According to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), almost every Australian (98%) has received unsolicited calls or messages. Under the Reducing Scam Calls rules, telcos blocked roughly 549 million scam calls from 2020 to 2022.
The prevalence of these schemes has made many people deem calls from unknown numbers as dangerous spam. But that isn't necessarily accurate. Various entities have used robocalls—automated calls with pre-recorded messages—for genuine purposes, whether to inform customers or promote political campaigns.
Robocalls can be a powerful tool for enhancing business communication. Not knowing how to distinguish between that and a spam call can lead you to make suspicious-sounding calls. Read on to learn more about the benefits of robocalls in improving business operations.
What are Robocalls?
Robocalls are automated phone calls delivering pre-recorded messages to many recipients. It uses automatic dialling systems to contact numbers in a company's database without human agents.
But are all robocalls illegal? Not always. Not all robocalls are spam calls. The Australian government defines specific exceptions that are permitted. These exceptions include calls regarding product recalls, fault rectification, and appointment rescheduling. This is why businesses can still use robocalls for customer service efforts.
Additionally, the ACMA specifies a limited number of permissible calls, including those from political parties and interest groups, such as trade unions.
Almon Brown Strowger is credited with inventing the first automatic telephone dialler, officially installing its first iteration in La Porte, Indiana, in 1892. Over a century later, the integration of voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) and artificial intelligence (AI) have significantly advanced communication methods.
Benefits of robocalls
Given the capabilities of robocalls, they have empowered many businesses with the following benefits:
- Efficiently reaches a large and diverse audience
Calling customers manually is already a time-consuming task, and for businesses with a large customer base, it’s often impractical to contact every single customer promptly. Automated dialling systems and robocalls efficiently accelerate this process without compromising the quality.
- Saves resources and reduces hassle for both callers and recipients
Delegating calling customers to an automated system allows managers and employees to become even more productive. It can save money for businesses, too, since they won't need to hire more employees to make additional calls; instead, they can rely on robocalls to reach more people.
- Provides a direct channel to convey vital information
In cases like data breaches, where user data has been compromised, companies can use robocall systems to promptly notify their customers of the incident. They can do this as part of their business continuity strategies to help those affected to take the necessary steps to protect their data, such as strengthening their passwords.
Drawbacks of robocalls
While robocalls offer convenience for call centres, they still aren't the perfect telemarketing solution. Here are some reasons why the use of robocalls can backfire.
- Can disturb recipients when unwanted, irrelevant, or frequent
Robocalls are typically unsolicited, which can frustrate many customers. Consistent disruptions can significantly impact how customers perceive your brand and their overall customer experience.
- Can enable malicious activities, such as scams, frauds, and identity theft
Scammers can use spoofing software to impersonate trusted sources, such as your bank, government agencies, or even personal contacts, potentially leading to fraud or identity theft. The prevalence of these incidents has made people increasingly wary of robocalls, regardless of the caller's intent.
- Can infringe on the privacy and consent of recipients if not authorised or registered
Similar to the risks of AI, robocalls may also threaten a customer's privacy. Scammers may use robocalls as part of their identity theft schemes to obtain personal information illegally.
The ACMA's Do Not Call Register allows consumers to register their home, mobile, and work phone numbers to reduce the number of telemarketing calls they receive. Once a number is in the register, telemarketers have 30 days to stop contacting that number. They could face penalties if they continue to reach the number after that point.
What are Spam Calls?
Spam calls are unsolicited phone calls made over phone lines or the internet, typically made to scam recipients into giving their personal information. These scams may include phishing schemes and plans to spread malware to unsuspecting users. Unlike robocalls, these calls typically involve a human operator and may originate from unknown or disguised sources.
Potential harms and losses of spam calls
Several data privacy risks threaten customers receiving spam calls.
- Identity theft
Scammers who obtain your personal information can commit identity crimes, leading to unauthorised credit applications, more debt, and registrations in your name. Indicators of identity theft include unfamiliar bank transactions and unexplained bills.
- Fraud
The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that scam exposure rose to 65% in 2021 and 2022, suggesting a heightened risk of encountering fraud attempts.
Scammers who pose as a trusted source to solicit your personal information are committing fraud. They may even use your personal information against you in exchange for money; in other words, to blackmail or hold your data as ransom.
- Malware infection
Scammers may instruct you to click on a link to resolve the seemingly urgent issue they're calling you about, such as changing your bank account password. These phishing attempts may allow scammers to install malicious software, such as ransomware, onto your device and access your personal information.
- Wasted time
Since spam calls are inherently unsolicited, they can distract you from your work and disrupt your workflow, especially when a call appears urgent when, in reality, it isn't.
How to Detect and Block Spam Calls
Detecting and blocking spam calls is crucial to remain safe. Alternatively, understanding how spam calls sound can help you know how to make your telemarketing calls more human and less frustrating for users. Here are a few popular methods for detecting and blocking spam calls:
You can rely on a few pieces of software to help you detect and block spam calls quickly.
- Caller ID verification
Modern phones can identify incoming callers based on their number. Some smartphones can even display the caller's name. If you receive a call from an unfamiliar number or name, it's best to let keep it ringing and avoid answering, as it might be a spam call.
- Do Not Call registry
The Australian Do Not Call register gives you legal protection in case telemarketers continue contacting you after you've included your number in the registry.
- Call blocking apps
Call blocking technology works similarly to caller ID technology, except it rejects calls automatically instead of letting your phone ring. Call-blocking apps are a convenient way to avoid spam calls and prevent disruptions from unknown callers.
Best practices
How should you act towards spam calls in Australia? When you receive these potentially harmful calls, here are a few ways to protect yourself.
- Hang up
While it might feel rude, hanging up is the best option if you accidentally answer a spam call. Continuing to listen will only waste your time and may let callers know you're interested, making it likelier for you to receive more calls.
- Don't press any button
Pressing buttons may indicate to robo and spam callers that you're engaged in the conversation, encouraging them to call you again. It's why you must avoid pressing any button—even to answer the call—if you want to indicate to callers that you aren't interested.
- Avoid sharing personal information
No matter how much the caller may ask, it's in your best interest to never share personal information, such as your name, address, and birthdate. Exercise extra caution with financial information, like credit card numbers or bank details, to avoid identity theft.
- Verify information with the claimed organisation
If a spam call appears credible, consider contacting the organisation they claim to represent to verify their legitimacy. This small habit of double-checking their credentials before taking any action can save you from countless fraud attempts.
How to Use Robocalls Effectively for Business Purposes
Robocalls aren't inherently bad. They're a tool to help you achieve your business objectives. What matters most is how you incorporate them into your strategies. Given how much more aware customers are of the prevalence of scam calls, you can expect them to be cautious about picking up the phone the next time you launch your robocall campaigns.
Take a cue from how successful customer contact services use these calls with the methods below.
- Obtain consent from customers
Before making robocalls, you must seek explicit consent from customers regarding their willingness to receive calls from your organisation. Provide the option to opt out, and always respect their preferences. This approach ensures compliance with local laws and shows your commitment to valuing your customers.
- Comply with laws and regulations
The Telecommunications Industry Standard of 2017 provides guidelines for legal telemarketing operations. These regulations specify call time restrictions, such as no calls on weekdays before 9 AM and after 8 PM, Saturdays before 9 AM and after 5 PM, and the entirety of Sundays.
Callers must provide specific information at the start of the call, including the caller’s name (unless it's a robocall), company, responsible party for the calls, and the call’s purpose.
- Craft clear and concise messages
Robocalls quickly seem like spam when recipients don't know what the call is about. Structure your automated messages in a way that you present the purpose at the start. Opening with who you are and why you're calling can lessen the chance of people hanging up.
- Segment and target customers
One call won't work for all your customers. Before launching your robocall campaign, segment your customers based on demographics, locations, and preferences. Tailor automated messages to each customer segment for increased relevance and impact.
- Personalise robocalls
Tailoring robocalls to align with your recipient's interests is a valuable strategy. A caveat is ensuring your call feels warm and genuine to prevent recipients from feeling uneasy that an unsolicited caller knows so much about them. It's best to identify your credibility and authority at the beginning of the call to help customers trust your information.
- Provide contact options
Robocalls aren't the only way for you to connect with your customers. Allow them to choose how they want to interact with your business, whether connecting with a live agent, being directed to a website, or scheduling an appointment. This approach also emphasises the flexibility of your call centre service in accommodating customer communication preferences.
- Test and optimise robocalls
There's no guarantee that the first robocall you launch will reach the conversions or leads you aim for overnight. That's why you must monitor your robocalls and find areas to improve. For instance, if you notice recipients are hanging up too soon, you can try finding new ways to make the first few seconds of your call even more attention-grabbing.
- Schedule calls appropriately
Find the best time for reaching your target audience when they're most available. For example, if you're targeting night-shift workers, a morning call could catch them just around the time they eat dinner according to their unique schedule.
Making Calls Customers Trust
Phone calls are an excellent channel for direct customer outreach. However, if you structure your calls in the wrong way, customers may consider them as spam. Understanding the difference between robocalls and spam calls will help you make more trustworthy calls to your customers.
Despite the benefits robocalls offer your business, it can still be difficult to manage your phone communication efforts, especially if you want to reach a wide audience. Partnering with Select VoiceCom lets you delegate those responsibilities to enable you to focus on more pressing business issues.
At Select VoiceCom, we use a combination of communication methods to ensure customer satisfaction, maintain customer relationships, and drive business growth. Get in touch with Select VoiceCom today to learn how you can leverage the potential of robocalls for your business.