Please do not withhold your number

[#1]

Yep, had the same experience as chandu too.

[#2]

Can PlusNet dial 1470 before the number?
That works on the system at work, both to our land line and my mobile.
Richard

[#3]

Quote from: Chris

I know we've looked into this before, but IIRC the main issue was due to the fact that we also operate Madasafish, Metronet, Just the Name etc from here too so it'd need different numbers displaying for each one. As the support centre don't have a set seat (they mostly hotdesk) then this isn't easy to implement.

Surely in the majority of incoming support calls will be from the landline number associated with the customers phone and/or broadband service - therefore the helpdesk phone system could use the incoming customers CLI to identify or route a large percentage of calls to the relevant VISP operative.  This should simplify the helpdesk phone system as separate numbers would NOT be required for each VISP.  This means you could use a single phone number for ALL incoming enquiries, and because there is only one number there would be no reason to withhold the outgoing CLI. - PROBLEM SOLVED !.
Obviously this identification of customers landline CLI could be extended to include any registered phone numbers or mobile numbers on customers accounts, further improving coverage and accuracy of customer and VISP identification before answering the incoming call.
This should work as there will be a very high correlation between each customers phone details and the VISP that any given customer is with.

[#4]

@Purleigh
That's not far off what we're changing our phone system to do, along with other tweaks to identify if there is an open fault ticket etc. The issue is with some of the other VISPs we operate (including our Partner service) that for contractual reasons simply can't display the same Plusnet phone number.

[#5]

OK, but the same principle can work in reverse.
So you want to keep separate contact numbers for each VISP - fine no problem with that.
A customer is aware of their ISP's unique support phone number and always dials that when support is needed.
The original point of this thread is for customer support calls to send a CLI to the customers phone so it is no longer showing a withheld number.
So in the case of support staff wishing to call any customer, presumably the staff member will have a computer screen open with the 'case' details, so how hard can it be to have a button on the screen that dials the phone number that the customer has provided.  When the number is dialed, the computer will know the customer's VISP, and should be able to route the outgoing call in such a way that the VISP specific CLI is transmitted.
As the computer sets up the call, the details of the call could automatically be added to the customer's open support ticket - that would avoid another annoying practice where support tickets say "I tried to call you today but there was no answer" when the customer has been sitting ALL DAY next to the phone - which categorically didn't ring !!!

[#6]

We've allowed traders to select the out-going line/channel (hence CLI) for years on our financial market trading floors through their trading turrets. This is not new technology, it has its ancestry in the old key switch systems whereas PBX tends to do the outgoing line/channel selection automatically on a call plan basis. Of course the traders wanted the best of both worlds. If you are using call centre technology I'm sure this must be a programmable feature that can be tied to a menu selection.
Does PlusNet know any good voice telecomms provider they could talk to about this? 

[#7]

Quote from: Chris

for contractual reasons simply can't display the same Plusnet phone number.

My suggestion like other companies have a number that goes on the Caller ID which is a number you can call with a recording that says you hav been called by Plus Net.

[#8]

Quote

My suggestion like other companies have a number that goes on the Caller ID which is a number you can call with a recording that says you hav been called by Plus Net.

And that is part of the challenge. We have contractual arrangements with some of our Corporates, Partners and Resellers whereby our solution is "white label". In those cases we absolutely cannot mention Plusnet.
There are a substantial number of these, and any solution we arrive at has to consider how we handle those relationships in an effective and commercially viable manner. That means we need to investigate multiple outbound CLI's to present. Some of our Partner support numbers actually belong to those Partners, and calls to those numbers are simply routed to us by means of their IVR. This is going to be a complex nut to crack and has a number of material implications.
M

[#9]

Surely you don't need many numbers. Five numbers would make around 500,000 of your users happy. One for Plusnet, one for Force9, one for Free Online, one for Madasafish - all with the number not withheld, plus one number used for all the other vISPs and Partners with the number withheld.

[#10]

Then maybe have a recording saying you have been called by the companies that do the calls. Like Lloyds say that you been called bu their group that includes Cheltenham & glos , IF, and etc. It can be got around if one thinks that way.

[#11]

Quote from: Mark

Quote My suggestion like other companies have a number that goes on the Caller ID which is a number you can call with a recording that says you hav been called by Plus Net. And that is part of the challenge. We have contractual arrangements with some of our Corporates, Partners and Resellers whereby our solution is "white label". In those cases we absolutely cannot mention Plusnet.

Not ideal, but present an 0800 number with an anonymous recording "Technical support tried to contact you, please call us back using the number you have for your technical support as we do not accept incoming calls on this number"
There may be instances where customers recognise that the same number gets used for PlusNet and another ISP; or google the number and think "I don't have a PlusNet Account!"  That might not be acceptable.