The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) unanimous vote to allow carriers to block robocalls by default comes just two weeks after FCC Chairman Ajit Pai proposed the blocking rule. Between this FCC ruling on robocalls, and the recent proposal dropped by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) it comes as no surprise that many collectors in our industry are left wondering how they’ll be able to connect with consumers.
What this ruling entails
The new ruling will allow consumers to decide whose calls they want to receive. While carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile have offered opt-in robocall blocking for a while, the new rule will allow them to enable the service by default. This means that, with this blocking, calls will be restricted to numbers that are currently in the consumer’s contact list.
“…providers may offer their customers the choice to opt-in to tools that block calls from any number that does not appear on a customer’s contact list or other ‘white lists.’ This option would allow consumers to decide directly whose calls they are willing to receive.” – FCC
What this means for your business
For many collectors relying heavily on outbound calls, this rule change is yet another hurdle to reaching the end user. With the CFPB’s ruling already limiting calls to one contact a week or seven attempts weekly, blocking ‘unwanted’ calls means even less direct contact with the consumer. While this change in the landscape will impact practices and operations for many businesses in the industry, it is a signal for collectors to leverage modern technologies to instill a more consumer-centric approach.
How DirectDrop Voicemail can help
Over the past couple of months, in particular, we’ve seen the pendulum shift in favor of the consumers. The fact of the matter is that more now than ever, consumers want to be left the option to call back on their own time. By utilizing technology like DirectDrop Voicemail, collectors will be able to meet their consumers with the option and convenience that they want.
At VoApps, we aim to help both the collectors overcome communication barriers by leveraging the power of both self-service and agent-assisted channels. DirectDrop Voicemail technology allows collectors to bypass the barriers of automatic call blocking by dropping a voicemail into their mobile voice mailbox without ever calling the phone, allowing the consumer to return the call on their own time..
For more information on how DirectDrop Voicemail can help your business take on the challenges that the landscape is presenting, reach out to us here or call us at 855-910-6706.