Not long ago, everyone had a standard phone in their home and searching for a phone number or address was a matter of opening the phone book and searching for the name. This has become more difficult 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 invention of caller ID on most landlines, some numbers may show up without an identifying name and there are ways for callers to block their details from showing up. Reverse phone lookup directories have responded to these changing demands to provide a very useful service to resourceful phone users.
There are two typical functions for lookup services.
Locating Names
If you are getting calls from someone and only a number comes up on your ID, or you need to identify cell phone callers, reverse phone lookup services can help you find out the name listed to the phone number in question. Just by typing in the phone number you will be able to identify the person who is responsible for those phone calls in question.
People looking for such services include those who need to check up on a number often texting their spouse or teenager's cell phone, since there is no phone book for cell phone numbers. Others may use lookup directories when they want to know a name registered to a landline that may be unlisted. Whenever you have a phone number but are uncertain who it belongs to, a reverse phone lookup directory can deliver the information.
Locating Addresses
another common function is to find an address for someone, whether you know their name or not. Once you plug into the information linked with a specific phone number most services will give other sorts of data as well, which may include the address of an landline 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 track down a teenager who has run away or is still out well past curfew. If they can find phone numbers from the teenager's belongings or cell phone a reverse phone lookup could quickly reveal addresses as well as names of places the teenager may be located.
Other circumstances may be looking for addresses to send out party invitations to your child's friends. If you have the phone number you can get their address and get the invite in the mail without calling and tracking down other busy parents.
Lookup directories can also deliver a connection to other kinds of information, including income brackets and previous addresses, and one site even gives a map with an rough pinpoint of where the home or business is located.
There will be a minor fee for any legitimate reverse phone lookup directory, but if your business or personal situation requires certain data it is money well spent in the end. The fee is necessary because this kind of information is not easy or free to research, collect, and protect, so issuing it immediately to people such as you must also come with a charge to account for such working costs.
There probably will never be a public directory for cellular numbers, and even if they were compiled it is probable the majority of the numbers would be unlisted just like many landline numbers today. The best way to get 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 be using the directory long term.