Today, the new Telemarketer rules requiring telemarketers to show up on Caller IDs take effect. In accordance with the rulls set up along with the Do Not Call registry, companies are now required to show the name and phone number of the company trying to make the sale or the firm making the call so consumers can call back during business hours and request to be taken off the list.

I personally think the Do Not Call registry is a good thing and support it fully. I’m one of the 56.3 million households that added its phone number to the list. As a consumer, I don’t want my evening to be interrupted by some annoying telemarketer who felt the need to call at 8:30 at night and won’t take no for an answer. Why would I buy from you - you obviously don’t value my opinion or privacy?

As a marketer, I also fully support the system. Why should I waste my time ’selling’ to people who have no interest in my service and would rather be eating dinner or watching their favorite show? Or in B2B terms, perhaps they have a meeting to go to or a deadline they must keep. If I show no respect for the person’s time, I’m going to immediately get a wall of defense and that person is going to be particularly resistant to my message.

At Morningstar, we prefer information-based marketing - meaning giving clients and prospects information first to help them make a decision. They request information from us - via email, phone, or our website. We then make that information available in a variety of ways. When they’re ready to take the next step, they call us.

Very few people like to be sold to. I am certainly not one of those people. So, why should I actively seek to annoy others?

» Read Do Not Call news story from today

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