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FTC Lays Record Breaking Fine for Telemarketing Scheme

Guest post by: Shannon Suetos

Article Overview: Telemarketing has gotten a bad wrap over the years, and the FTC is out to get those disgracing the industry.

FTC Lays Record Breaking Fine for Telemarketing Scheme

Telemarketing is a tactic marketers (non-profits for example) can utilize and see great results. With that being said, this industry over the years has gotten a bad wrap from companies who don't follow in best practices. The most recent of which is a New Jersey based company Civic Development Group LLC, CDG Management LLC.

Their Crime

They set up a telemarketing campaign that lead callers to believe they were donating to a police and fire fighter fund. But in reality, they were donating to Scott Pasch and David Keezer, the owners of the company.

Punishment

The FTC laid down the law hard and hit them with the largest fine in history--$18.8 million dollars. "As part of the settlement, Pasch will turn over a $2 million home, paintings by Picasso and Van Gogh valued collectively at $1.4 million, a guitar collection valued at $800,000 and $270,000 in proceeds from a recently sold wine collection," reports the Huffington Post.

The Huffington Post goes on to say that, "Keezer will hand over a $2 million home, a Range Rover, a Cadillac Escalade and a Bentley."

What Can Be Done

Although this story seems to be the only kind of publicity telemarketing gets these days, it is wise to remember it can be a reputable tactic. With technology growing there are new and less invasive ways to receive donations, and/or reach your target audience.

One was is via text messaging. The best example of how this has been successfully executed is the Red Cross. After the horrible earthquake that hit Haiti, the Red Cross jumped into action to help and implemented a donation strategy by accepting donations through text message. This is a simple yet effective way to get people who would like to donate to do so in minimal time, and it is less invasive for donators.

Other companies are using text messages to remind customers of up coming specials. Auntie Anne's, the popular pretzel maker has done this for their holiday specials and free pretzel day. One reason this worked well for them is because their customers signed up for these updates-again making it less invasive.

The main point to take away is, if you are a reputable telemarketing company there are new ways to reach your audience. If you outsource your telemarketing efforts make sure the company you choose is up to date on all laws and are representing your company well.

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Article Tags: b2b telemarketing, FTC, Red Cross, telemarketing



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