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AP Information
Services Ltd., one of the most highly respected business information providers
in the UK has teamed up with the DMA to provide you with monthly advice on all
you need to know for easy data management. These articles will provide suggestions
on how to manage your direct marketing in the most effective manner according
to current legislation. |
Businesses
who do not want to receive unsolicited telemarketing calls can now register their
wish to stop receiving such calls through the Corporate Telephone Preference Service
(Corporate TPS). Sole traders and (except in Scotland) partnerships have
been able to register their wish not to receive unsolicited sales and marketing
calls with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) since May 1999 and companies
should have already been screening their data against the TPS before calling such
organisations.
However, legislation
has now extended this protection to corporate subscribers and as of June 25 2004
all limited companies in the UK, limited liability partnerships in England, Wales
and Northern Ireland, and any partnerships in Scotland as well as schools, government
departments and agencies, hospitals and other public bodies can register with
the Corporate TPS. This means any company making unsolicited sales call
to any of the above organisations by phone must make sure they do not call a number
registered on the Corporate TPS. Failure to do so could result in a fine
of £5,000.
The Corporate TPS
was introduced following intense lobbying from organisations representing small
businesses for the creation of such a service. Many firms, especially small
businesses, felt that they did not have the resources to deal with a high volume
of cold calls. Within the first week of this service being in operation
17,670 numbers were registered on the Corporate TPS and by the end of July this
figure had risen to 54,592.
However, it is clear
that telemarketing is an important sales and marketing channel for small businesses,
and many organisations will be concerned about the impact this legislation will
have on their ability to carry out telemarketing campaigns. The Direct Marketing
Association, the body that provides this service, strongly believes that companies
should not be deterred from running outbound campaigns. Already in place
are a large number of services to aid companies in complying with this legislation.
Companies can either receive the list of registered numbers from the TPS or use
one of the many screening services available. If a company has a record
that they have permission to call a company, that will of course, override any
registration with TPS.
The Corporate TPS
has three easy to use and cost effective services aimed at smaller companies or
individuals who are calling small volumes of numbers a month. For businesses
that rely on telemarketing but cannot justify the expense of database applications,
these services allow companies to maintain a competitive edge whilst keeping within
the legal requirements. The three services available via the TPS are Online
Interrogation, TPS Callgard and TPS Telepath.
The Online Interrogation
Service allows companies to check up to 500 numbers a month through the TPS website
for a minimum charge of £50 a month and a cost of 10p for each subsequent check.
Users will only be billed for the months that they use the service. The
TPS Callgard service is a call barring service, which can operate from a company’s
existing phone system to ensure calls generate sales and not complaints.
After an initial set-up call to your TPS Callgard number, once connected you can
make as many telemarketing calls as you wish. Each number is screened against
the TPS files and if the number is registered the call is barred, if not, the
call goes through. Costs for this service are the same as the Online Interrogation
service and calls to Callgard are charged at BT’s standard rate.
The final service
available via the TPS is TPS Telepath. This is a no contract, pay as you
go service, which is available from any touchtone phone. Users simply call
the TPS Telepath number (090 6686 6686) and key in the number they want to check.
They will then be informed whether that number is listed on the TPS files and
will be provided with a reference number for auditing purposes.
The TPS website
(http://www.tpsonline.org.uk/) provides
full details of each of these services as well as a list of companies that provide
Corporate TPS list cleansing services.
A further option
for companies is to receive the TPS data files and undertake list screening in
house. Companies can elect to receive a CD every 28 days or to download
the data from the website whenever they need it. The files are updated daily
for web download. The cost of receiving the corporate TPS file depends on
the volume and frequency of the data taken. Full details of costs are available
on the TPS website.
The TPS website
also enables both individuals and corporate subscribers to register with the service.
Companies can register any of their numbers, either switchboard or direct dial
numbers. It is important to note that the Information Commissioner’s Office
has made it clear that it is the number that is registered, not the company.
Corporate subscribers can register their phone numbers via the website, email,
letter or fax, but they are not permitted to do so via the telephone. It
is hoped that this will dissuade people from taking a knee-jerk reaction to barring
marketing calls. Anyone registering a corporate subscriber’s number must
declare that they have the authority to do so on behalf of the company.
Corporate subscribers that sign-up to the service also receive an annual reminder
of the numbers that are currently registered with the Corporate TPS.
While the DMA understand
fully that many companies will remain concerned about the impact this legislation
will have on their business, they recommend companies use it as an opportunity
to make their telemarketing activity more efficient and economic by not calling
the companies that have indicated they are not interested in cold calls.
For full details
about the Corporate Telephone Preference Service and a free information pack please
visit http://www.tpsoline.org.uk/ or
call 0870 421 1953.
About the Author
Tessa Kelly
Director of Compliance Operations
DMA
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