No more Robots Calling my Business Phone!

Starting September 1, consumers should experience far fewer telephonic interruptions of the automated variety. “American consumers have made it crystal clear that few things annoy them more than the billions of commercial telemarketing robocalls they receive every year," Chairman Jon Leibowitz said in a statement and reported by Christina House, For The Times. The federal regulatory regime currently will exclude political robocalls from most telemarketing regulations.

And yet, Robocalls are made by all political parties in the United States, as well as unaffiliated campaigns, 527 organizations, Unions, and individual citizens. In addition, Robocalls fail in three areas that are crucial for any direct response campaign: they are intrusive, they are impersonal and they offer no incentive for voters to listen all the way to the end of the message. Robocalls are pre-recorded messages that can be sent out to tens of thousands of voters at a minor cost through computer automation. While Robocalls have been used for legitimate campaigning and public opinion polling, they have also been used for vote suppression, false endorsements, and negative campaigning that borders on fraud. So why is it that they were excluded from the new law going into affect to prevent intrusion and running up our cell phone bills?

Consumers received the robocalls at home, work, and on their cell phones, sometimes several times in one day. Those unwanted prerecorded commercial calls, soliciting services such as carpet cleaning or car warranties, will be a thing of the past unless telemarketers have written permission from consumers that they want to receive these calls. Despite the regulation, there will still be telemarketers of the human kind. The Better Business Bureau recommends the following advice for consumers who receive robocalls or telemarketing calls; never give personal information, including Social Security, bank or credit card numbers, over the phone to an unknown telemarketer. The commission will exempt calls that aren't trying to sell goods and services to consumers; that category would include debt collections and those providing information, such as flight cancellations and delivery notices. "If consumers think they're being harassed by robocallers," Leibowitz said, "they need to let us know, and we will go after them. Consumers who receive an unauthorized call starting Tuesday can file complaints with the commission online at http://www.ftc.gov/



So the question will remain –How do I get off the political robocall list?? The answer. You don’t. Once again, our politicians make laws and regulations that do not apply to them. I don’t know about you, but I will not vote for any politician that sends me an automated call. If he doesn’t have the time to arrange for a real person to chat with me, why should I take the time to give him my vote?

You may ask yourself, what is this blog doing in the middle of all my life balance and self improvement blogs? Well I do have an answer for that. First, I hate it when I put a customer on hold to answer the other line right quick, only to find out it was an automated voice at the other end. I hate that they use up my cell phone minutes! In addition, my last post talked about slices of pizza. Part of keeping myself educated in that particular slice is to pay attention to marketing trends. All those companies are going to be looking for a new way to market their product as the $16, 000 per call fine is a little steep to risk. As a direct marketer, I pay attention to the trends in the business world. It is part of MY pizza!

Have a Properous Day
Cheryl Matthynssens
My Advertising Funnel