<%if thisURL="/index.asp" then thisURL="Court Reporting Services Home Page"%> court reporter | Todd Olivas & Associates v3.0 | Court Reporting Services serving all of California. Minority Business Enterprise (MBE). TO&A employs no court reporters, interpreters or videographers of our own. The providers we send are fully qualified and reliable independent contractors.


1 800 COURT REPORTER

Anybody got a spare $40,000 to purchase 1 800 COURT REPORTER?  I just got contacted by a telephone broker trying to sell me that phone number.  I figured it would be expensive but not that expensive! I politely wrote back, Too rich for my blood.  That's what I wrote, anyway.  What I was thinking was more along the lines of, You'd have to be an idiot to purchase that phone number at that price.

Why this would be a bad idea

  • Having a catchy phone number is not a marketing plan (Unless you have millions of dollars to buy television commercials like 1 800 FLOWERS.)
  • There is a reason someone gave up that number.  MMMM, could it be that it didn't yield enough business to justify an exhorbitant ownership fee?
  • Having a catchy phone number will not make the phone ring more.
  • Clients are not in the mindset -- and haven't been since the 80s -- to randomly call 1 800 [WHATEVER].  Nowadays, people use the internet to search first.
  • I could go on and on...

What else can someone do with 40k?

  • I could buy a brand new 2010 Chevy Tahoe
  • I could hire another collections person @ 40k/year salary
  • I could buy 40,000 lottery tickets

Either way, I am passing on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy 1 800 COURT REPORTER.  Do you think I'm crazy?  You can call me at 1 800 TODD OLIVAS to discuss.  (Just kidding)


04/01/2010

Author
Todd Olivas

Todd Olivas is a court reporter and entrepreneur.
He founded TO&A in 2003.

  Comment by Todd Olivas | 04/15/2010
<P dir=ltr style=MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px><STRONG>UPDATE:</STRONG><BR><BR><STRONG><U>The guy wrote back to me: <BR></U></STRONG><EM>Good morning... are you free to discuss the 1-800 COURT REPORTER number ? The asking price has been lowered significantly. Please contact me at [XXX-XXX-XXXX]</EM><BR><BR><STRONG><U>So, I couldn`t help myself and wrote back: <BR></U></STRONG><EM>What is the current call volume of this number? I would never pay 40k for some unknown ROI. If you’re going to sell this number to me, you’re going to have to show the value of it. This isn’t the old days when 1-800 [WHATEVER] is a slam dunk. The internet has changed everything about the way people find businesses. So without re-branding all of a company’s marketing to push 1-800 COURT REPORTER, the number could be a very big waste of money. No offense is intended in this, of course.</EM> <BR><BR><EM>But…<BR><BR>If you could show that a certain number of attorneys, clients, leads, etc. are calling this number already by default, then it might have some value to me. (And other potential buyers, I would presume.) So again, my key question: What is the current call volume of this number? Thank you.</EM><BR><BR><BR><STRONG><U>And he replied with this: <BR></U></STRONG><EM>Hey Todd... 1-800 COURT REPORTER dos not presently get much `organic` traffic. I understand your point. However, there is no better number for your industry, and the memorability factor alone will increase your volume dramatically. You can easily add this number to your website, stationary, etc. but in addition, could take advantage of the 1-800courtreporter.com domain that comes along with the purchase. Your ability to have a national `look and feel` will generate referrables from all over the country.&nbsp; Give it some thought, make a realistic offer, and we can discuss. Thanks...</EM><BR><HR><BR>So he admitted there is no organic traffic for the number which essentially makes it deader than a doorbell as far as an investment. Sure, if I rebrand it and market and pour tons of time and energy and money into putting the phone number out there... Not on your life!<BR><BR><STRONG><U>So I responded with: <BR></U></STRONG><EM>Thanks for the clarification and info. I’m probably not your best client profile, I’m afraid, since my best offer would be $1000. Let me know if you’re able to let it go for that much.</EM><BR><BR><STRONG><EM>His sorry response was: </EM></STRONG><BR><EM>Sorry. Sent from my iPhone</EM><BR><BR><STRONG>And that closes this chapter of the 1-800 COURT REPORTER phone number for sale.<BR></STRONG><BR><BR><P></P>
  Comment by Brad Lipetz | 05/21/2010
Hi Todd,<BR><BR>Your agency, through Lori, has been kind enough to send me jobs over the years here in SF. I find it interesting that you became involved with this number to some degree. Years ago, I aquired the number 800-reporter and was in negotiations to aquire 800-courtreporter but lost out. Recently, he has also been trying to sell it to me. I am not interested, however, I was recently offered a large amount for my number. My thinking is that when voice recognition becomes standard, these numbers will be all the rage again. Not that you should aquire it, just my 2 cents.<BR><BR>BTW: I would be interested in developing a similar site to yours for the legal video community should you be interested...<BR><BR>All the best and congrads on putting together a great and useful site!<BR><BR>Brad<BR>800-VIDEO-DEPO (couldn`t resist)


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