Telemarketing Call Centers - Growing Business Irrespective Of Legislative Difficulties
The telemarketing industry is faced with a big challenge that has garnered massive support 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 democrats and republicans. Though this exerts some pressure on telesales, it is also an chance for quality firms to prove their worth by adding value to businesses and consumers.Telemarketing regulations - a mutating challenge
The difficulty of following new restrictive regulations is further complicated by the recurring modifications made to them. Old laws are regularly revamped and new laws developed that often have overlapping jurisdictions. Telemarketing services have their work cut out in keeping current with the legislative environment.
Some rules that a service provider must comply with to steer clear of penalties are:
* Curfews: Consumers cannot be called any time of the day. There is a specific time range within which the call should be made.
* Do-Not-Call lists: People who have registered on Do-Not-Call lists cannot be called. Telemarketers are required to make this check before making a call. There are a few exceptions when such numbers can be called. Do-Not-Call registries are maintained at national and state levels.
* Licensing: Some states require vendors to secure a license to operate. Some states also expect the company to be bonded. This creates additional paperwork and extra fees.
* Mandatory caller ID transmission: Consumers can use call screening to divert sales calls to voice mail or choose not to pick them at all.
* Content restrictions: Laws also regulate what one call sell on the phone and even the way one can market. This is very restrictive and forces additional monitoring checks.
Effective telemarketing - merging compliance and sales
Irrespective of the many restrictions, telesales can still constitute a business' marketing mix. Companies can sustain their phone-sales efforts by following these strategies:
* Optimizing on existing customer relationships: Law allows calling customers who already have a relationship with the company, even if she is registered in the Do-Not-Call list. Cross selling to such customers helps the company keep doors open for future sales. To start a relationship with a new customer, selling low-cost products or loss leaders is advisable to extend the client base and boost the probability of making more profitable sales going into the future.
* Supporting telemarketing with other marketing strategies: Businesses typically use multiple marketing strategies to promote products and offers. Marketing collateral such as newsletters,direct mail and email also work well to introduce customers to call center numbers and to obtain their consent for calls.
* Getting permission to call: Laws also exempt cases where prospects on Do-Not-Call registration list agree to receive calls. Firms can get customer's consent via contests, affinity programs or special offers.
* Being professional: The reason why telemarketing is regulated so strictly today is because of the indiscriminate cold calling used by unprofessional call centers in the past. The calls came close to customer badgering and telesales faced a lot of flak for it. Top notch telesales vendors preserve high standards by respecting customer's time and willingness to entertain a call.
New regulations, though limiting, have raised the bar for telemarketing services. With the culling of unscrupulous call centers, quality service providers can differentiate themselves with their services and strategies to obtain customer buy-in.
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