August 23, 2023
8 Factors That Influence the Accuracy of Your Caller ID
Consumers today are flooded with scam phone calls, leading many to ignore, block, or report calls from unfamiliar numbers. To combat this, caller ID provides legitimate businesses with a way to fight back. However, to effectively reach leads and customers, it’s crucial to have accurate caller ID information. Pay attention to the following factors to help ensure the accuracy of your caller ID:
1. Use CNAM and Rich Call Data
CNAM registration gives businesses control over the information displayed on caller ID screens. By registering your numbers, service providers can connect to a database and retrieve accurate information.
Additionally, integrating Rich Call Data (RCD) into STIR/SHAKEN allows carriers to retrieve phone number information without relying on third-party databases. RCD also enables the display of logos and branded information, increasing consumer trust in answering your calls. Although rich call data isn’t widely available yet, it is likely to become the standard in the coming years.
2. Monitor Your Attestation Rating
STIR/SHAKEN provides attestation ratings to help carriers and consumers determine how to handle calls. Attestation ratings rely on a “triangle of trust” that allows carriers, certificate authorities, and policy administrators to compare tokens and delegate certificates, confirming the identity of a phone number’s owner.
Currently, STIR/SHAKEN assigns three attestation ratings to calls:
- Full Attestation
- Partial Attestation
- Gateway Attestation
Full Attestation indicates full vetting for accuracy, while Partial Attestation shows that the service provider can identify the call’s origin but cannot verify the number’s owner. With Gateway Attestation, only the call’s origin can be verified.
Make sure your numbers have Full Attestation to instill confidence in consumers when answering your calls.
3. Follow Good Dialing Habits
Some dialing habits may make your numbers appear suspicious to carriers and third-party apps. For example, making an excessive number of calls that seem impossible for a human to make can classify your calls as robodialers and earn your number a “scam likely” or similar label, which protects consumers from robocalls.
Comply with FCC and industry regulations to maintain good dialing habits. Never call numbers on the Do Not Call (DNC) Registry and avoid making calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. (keep in mind that these times are local to the consumer, not the caller).
Familiarize yourself with the rules that govern your industry, as specific regulations may vary depending on sectors such as healthcare and financial services.
4. Practice Data Hygiene
Don’t underestimate the importance of data hygiene. Dirty data can compromise your brand reputation and hinder effective communication with your contacts. Ensure the accuracy of the contact information in your database by regularly verifying and updating it. Implement practices such as scrubbing call lists to remove duplicates, numbers on the DNC Registry, and numbers on your internal opt-out list. Utilize the Reassign Number Database (RND) to acquire the latest phone numbers of your contacts. Keep your CRM updated to provide agents with accurate data.
5. Take Fraudulent Behavior Seriously
Fraudulent behavior, such as call spoofing, can severely damage your phone number’s reputation. If your numbers become a target for criminals, it is crucial to stop using them immediately. Monitor your number reputations to prevent the spoofing of your identity and protect consumers from exploitation. Only partner with trustworthy service providers, as some telecom companies knowingly facilitate robocalls, which can indirectly harm your reputation.
6. Only Use Trusted Network Partners
Choose trusted network partners that comply with STIR/SHAKEN standards. These partners will consistently deliver calls without interruptions, improving your connection rate and safeguarding your brand reputation.
Bear in mind that the FCC takes illegal activities seriously and may not only fine non-compliant companies but also block entire voice providers. In 2022, when the FCC blocked Global UC, more than 200 of the company’s clients lost the ability to make calls to contacts within the United States. Any business that collaborates with an untrustworthy service provider could face similar consequences.
7. Issue Carrier Redress Requests When Needed
Even when you comply with regulations, service providers and third-party apps may block your numbers or apply warning labels. Consumers may report your number due to annoyance, or carriers’ analytics engines (AE) may block your numbers based on identified suspicious dialing habits.
In such cases, you can submit carrier redress requests to remove the blocks or labels. Keep in mind that the redress process may take time, requiring you to temporarily remove those numbers from rotation. You may also need to address dialing practices that raise suspicions among analytics engines.
While reaching out to numerous service providers can be cumbersome, alternatively, you can rely on Caller ID Reputation to handle the redress process for you.
8. Vigilantly Monitor Your Caller ID
Regularly monitoring your caller ID and attestation rating is integral to ensure that negative labels and blocks do not hinder your outreach efforts. With Caller ID Reputation’s Device Cloud service, you can accurately see what appears on caller ID screens when you call people. You receive actual screenshots from a broad range of mobile devices and carriers. If you discover inaccurate caller ID data, take immediate steps to rectify the issue before it impedes your agents’ ability to connect with your contacts. Sign up for a free trial of Caller ID Reputation to check the accuracy of your caller ID and take control of your brand reputation.
