subject: Telemarketing - Growing Opportunities Regardless Of Legislative Obstacles [print this page] The telemarketing industry is facing a severe challenge that has gained momentum in the past few years - legislation restricting sales calls. Regulation of telesales services has the votes of the general public and is also supported by both parties. Even though this exerts some pressure on telesales, it is also an opportunity for quality service providers to prove their worth by offering value to businesses and consumers.
Telemarketing regulations - a mutating challenge
The problem of following new restrictive regulations is further complicated by the frequent changes made to them. Old laws are regularly revamped and new laws created that often have overlapping jurisdictions. Telemarketing services have their work cut out in keeping current with the legislative environment.
Following are some of the rules a telesales company must comply with to steer clear of penalties are:
* Curfews: You are not allowed to call consumers all day. There is a certain hours of the day within which the call should be made.
* Do-Not-Call lists: Any phone on Do-not-call registration is out of bounds. Telemarketers are expected to make this check before picking the phone. There are a few exceptions when such numbers can be called. Do-Not-Call registries are maintained at national and state levels.
* Licensing: Though not applicable in all states, vendors have to secure a license to operate. In some states the company has also to be bonded also. This creates additional paperwork and extra fees.
* Mandating caller ID transmission: Consumers may screen calls and divert them to voice mail or decide not to pick them at all.
* Content restrictions: There are laws that regulate what can be sold on the phone and even the way one can market. This is very limiting for sales representatives and forces additional monitoring checks.
Effective telemarketing - merging compliance and sales
Regardless of the many restraints, telesales can still be a part of a business' marketing mix. Companies can keep up their phone-sales efforts by following these strategies:
* Optimizing on existing customer relationships: Law allows calling customers who already have a business relationship with the company, regardless of her registration with the Do-Not-Call list. By cross-selling to these customers, the business keeps the doors open for future sales. To initiate a relationship with a new customer, selling low-cost products or loss leaders is a good tactic to extend the client base and raise the probability of making more lucrative sales at a later date.
* Supporting telemarketing with other marketing strategies: Businesses usually employ more than one marketing strategy to promote products and offers. Marketing collateral such as emails, newsletters and direct mail are also effective in introducing customers to call center numbers and to secure their consent for calls.
* Getting permission to call: Laws also exempt instances where prospects on Do-Not-Call registration list agree to receive calls. Businesses can get customer's consent through affinity programs, contests or special offers.
* Being professional: The reason why telemarketing is regulated so strictly today is because of the indiscriminate cold calling practiced by unprofessional call centers in the past. The calls came close to customer badgering and telesales faced a lot of flak for it. Quality telesales vendors preserve high standards by respecting customer's time and willingness to receive a call.
New laws, though restrictive, have raised the bar for telemarketing services. With the elimination of unethical companies, quality services can differentiate themselves with their services and strategies to secure customer buy-in.
