Cold Calling Tactics Dubious

Not every household has a landline anymore. Household members have their mobile phones and they prefer their calls to go there instead of a shared phone. Homes that do still have the landline use it less, and no one in the household is rushing to pick up the phone when it rings, like their predecessors did a few years ago.

The advent of voice messaging has put the power back into the hands of the receiver and they are preferring to play back the voice message and decide whether they wish to call the caller back or use another form of communication like texting. This action has hurt the businesses who rely on cold calling sales. With less volume of calls getting through the sales tactics of some businesses have become highly questionable.

A very good investigative news item on NZHerald relays the personal experience of a journalist wanting a quote from an insurance company.

The insurance company said they couldn’t issue a quote without credit card details. The quote was in fact a policy that then had to be cancelled – so even when the journalist cancelled the policy via email the credit card was debited the annual fee. Where it then gets tricky is – how to complain – often these businesses are offshore so it’s a lengthy process to get through to someone who can assist you and take the necessary action.

The process also takes perseverance and time – lots of it and therefore many of us give up before a refund or complaint is registered. There are also the people who miss the sales transaction on their credit card altogether. They believe they have cancelled and may even have acknowledgement of their communication and trust that’s the end of it.

Registered complaints with the main authorities suggest it is a sales strategy used knowingly to entrap people as customers. For these businesses it’s a numbers game, those who are less diligent in the management of their bank accounts will miss the transaction or if they do see it and react, inevitably there will be a percentage of them who lack the time or motivation to see the compliant process through to a refund thus generating revenue for the business.

There are other dubious sales tactics used businesses cold calling, and door to door selling and people are caught out often. Unfortunately most victims are too embarrassed to admit they were scammed or they unwittingly signed up as a client. This makes the NZHerald news item particularly valuable insofar as it gives a clear path of response if you find yourself out of pocket via a dubious sales tactic.

This blog article was written for BusinessBlogsHub by Mobilize Mail.