SMS
SMS is such a powerful tool because it is a cost-effective and un-intrusive way of contacting people.
Sending SMS is a free add-on for all accounts.
You can set your own CallerID (phone number or name) for your outgoing SMS message. Successfully delivered SMS will be charged 10¢ per message.
If you don't mind using any CallerID, you can also use our 2 Way SMS to send. Replies to your message go to nominated email at no extra costs.
We also provide incoming SMS-To-Email services for:
- marketing
- customer service
- alerts and reminders
- research and survey
A SMS incoming number is needed for SMS-To-Email service. The main feature of this service is all incoming SMS messages will be forwarded to your email.
FreeCall offers both dedicated and shared SMS incoming numbers.
Dedicated (Virtual Mobile Number)
For a dedicated SMS incoming number, you are the sole user of the number. All incoming SMS messages will go to your email. You can also enable voice (same number to receive SMS and voice calls). There is no contract period.
The subscription for dedicated SMS number is $18 per month (with an one-off activation fee of $25)
Shared
If you know the numbers that will be sending SMS messages to you then a shared number is more cost-effective. There is no setup fee and no contract period.
The following monthly plans are available:
- $5 - for up to 10 mobiles
- $10 - for up to 30 mobiles
- $15 - for up to 50 mobiles
SMS Merge
Similar to mail merge, SMS merge is to create SMS that are essentially the same but where each contains unique elements (placeholder). For example, in a SMS that addresses each recipient by name.
It also lets you:
- have multiple placeholders in a message
- save your templates for future use (including list of destinations)
- schedule the date and time to send
SMS Merge is a free add-on for all accounts.
Fax
Most businesses and home offices still rely on sending and receiving faxes. Some businesses receive a lot of faxes while home offices may only receive faxes from time to time. Whatever your needs, sending and receiving faxes using FreeCall is convenient, saves on telephone line rental, fax hardware and consumables. It is much cheaper than keeping a fax line and machine. It also eliminates the restriction of having to be in front of the fax machine.
Sending a fax from our portal is quick and simple. This is a free add-on for all accounts.
You can set the Called Station ID and the sending phone number CallerID as if it were sent from your own fax machine. Our system will also automatically retry unsuccessful faxes 3 times for you to save your time. Successfully delivered faxes will be charged at a rate of 10¢ per page.
Email-To-Fax
Send fax directly from your email. For $5/month, up to 10 email addresses are allowed in one account. You can have different Called Station ID and CallerID for each fax. Unsuccessful faxes will be automatically retried 3 times. Delivered fax will be charged 10¢ per page.
Fax-To-Email
To be able to receive faxes by email, you will need a Fax Line. A fax Line is the same as a Metro Number(DID). The only difference being is that it is for receiving faxes. Incoming faxes will then be forwarded to your email. Email addresses can be changed realtime on our portal. You can also view your faxes online
Fax Line is $5/month (no setup fees) and there is no charge on receiving faxes.
Auto-Attendant
Auto-Attendant answers your phone and offers callers a range of interactive touch-tone choices that you can configure any way you want. Your callers receive consistent, professional treatment even when you are out or busy, and you save the time, money and frustration of answering and directing calls.
Auto-Attendant is a free add-on for all FreeCall Metro Numbers.
You can use multi-level menus on each of your incoming lines allowing for sophisticated setups, different departments to have their own auto-attendants, and automated distribution of frequently requested information such as your hours or location.
Time-based call handling is also supported so that you can have different greetings and menus for your calls during business hours, after hours, holidays, etc. For each level of menu, up to 9 different actions under the following groups can be selected.
- forward call to single or multiple destinations (same time or rotary)
- queue calls with music-on-hold while waiting to be answered
- navigate between levels
- leave message in your voicemail
- listen to pre-recorded announcements (up to 99 can be stored)
Example 1
"Thank you for calling ABC company, please press 1 for Sales, 2 for Accounts and 3 for Technical Support"
Customers will then be connected to group of sales, admin or technical staff. The staff can be located anywhere globally. You can also change the phone numbers real-time anywhere if so required.
Example 2
"Thank you for calling ABC company, press 1 for operator, 2 to leave us a message and 3 for more product information"
Upon pressing 1, the call will be forwarded to your nominated VoIP or normal phone numbers. Press 2 will go to VoiceMail. Press 3 will play a pre-recorded announcement about your products.
Callback
Callback is a handy way to call when VoIP is not available i.e. travelling. Using your mobile overseas is extremely expensive as are the hotel calling rates. In essence, Callback is a 2 legged call. Our system calls you and your destination then bridges the calls so that you can talk to the destination. FreeCall offers 3 types of callback services.
Web
Using Web callback is simple and easy. Enter your phone number(FreeCall or conventional number) and the destination number you would like to call online. Our system will call you and then the destination number and bridge the calls together. Web callback is a free add-on for all accounts.
ANI (Automatic Number Identification)
You can nominate up to 9 numbers for this callback service. When you want to use the service, use any one of the nominated number to call our ANI callback number in Sydney. Don't worry, the call will not be charged as it will not be answered. Our system calls you back and prompts for the destination number. It then calls that number for you. ANI callback is a free add-on for all accounts.
PAN (Personal Access Number)
CallerID needs to be presented for ANI callback to work. If a private line or overseas phone (many countries do not present CallerID) is being used then PAN callback is the solution. For PAN callback service, you will be provided your personal conventional phone number. When your conventional number is called (the phone will not be answered so there is no charge for the call), our system will call your nominated phone number and then prompt for the destination then call the number for you. Monthly service fee for PAN callback is $2.
Pricing and Billing
The call rate will be the total of the rates for the 2 legs.
For Example:
- You'd like to call the UK from Australia
- Australian landline is 1¢/minute
- UK is 2¢/minute
- The call rate for this call is 3¢/minute
Conference
FreeCall multi-parties conference facility provides true tele-conference capability which 3-way conference will not be able to handle if more than 3 parties need to engage in a discussion. With our multi-parties conference, your participants can access the conference room by using our access Gateways (listed in FAQ 23) in order to save on STD charges. You can also use your FreeCall account to call to avoid any phone charges altogether. Multi-parties conference is a free add-on for all accounts.
Booking is essential so that the room is reserved for you only. You can also nominate a 4-digit PIN to protect unauthorised access to your conference.
Group Call
Group Call is the prefect solution for offices in different locations or different departments that need to answer the same call. Group Call enables the Metro Number (DID) to forward calls to multiple destinations at the same time or sequentially. Destinations can be a combination of conventional telephone numbers, FreeCall accounts and other VoIP phone numbers. Group Call is a free add-on for all Metro Numbers. Using our secured Web interface, you can change the destinations anytime from anywhere.
Scenario 1 - Customer Services
The line is to be answered by a group of staff working in different locations. When a customer calls, all locations will ring at the same time. The first available staff can pickup the call. This provides flexibility for staff to work where they want without the risk of missing out on customers calls. You can also setup the system to call the next destination if only the previous one is unavailable.
Scenario 2 - Technical Support
The line is to go to a group of mobile technical support staff. Without knowing who is available, the system will call all destinations and see who can provide technical support. This is a cost-effective way to ensure technical matters will be attended to quickly.
Broadcast
Have you ever had a situation where you need to call a large number of people in a very short space of time? Our Broadcast services may just be your answer.
Our Broadcast service not only announces your message, it also lets you ask simple questiona which makes it an effective tool for:
- announcements
- marketing
- reminders
- survey
Scenario 1 - Announcement
A big day out has just been cancelled due to poor weather. Just record your message, upload the list and let our Broadcast service to notify all the participants for you.
Scenario 2 - Survey
Ask a few hundred people a simple question - if the answer is Yes press 1, No press 2 and Not Sure press 3. After calling all of them, you will be presented with the survey results ie 60% said Yes, 20% said No and 20% said Not Sure.
Callout
Callout is for anyone who may, at some time for whatever reason, need to seek help quickly from a contact list. Callout enables you to seek help by going through your list of contacts quickly and efficiently. The Callout contact list can have up to 5 entries. Each entry can be a voice call, SMS or an email address.
Application Examples:
- Senior member of the family who may need help occasionally
- Teenager home alone can seek help quickly
- Enables house alarm using phone dialer to send SMS or email
SOFY
SOFY (Speak Out For You) is our new text-to-speech service that can call someone on your behalf and then read out your message in spoken words. The application for SOFY is vast.
Examples...
- You can use SOFY to send a reminder to your friends for a gathering.
- Schedule a call to your client for the next half-yearly dental checkup.
- You can even schedule a wakeup call for yourself so that you will not miss something important.
You can setup calls immediately or for the future, the Control Panel lets you manage the SOFY calls when circumstances change so that you are always in control. An itemised calls report lets you have an accurate record of calls history. SOFY is a free add-on for all accounts. The cost to any Australian landlines is 10¢ while Australian mobiles and International numbers is 30¢.
Talk2Text
Talk2Text is a branch of speech recognition technology that can transcribe spoken words into written text. Applications for such technology are numerous.
Current available Add-ons include
- VoiceMail - audio messages are transcribed into text and email or SMS to you
- Auto-Attendant - caller can leave you a written message over the phone
Talk2Text will be rolled out to other applicable add-ons progressively.
The cost to Email is 10¢ and to Australian mobile is 20¢ per SMS (160 characters)
PBX Extension
Have your own 3 to 5 digit ie 1000 extensions in your office just like your private phone system.
You can use our provisioning server to setup your phones or configure them yourself.
PBX Extension subscription is $3/month per handset plus your choice of call plans.
Extensions can share any combination of plans ie 2 x Maxi + 1 x National, etc
Local & International DID
Local DID (Metro No)
We can provide conventional phone numbers from just about anywhere in Australia. A Metro No. is $5/month (autopay from account balance)
We can also port your existing conventional phone number from any provider to FreeCall. A successful port is charged a once-off fee of $20.
International DID
- 65 countries and thousands of local area codes
- Multi-channels (up to 10 calls at the same time)
- Paying by the month, no long term contract
- Starting from $5/month (autopay from account balance)