Telesales - Creating Opportunities Irrespective Of Legislative Hurdles

Telemarketing service providers are confronting a big challenge that has gained momentum in the last few years - legislation restricting sales calls. Regulation of telesales services has the votes of the general public and is also supported by both parties. While this puts some pressure on telesales, it is also an opportunity for top quality organizations to prove their worth by adding value to consumers and businesses.

Telemarketing regulations - a mutating challenge

The challenge of conforming to new regulations limiting sales calls is further complicated by the persistent modifications 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 changing laws and rules.

Some rules that a service provider must abide by to avoid getting penalized are:

* Curfews: Consumers cannot be called any time of the day. There is a prescribed hours of the day within which sales calls are allowed.

* Do-Not-Call lists: People who have registered on Do-Not-Call lists cannot be called. Telemarketers are expected to make this check before picking the phone. Such customers can be called under certain exceptions only. Do-Not-Call registries are managed 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. These requirements impose more paperwork and extra fees.

* Mandating caller ID transmission: Consumers can use call screening to divert sales calls to voice mail or choose not to receive them at all.

* Content restrictions: There are laws that regulate what can be sold on the phone and even the way to market them. This is very limiting for sales representatives and forces additional vigilance.

Effective telemarketing - merging compliance and sales

In spite of the many constraints, telesales can still constitute a business' marketing mix. Companies can sustain their phone-sales efforts by following these strategies:

* Exploit existing customer relationships: Law allows calling a customer who already has a relationship with the company, regardless of her registration with 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, loss leaders or selling low cost products during the first contact is an opportunity to develop the client base and raise the probability of generating more rewarding sales at a later date.

* Supporting telemarketing with other marketing strategies: Companies typically utilize more than one marketing strategy to promote products and offers. Marketing materials such as direct mails, emails, and newsletters also work well to introduce customers to call center numbers and to secure their permission to call them.

* Getting permission to call: Laws also exempt instances where customers on Do-Not-Call registration list agree to receive calls. Organizations can get customer's consent through contests, affinity programs or special offers.

* Being professional: The rationale behind such tight regulations around telemarketing is the indiscriminate cold calling used by unethical call centers in the past. The calls came close to customer badgering and telesales faced a lot of flak for it. Top quality telesales vendors uphold lofty standards by respecting customer's time and willingness to entertain a call.

New regulations, though restrictive, have raised the bar for telemarketing services. With the weeding out of unethical companies, quality services can distinguish themselves with their services and strategies to secure customer buy-in.