Calls that identify themselves
Inbound calls show as business calls with the caller's number. Outbound calls show the business number. You choose which network the app uses: Wi-Fi or cellular data.
For solopreneurs and remote professionals
Your business number, on your cell phone, without giving out your cell.
A virtual number is a Canadian local or toll-free number that lives in an app. Calls and texts to it reach your phone; calls and texts you send show the business number. Your personal number stays personal.
- Local or toll-free, new or ported
- Calls and texts in one app
- Voicemail transcribed to your email
Example
Active call HD
IN
Inbound caller
+1 (604) 555-0177 · 01:12
Mute
Keypad
Hold
Transfer
End
Your team
- RCReceptionAvailable
- S1Sales 1On a call
A virtual business phone number is a Canadian local or toll-free number that rings through an app on your existing cell phone or computer instead of a dedicated line. You answer, call and text from the business number, set hours so it stops ringing at night, and receive voicemail as a transcript by email. 3CTel provides the number, the app and the setup, and can add users later as the business grows.
What a virtual number does that a cell number cannot
Most sole operators start by putting their cell number on the website. It works until it does not: customers text at 11 p.m., a personal call is answered with a business greeting, and the number can never be handed to anyone else. A virtual number separates the business from the person while using the same device.
Callers dial a normal Canadian number. It rings the app on your cell phone, and on your laptop if you want. You see that it is a business call before you answer. When you call back from the app, the customer sees the business number. Nothing about your personal number is exposed.
Business Phone Numbers
Local, toll-free and campaign numbers that all land in one system.
Learn more: Business Phone NumbersBusiness Phone
Reliable calling with routing your team will actually use.
Learn more: Business PhoneSmall Business
One business number, answered properly, from anywhere you work.
Learn more: Small BusinessLocal or toll-free
| Local number | Toll-free number | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Serving one city or region | Customers across Canada or the United States |
| What callers see | A familiar area code | A number that signals a larger operation |
| Texting | Supported | Supported |
| Porting an existing number | Yes | Yes |
| Multiple numbers | One per city you serve, all in the same app | One toll-free in front of local numbers if needed |
What is in the app
Texting from the business number
Customers text the number they called. You reply from the app, and the thread stays with the business rather than in your personal messages.
Voicemail with a transcript
A missed call goes to a business voicemail greeting. The message is emailed to you with a transcript so you can read it between appointments.
Hours
Set when the number rings. Outside those hours callers hear a closed greeting and can leave a message, and your phone stays quiet.
An answering option
If missed calls cost bookings, the AI receptionist can answer when you cannot, take details and send you the transcript.
The same number on your laptop
The desktop app rings alongside the cell phone, useful when you are at a desk with a headset.
A working day with a virtual number
Morning
The number switches on at the hours you set. A customer calls from the website; the app shows it is a business call and you answer with the business name.
On site
You are with a client and a second call arrives. It goes to the business voicemail, and a transcript reaches your email before you are back in the truck.
Afternoon
You text a quote from the app. The customer replies to the business number, and the conversation stays in the business thread.
Evening
The number goes to the closed greeting. Your cell phone rings only for friends and family. Tomorrow's messages are waiting in the app.
Questions from people working alone
Can I move my existing cell number to be the business number?
You can port a number you own to 3CTel, but if it is your personal cell number you would then lose it as a personal line. Most people do the opposite: they get a new local number for the business and keep their cell number private. If a cell number has already been advertised for years, porting it to the business and getting a new personal number is also an option.
Will customers know I am answering on a cell phone?
No. The call is an ordinary phone call to a Canadian business number, and audio quality depends on your connection rather than on the fact that it is an app. If you want to sound like a larger business, a short greeting before the call rings, or a menu with two options, is a settings change rather than a new system.
What happens when I take on a second person?
You add a user. They install the app, and the business number rings both of you at once or in sequence, whichever you prefer. Texts arrive in a shared inbox so either of you can reply. The number, the greeting and the voicemail stay exactly as they are, and 3CTel quotes the additional user before adding them.
Growing beyond one number
A virtual number is the smallest version of a business phone system, and it grows without being replaced. A second number for another city, a ring group when you hire, a queue when you have a team, texting reminders for appointments and an AI receptionist for the calls you cannot take are all additions to the same account. Setup is guided by a 3CTel specialist and quoted before anything is activated.
Emergency calling from the app uses a registered service address confirmed at setup. For local emergencies on a cell phone, use the phone's own dialler.
Related pages.
Business Phone Numbers
Local, toll-free and campaign numbers that all land in one system.
Learn more: Business Phone NumbersBusiness SMS
Text from the number customers already call — as a team, not from a personal phone.
Learn more: Business SMSSmall business phone system
A buying guide for owners: what matters, what it costs and what to avoid.
Learn more: Small business phone systemRemote work
Business calls on personal devices, without handing out anyone's cell number.
Learn more: Remote workLocal vs toll-free numbers
Which number goes on the sign, which goes on the website, and why the answer is often both.
Learn more: Local vs toll-free numbersAI Receptionist
Answers, understands and books — in English and French.
Learn more: AI ReceptionistFrequently asked questions.
No. Calls through the app use Wi-Fi or cellular data. Your carrier's voice plan is not involved, though data use applies on cellular.
Yes. Canadian local numbers can be provisioned in the area codes you serve, and each one rings the same app.
Picture messaging is supported on numbers where the carrier network allows it. Ask the specialist to confirm for your number type.
No. One person with one number is a complete setup.
A new local number can be active within days of the planning call. Porting an existing number takes longer and depends on the current carrier.
Separate work from personal this week.
Pick a local or toll-free number, install the app and set your hours. A specialist sets it up with you and quotes it before activation.