I will not be renewing the workshop mobile phone contract when it falls due at the beginning of March 2021 and its associated number (ending 322270) will no longer be available. A new number has been acquired with full details below. The WhatsApp account associated with this number will also be deleted. The WhatsApp business account (441482521201) is not affected and will remain in use.
The Background
- The mobile signal in the workshop is weak at best and frequently nonexistent. As many of you who have called me on the mobile will know, it’s just about impossible to have a legible conversation on it when I’m at work.
- The mobile number has been shared, often without my knowledge to people who I’d rather didn’t have it. The result is the mobile had become a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week torture device. I now have two mobile phones, one for work and a personal one so I can leave the work one at home on my days off. I’d like to return to owning just one mobile phone!
- The mobile phone contract and phone insurance are an unnecessary additional expense for the business.
The Solution
Over the New Year weekend I installed the 3CX business phone system at the workshop. It’s fully operational and tested and if you’ve called the workshop on the landline number or I’ve called you in the last week or so then the call was routed through the new phone system.
3CX is a bit OTT, designed to operate in multi-site corporate environments and large call centres. The NHS use 3CX as do companies like Pepsi, Best Western Hotels, Holiday Inn and Air France. If they can deploy it then so can I (and I have!).
3CX can handle voice calls, visual voicemail, faxes and SMS text messages. It also integrates with my job management system providing click-to-call functionality for customer and supplier phone numbers. There’s also a mobile phone app so I can call and text customers when I need to such as when collecting cars from their workplaces without revealing my mobile phone number.
SMS Text Messages
Most relevant though is its ability to handle incoming and outgoing SMS text messages. To accomplish this I have secured a new mobile phone number and linked it with 3CX.
- Voice calls to the new number are routed to the workshop desk phones (rather than a mobile phone) during normal business hours and to voicemail outside of normal hours and also if I don’t answer the call within 20 seconds.
- SMS messages are routed to the 3CX web client on my desktop computer in the workshop and are replied to from there (rather than a mobile phone).
As calls and texts to the new number are now routed to the workshop I will no longer be able to see them and respond outside of normal business hours. Any calls and texts received outside of normal hours will be replied to when I'm next at the workshop.
The Only Two Numbers You Need
- Workshop Main Number: 01482 521201 (Voice calls only)
- Workshop Mobile Number: 07400 171201 (Voice calls and SMS text messages)
The outgoing caller ID for all calls made from the workshop and from the 3CX app on my mobile phone is 01482521201.
Other Ways To Get In Touch
There’s plenty of other ways to get in touch such as email, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. Visit the Contact Jonathan page for further details.
Common Sense, Please
I work alone and without staff. My priority is the repair of the vehicles at the workshop. I cannot repair vehicles and answer the phone at the same time.
- Please phone or text once. Once is enough. I can see you’ve called. I will reply to calls and messages in the order they are received and when I have time to do so.
- Please respect the business hours. They are 9.00am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday. I am not available outside of these hours.
- Business related messages sent through my personal social media accounts will be ignored. To contact the business please use the business contact methods.
- I do not provide updates or running commentaries on ongoing jobs. I will provide updates if there’s a significant change in the job’s status and I have time to do so.
