Address by The Profile.

COMPLIANCE & LICENSING.

By Kathryn Pomroy

Lots of small business owners, sole proprietors, independent contractors, solo entrepreneurs, and digital nomads with virtual offices use their home address for their business. It makes sense. Using your home address is simple and doesn’t cost you a cent.

While using your home address may be the best choice for you, it may not work for everyone. Why? Because there are significant downsides to and potential legal consequences of using your home address for your business. Sometimes a better option is getting a virtual business address.

Let’s take a look at virtual business addresses, their benefits, and some issues to consider. We’ll also explain the drawbacks to using your home address, and the pros and cons of a PO Box.

What is a virtual business address?

A virtual business address is a real street address at a mail center or in an office building. It’s a place where you receive your business mail and packages, but it’s not a PO Box. A virtual business address relies on the Internet for meetings, document exchange, telephone answering, and video conferencing, so employees, no matter where they’re located, can keep in touch.

If you have a home-based business or if you need an address for your business in another city, you can get a virtual business address. They’re available in 50 states and abroad, and add a little more credibility to your business than using your home address. There are no long-term commercial leases to sign and no strings attached to set one up.

Aside from the name, the fee-based mail forwarding service isn’t actually “virtual” in the way most people would think. You have a professionally-trained provider filtering your mail on your behalf. And depending on who you use, you can arrange for them to do a number of other tasks:

• Most providers scan your mail and then send you virtual copies of all the mail you receive.
• Some providers will weed out the junk, leaving you to decide what to keep and what to throw out.
• With most providers, you can also receive mail no matter where you’re located, which allows you to hop on your computer or smartphone and view your mail anytime.
• Most providers will accept envelopes and packages from all the major carriers, including UPS, DHL, FedEx, and USPS.

Another perk is privacy. A lot of people who run a business out of their home don’t like the idea of giving out their address. Having a virtual business address can save you the worry of having customers or vendors show up at your door.

If you want to send a letter or other business correspondence from your virtual address, you can do that too. Just scan or take a photo of your document, upload it, and enter the address you want it delivered to. Plus, you can set up your virtual street address in any state where you do business, even if you don’t personally do business at that location.

Most services provide the same solutions, but it’s a good idea to shop around for one that meets your needs.

Why you may want a business address

Every business has to start somewhere, and for some, that means starting out of their home. While working out of your home office will save you the cost of renting a commercial space, there are some things to think about, like privacy concerns, zoning restrictions, professional presence, and liability issues.

Let’s take a look at why you may want a business address.

Privacy concerns

If you use your home address as your business address, that means you need to provide your personal address whenever a customer or a vendor needs your business’s contact information. You may have to use your home address on your website or even on your business cards.

While some home businesses opt out of using an address online, you typically must provide an address on your business records. Unfortunately, using your home address can compromise your family’s safety and privacy. With Google and Bing Maps, everyone can easily find where your home is located, and the last thing you want is for a disgruntled customer or vendor to show up at your doorstep.

Lease and homeowner association rules

Many apartment complexes and condominiums restrict your ability to run a business out of your home. If you own a condo, check the covenants, codes, and restrictions provided by your Home Owners Association (HOA). If you rent, look over the terms of your lease.

Just because there’s a restriction doesn’t necessarily mean there’s nothing you can do. If your small business is unobtrusive and won’t bother other residents (as is the case with most professional service businesses), you may be able to explain the situation to your landlord or HOA and receive an exemption.

Zoning restrictions

Local zoning laws and home-based business ordinances may also restrict your ability to run a commercial operation out of your home. This is usually due to zoning laws that seek to maintain the residential character of a neighborhood. Contact your city and ask if there are any codes that would stop you from using office space in your home for business operations.

Some zoning boards restrict the right of home-based business owners to build separate structures, and there may be limits on the number of employees you can have. Keep in mind that some regulations don’t allow you to hire any employees who will work out of your home. There may also be restrictions on the percentage of your home that can be used exclusively for your business.

In addition, you may not be able to display advertising signage, and some communities have parking and traffic restrictions that may restrict access to your business. Even noise can be subject to zoning laws.

Liability issues

Although there are no restrictions saying you can’t, limited liability corporations (LLCs) and S or C corporations should think twice about using a home address for their small business.

One of the major benefits of these business entities is a limited liability for business debts and activities. However, this protection only applies if you keep your business and personal activities separate. Using a personal home address for a business could “pierce the corporate veil,” making you personally liable for business debts and obligations.

If you run an LLC and no longer want to use your home address for business, there are several ways you can easily get a business address.

• TheUnited States Postal Service has PO Boxes available for businesses in a variety of sizes. Just make sure to ask for a real address rather than a PO Box address.
• You can pay to use someone’s office to receive your mail.
• You can choose a mail-receiving service for packing, shipping, and tracking packages.
• Instead of the USPS PO boxes, you can use UPS Mailboxes. They offer 24/7 access and will even hold or forward your mail.

Professional reputation

More and more clients are accepting of entrepreneurs and consultants who don’t have a unique business address. However, unless you have a professional business address, you won’t want to list a contact address on your company website for security reasons.

At the same time, many business owners with home offices risk losing sales by making people search for contact information — or by not providing it at all. The name of your business, a real street address, phone number, and email address should be onevery page of your website.

That’s because visitors will arrive at your site via search engines, and you want to make it easy for Google to find your physical address. With a physical address on every page of your site, Google can better send traffic to your website and business when your potential customers perform a local search.

Sending out invoices, contracts, or statements of work with your home address listed may also have customers questioning your professional status. If clients see that your business is run out of your home, they may hesitate to trust that your business is an established, long-term endeavor.

Registered agents

Many business owners who chose to use their home address or don’t want to use a mail service but still want to preserve their privacy opt for registered agent services. A registered agent can receive legal documents, like a summons, lawsuit papers, or a subpoena — papers you may not want delivered to your home. Every state requires that a company’s registered agent have a physical mailing address in the state where the company is registered. A PO Box won’t count as a physical mailing address.

What about a PO Box?

A Post Office Box, or PO Box, from the US Postal Service helps you keep important documents confidential and your home address private. You won’t have to worry about packages and mail being delivered when you’re not home, and a PO Box also allows you to separate all of your business mail from your personal mail.

To find a PO Box near you, simply go the USPS homepage and look for the “Reserve a New PO Box” tab. You can then search by zip code or address to find the nearest location. You can reserve a United States Postal Service (USPS) PO Box with your online account or open a new account at usps.com/poboxes. Once you find a Box that fits your needs and reserve it, print the PO Box application: PS Form 1093. Then take it to your Post Office with two forms of photo ID.

After you complete the PO Box application, submit it at the Post Office, and pay your rental fee via credit card, you’ll get a Box number and two keys or a combination for your Box. If the USPS doesn’t provide mail services to your home, you may be entitled to a free PO Box. Check with your local Post Officeto see if you’re eligible.

A PO Box is affordable and allows you a change of address if you cancel. In addition to the above, a USPS mailing address gets you package notifications, 24-hour access, and text or call-in mail check. If a box or package is too large to fit in your Box, you will receive a notice to pick up your package at the counter during regular business hours.

If you decide to look into getting a PO Box for your business, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. If you’re an LLC or a corporation, you are not allowed to use a PO Box as the physical address you list on your business license. So be sure to ask the postal service for a real address rather than a PO Box. For registration purposes, a business address must be a legally valid address — that is, a physical address or a virtual address.

Also, most USPS offices won’t sign for packages from the UPS or FedEx. However, if your PO Box is eligible for Premium PO Box Services, packages from any shipper can be held at a Post Office location.

And if you’d rather not stand in the long lines at the Post Office, you can set up automatic renewal payments online to pay your PO Box fees using a credit or debit card. Just log into your account and go to Manage PO Box.

Something else to keep in mind is if you already have a PO Box for your personal mail, you can switch to a business account online. However, if you have a business account, you cannot switch to a personal account. You’ll need to apply for a new personal PO Box.

Aside from the convenience of a PO Box, there are a number of other services you can get for your business such as Caller Service. This is for businesses that have more than five PO Boxes or receive more mail than can be delivered to the largest Box. You’ll be notified to come pick up your mail during business hours if your packages can’t be delivered to your Boxes.

Another service is called Reserve Service. This is designed for business owners who send out lots of promotional mailings. This service helps you distinguish between promotional mail and standard business mail.

A PO Box is a good option for many small business owners who don’t want to use their home address as their business address. Your mail is secure, you can access your mail during USPS business hours, there are a range of mailbox sizes to choose from, and the rental periods are priced fairly.

So when considering whether a PO Box is right for you, consider the benefits as well as the limitation to decide if its the best choice for your business.

Getting down to (virtual) business

While using a home address may work out great for you, the independent contractor down the road may decide otherwise. No one choice is best for everyone and you have to carefully weigh your options before deciding.

A virtual business address may provide the security and privacy you need so you don’t have to worry about vendors or customers showing up at your home unannounced. Getting a PO Box with a real address also works, and they come in a range of sizes and rental costs are reasonable.

If you want your business to look professional, a real street business address will create more credibility, as well as protect your privacy and personal information. And you can still enjoy the freedom that comes with working out of your home.Rate

Original source

https://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/compliance-licensing/does-your-company-need-a-business-address-virtual-address-or-po-box/#

About the author

Kathryn Pomroy

Kathryn is a journalist and storyteller. She’s a sucker for great content that matters, pushes the boundaries beyond her core responsibilities, and actually enjoys making challenging, complex ideas and concepts understandable and appealing to diverse audiences. She was as a newspaper editor, a senior writer at two advertising agencies, proofreader of college textbooks, and journalism teacher. Kathryn has a working knowledge and years of experience in finance and financial concepts, investments, markets, and more. She lives in Duluth, Minnesota with her family and her dog, Nellie. Read more

The post Does your company need a business address, virtual address, or PO Box? appeared first on Virtual Business Address by The Profile.