Not long ago, everyone had a landline phone in their home and searching for a number or address simply required opening the phone book and finding their name. This has become more complex now that cell phones are in common use and many people do not even have landlines, and if they do their number may be unlisted.
Even with the widespread use of caller ID on most landlines, some numbers may come up without an identifying name and there are ways for callers to block their name from showing up. Reverse phone lookup providers have stepped up to these changing times to offer a very useful service to resourceful phone users.
There are two typical uses for lookup services.
Searching for Names
If you are getting calls from someone and only a number is revealed on your caller ID, or you need to identify cell phone callers, reverse phone lookup services can help you find out the name registered to the phone number in question. Just by typing in the number you will have access to the person who is initiating the bothersome phone calls.
People in search of such services include those wanting to identify a number frequently phoning their spouse or children's cell phone, since there is no public directory for cell phone numbers. Other people may use lookup directories when they want to identify a name listed to a landline that may be unlisted. Anytime you have a phone number but are uncertain who it belongs to, a reverse phone lookup directory can help.
Searching for Addresses
The other common function is to find an address for someone, whether you know their name or not. Once you gain access to the contact information connected with a particular number most directories will give additional information as well, such as the address of the home phone or an address associated with a cell phone number.
This may not be an everyday need for some people, but it does have its benefits in some situations. For instance, consider a parent desperate to locate a teenager who has run away or is still out well past curfew. If they can come up with numbers from the teenager's belongings or cell phone a lookup directory could quickly uncover addresses as well as names of places the teenager may be at that time.
More common situations may be searching for addresses to send out party invitations to your child's peers. If you have a phone number you can find their address and get the invite in the mail without calling or tracking down other busy family.
Lookup websites can also deliver a connection to other various types of information, such as income brackets and previous addresses, and one site even gives a map with an estimated pinpoint to the business or home's location.
There will be a minor fee for any up to date reverse phone lookup service, but if your business or personal situation requires particular information it is more than worth the payoff in the long run. The fee is required because this sort of information is not simple or free to research, compile, and protect, so dispensing it immediately to others like you must also come with a fee to cover such working expenditures.
There probably will never be a public directory for cellular numbers, and even if they were compiled most likely many of the numbers would be unpublished just like many home phone numbers today. The only way to gain access to these numbers is to give a minor charge either to complete a one time number search or to join a lookup directory if you will need to access the service long term.