August 28, 2019
Even Political Dialing Can Lead To A Tarnished Phone Number Reputation
Special DNC and auto dialing rules for politicians and non-profits mean they can dial differently. While there are some protections in place, these groups are not invincible. Let’s go over a brief history of political campaigns before we get into how to remain compliant.
History Of Political Campaign Communication
For hundreds of years, political campaigns have used a variety of methods to reach audiences. Technology has often played a role in how campaigns reach out to potential voters.
The industrial printing press made it relatively fast and inexpensive for politicians to spread their messages via leaflets and newspapers. Instead of writing pamphlets by hand or arranging individual letters, people could print documents quickly. Then, they could hand out the materials in public squares and gatherings.
Even the spread of rail transportation played a role in how political leaders communicate with audiences. In 1858, Abraham Lincoln started following his opponent, Stephen Douglas, by train. Lincoln would appear at Doulgas’s events and challenge him to debates. Lincoln’s badgering led to some of the first presidential election debates in the U.S.
The steam engine and its growing network of rails also made whistlestop tours possible. Before the U.S. built a reliable railroad system, people mostly traveled by horse. As you can imagine, it takes a lot of physical endurance to travel hundreds of miles on horseback. The national railroad made it possible for politicians to visit cities without giving up the comforts of contemporary life. They could pull into a town, make a speech from a train car, and head to the next destination.
Other popular ways to reach constituents have included:
- Political buttons
- Demonstrations
- Celebrity endorsements
- Direct mail
Of course, few politicians can resist the temptation to kiss babies.
As telephone technology became more common in the U.S., political campaigns realized that they had a new way to connect with voters: cold calling.
Problems With Political Cold Calling Developed Early
All forms of communication require some level of participation from two or more people. When you go to a debate, you want to hear what ideas politicians have. When people went to whistlestop events, they felt entertained and informed.
Those types of communication, however, rely on the citizen to make a decision. A person can decide to attend and event or not. You might not like the guy handing out political pamphlets in the town square, but you don’t feel forced to take his literature.
Political cold calling, however, doesn’t ask people for permission to participate. As a result, cold calling often makes people feel annoyed and angry.
A nearly even split between America’s most powerful political powers contributes to feelings of anger. Throughout 2004, about a third of the country considered themselves Republicans. Another third considered themselves Democrats. The remaining third didn’t identify with either party.
When a politician cold calls someone, there’s a 66% chance that the person doesn’t want to receive the call.
Imagine that you’re spending time with your family at home, enjoying dinner or watching TV, when the phone rings. When you answer, you get a message from a politician that you don’t like. It’s not hard to see why political dialing makes people angry.
Regulations for Political Dialing
The Federal Communications Commission recognizes that political cold calling falls into a different category than cold calling by for-profit companies. Still, political campaigns must obey regulations when they use robocalls and robotexts to reach constituents.
According to the FCC and Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), campaigns are not allowed to use autodialed or prerecorded voice calls when dialing:
- Mobile devices (cell phones, smartphones, pagers, etc.) without the called party’s consent.
- Protected phone lines such as toll-free lines, emergency numbers, and hospital lines without consent.
Campaigns can, however, call landlines without consent.
Even when a campaign gets permission to robodial or robotext people, the message must include:
- The identity of the caller and political campaign.
- The telephone number of the calling party.
Today’s Technology Makes Political Cold Calling Harder
Since political campaigns must provide their telephone numbers, people frustrated with calls can block or ignore incoming calls from those numbers. That makes it harder for politicians to reach voters.
Changes in technology are still influencing how politicians reach the public. Call-blocking apps make it easier than ever for people to refuse calls from tainted phone numbers. Once a number earns a bad reputation with enough people, call-blocking apps can advise users not to answer incoming calls.
The apps give people a way to maintain their privacy and enjoy their time without interruptions. They can also make it harder for political campaigns to deliver important messages to potential voters.
Gain Insight Into Your Messages to Protect Your Phone Number’s Reputation
The less political campaigns annoy people with robocalls and robotexts, the less likely it is that their phone numbers will develop bad reputations.
Caller ID reputation software can help you choose the messaging that most people find agreeable. For example, you may use three messages during the first day of your robocalling campaign. By using a separate phone number for each of the three messages, you can learn more about how people respond to your calls without damaging all of your numbers.
When you discover that one of the messages gets flagged frequently, you can alter the content and use a new phone number that hasn’t been flagged.
Technology will always affect the ways that political campaigns try to reach people. At first glance, it looks like today’s smartphone apps make it practically impossible to keep political phone numbers clean. When you use the right tools to manage your numbers’ reputations, though, you can continue reaching out to voters without breaking any regulations.
