Telemarketing

From ArticleWorld

Telemarketing is the practice of selling products or services over the telephone. This is a form of direct marketing that is very similar to door-to-door marketing, mail order marketing, or e-mail marketing. It is a very personal one-on-one marketing that is often either very helpful to a customer or very annoying to a customer.

Customer privacy issues

Many customers feel that telemarketing is an invasion of their privacy so they choose to sign up for what is called Caller Identification. This is more commonly known nowadays as caller I.D. This has become very popular in the past ---years and has helped many households protect their privacy.

There are also telemarketing blocking services, and services that help callers have their name removed from lists they do not want to be on as well. Nevertheless, telemarketing is still used by businesses today to encourage new customers to sign on with them.

Sometimes people do appreciate telemarketing courtesy calls if they are from non-profit groups that they regularly support. They also may welcome calls from political organizations that they are a part of. However, most people are usually turned off by retailers and companies that offer services to people that do not know who they are.

The telemarketing challenge

Since the use of direct marketing techniques such as telemarketing has become more popular, it has also become a challenge for businesses. However, businesses who are involved in telemarketing pursuits still believe it is a cost effective way to make their business known.

Businesses that use telemarketing techniques usually have to beware of all the laws that are in place regarding the use of telemarketing nowadays, however. Consequences can come from the act of a businesses not adhering to a customers written consent for privacy. Therefore, businesses nowadays usually use caution when using this direct sales tactic.