What is a spam call?

Not all spam is automated and not all automated calls are spam. A legitimate appointment reminder is automated and wanted; a live salesperson working a list is neither.

Business numbers collect more than personal ones. A number published as plain text on a website gets harvested quickly.

On a per-call plan that counts every answer, each one costs you a call. GreetKeeper doesn't count robocalls or very short calls, so for you the cost is attention rather than allowance.

Say your shop gets 260 calls a month and you're comparing per-call plans. Take one that counts every answered call, priced like GreetKeeper's Starter: $49 for 200 answered calls, then $0.45 each. You're 60 over, which adds $27 and makes the month $76.

Now suppose 45 of those 260 were junk. GreetKeeper doesn't count robocalls, very short calls or calls it screens out toward your plan, so you'd be billed on 215 calls: 15 over, for $6.75 in overage and a $55.75 total. On the plan that counts everything, the junk cost you about $20 that month. That isn't ruinous, and it's not a reason to move up to Professional at $149. But the share matters more than the dollars. When one call in six is junk, one summary in six is noise you have to skim past every morning, and blocking at the carrier is what removes it. Ask any per-call vendor how very short or silent calls are counted, because the answer changes this math.

Business numbers are published on purpose, and that's what makes them a target. Programs scan websites and directories for anything shaped like a phone number and add it to calling lists within days. The National Do Not Call Registry won't help here, since it covers personal numbers and doesn't apply to calls made to businesses.

Carrier tools are your first line of defense. The big US mobile carriers each offer free spam labeling and blocking (AT&T ActiveArmor, T-Mobile Scam Shield and Verizon Call Filter are the current names), and most VoIP providers have an equivalent in their dashboard. Turn these on before you forward anything.

Be careful with aggressive settings, though. A filter that blocks every unknown number will also block new customers, who are unknown by definition. Start with the setting that blocks only calls flagged as likely fraud, read a week of what still gets through, and tighten it one step at a time.

Silence and non-responsive calls follow the rule you set, and a single prompt followed by a polite ending beats a long wait.

Every call arrives as a transcript including the junk, so you can see what is actually reaching the line rather than guessing.

Very short calls, robocalls and calls the assistant screens out don't count toward your plan. The pricing page has the table of what counts, so junk doesn't decide which tier you need.