Written by
Mary Gonzalez, Director of Brand & Content
Published on
September 1, 2023
Branded calling has gained traction as a way to rebuild trust in the voice channel. By showing a recognizable caller ID name, businesses hope to improve answer rates and stand out among spam and scam calls. The industry assumption? Branding every call will lead to higher engagement.
But this “brand every call” strategy comes at a cost. With so many outbound calls placed across industries, businesses wanted to know:
These questions were tested across two different customer scenarios: one with a pre-existing relationship (pet recovery) and one with no prior connection (telecom telesales).
The companies implemented a customer-centric branded calling strategy, tailoring their approach to each audience segment based on:
Each campaign used A/B testing to compare fully branded call attempts with clean, unbranded numbers (free from spam labels and protected through reputation management). This enabled testing of different branding strategies and call sequences (e.g., branding only on third attempt) to determine optimal performance.
When a pet recovery company reached out to customers during a stressful event (e.g., a missing pet), they branded all call attempts. In this case, branding delivered instant recognition and trust. Customers knew it was their pet service calling—and they answered.
The results showed that in urgent, trust-based scenarios with existing customers, full branding led to strong performance and operational efficiency.
In this scenario, branding was critical to fast, effective communication and cost reduction.
In contrast, a telecom company running a cold telesales campaign saw that branding every call had diminishing returns. Too much branding led to answer fatigue, reduced engagement, and potential spam reports or number blocking.
Instead, performance improved when branding was applied selectively, timed for key offers or follow-up attempts. Campaigns using a mix of branded and clean unbranded numbers saw stronger conversions, higher customer sentiment, and lower acquisition costs.
This proved that for cold audiences, layered branding aligned with customer journey touchpoints is more effective than blanket branding.
Branded calling isn’t always the answer—it’s about context.
This case study highlights the importance of matching your branding strategy to the audience and moment. Applying branding at the right time—not all the time—delivers better results and a smarter ROI.
Should you brand every call? Not always.
Branding can be incredibly effective, but only when used in alignment with the customer's relationship to your brand and the call's context. The best strategy balances visibility, cost, and engagement.
For the strongest results:
As these two companies discovered, when you brand the right calls—not all calls—you maximize results and minimize waste.
Branded calling, also known as branded caller ID, is a technology that allows businesses to display branded assets on the recipient's phone screen when making outbound calls. This goes beyond the traditional Caller ID Name (CNAM), which typically only shows a phone number and sometimes a name.
Branded Calling works through various technical implementations, often involving third-party providers and integrations with the telecommunications network. When an outbound call is placed from your registered number, the Branded Calling service queries a database to retrieve your associated business branded assets, which is then transmitted to the recipient's device (if their device and carrier support the technology).
By providing clear and recognizable caller identification, Branded Calling significantly improves transparency and can combat the negative perception often associated with unknown or unidentifiable calls, ultimately strengthening your brand image and call engagement.
Several factors can prevent your branded call from displaying correctly. First, ensure the registration process with your branded calling provider is fully completed, and all submitted business details are accurate and adhere to their guidelines. Compatibility limitations with the recipient's mobile carrier and their specific phone device significantly impact what information can be displayed.
Conflicts with existing Caller ID Name (CNAM) data can also override your branded information. Also, if your phone number has a negative reputation or is flagged as spam by receiving carriers or third-party apps, the branded details may be ignored or the call blocked entirely. Finally, the distribution of updated caller identification information across various carrier networks can take time, costing you time and money.
To set up branded calling for your business, the initial step involves establishing a Verified Identity, where your business undergoes vetting and validation. Following this, you'll register your outbound phone numbers within the Numeracle platform, linking them to your verified identity.
A key aspect of Numeracle's service is that we handle the remediation of any incorrect spam labeling or blocking issues across major carriers, ensuring your numbers maintain a healthy reputation – a critical prerequisite for effective branded calling. Once your identity is verified and your numbers are clear, you can utilize Numeracle's Smart Branding solution to display your business name on outbound calls. Our platform offers centralized management of both branded and non-branded campaigns, providing you with control over branding application for optimal results.
Yes, branded calling offers significant advantages over traditional caller ID for enterprises. Traditional caller ID primarily displays a phone number, often with unreliable or truncated names from outdated databases, lacking visual branding or call context. This makes it difficult for recipients to trust the call and increases the likelihood of it being ignored, especially with the rise of spam. Branded calling, however, allows you to display your verified business name and branded assets, instantly building trust and recognition.
Some advanced solutions, like Numeracle's Smart Branding, even provide the reason for the call, further increasing answer rates and improving customer experience. By providing richer, more reliable information, branded calling can lead to higher answer rates, improved brand visibility, and better customer engagement compared to the limited and often untrustworthy nature of traditional caller ID. For businesses seeking to improve their outbound call effectiveness and build stronger customer connections, branded calling is a far superior solution.