No Sunday Sales Calls: The Legal Rules to Know

[crazy4dabug]

It's actually against the law to make ANY kind of sales calls on Sundays...any sunday.
The law is that it is ok on Mon-Sat from 8am-9pm and THAT'S it.

You could get sued if someone was aware of this law.
I used to work for call centers so that's why I'm telling ya.

 

[janetupnorth]

Deanna - I believe that is only in certain states...do you have the actual text of the law available? I'd love to read it.

 

[rennea]

I know that here in Canada on Sundays you can't call somebody over a debt, but don't know about a business call. I'll have to check on that one.

 

[janetupnorth]

http://www.the-dma.org/guidelines/tsr-guide.pdf

Here is the guide. However, I would question HO about how it applies to our calls. I don't call on a Sunday unless someone requests me to however, most are calling people who have given them a number to call them for a reason.

Someone in legal at HO should be able to answer any questions.

Only a couple states have Sunday retrictions though...

 

[lisacb77]

Good to see that calls are allowed in TX on Sundays! Very interesting info. Even tho we are not telemarketers per se, helps remind us that our customers have times they may not want to be disturbed

 

[DebbieJ]

Good thing we don't make sales calls.

 

[Shawnna]

I personally do not call people on Sunday unless they have asked me to. I go to 2 church services and a prayer meeting on Sunday and the in between time is for napping and/or just being with my family. I do not like for people to call me about business unless we have previously arranged it because there wasn't another time. I really believe that we shouldn't do business on Sunday because it is the Sabbath and we are suppose to give the day to the Lord. However, not all people observe the Sabbath on Sunday...Some consider Saturday to be the Sabbath Day. So, I guess it just depends on the person.

 

[GeorgiaPeach]

Good thing we don't make sales calls.

That's what I was thinking! This law doesn't seem to apply to us. We aren't making cold calls to people who have never heard of us. We are calling people that we have some connection with through a show. We are calling hosts, providing customer care, etc.

It's not like we've bought a lead list from somewhere! If someone is worried about this, I'd just say don't call leads from fairs.....those can seem like cold calls! Especially when they act like they NEVER attended the fair in the first place!! How do they think we got their name and number?!!

 

[dannyzmom]

Good thing we don't make sales calls.

LOL - I was just going to say that. We are NOT telemarketers and last I checked we do not make sales calls. We make customer care calls, host coaching calls...but not sales calls. This law so does not apply to our type of business.

 

[crazy4dabug]

hmmm I would have to disagree. It is the same. Sales...we are a direct sales company...that's our business.
It's what we do. We're not calling to chat, we're calling in hopes that someone will book a party thus bringing our income.
Theres so much info about it online that it confuses me. I'm not going to spend any more time on it...but I will play it safe.

I'd rather not take the chance. I'm for one not willing to try my customers or possibly upset them.

 

[DebbieJ]

When I am making a "morning after" call, I'm thanking them for coming, thanking them for their order, offering tips on what they've ordered. That's not sales.

When I am making an "out of the box" call, I'm making sure they are enjoying their items, giving them tips for using them, reminding them of the warranty. That's not sales.

When I make any other kind of customer care call, I'm letting them know about our new catalog, our upcoming specials, telling them about our new theme shows, etc. That's not sales.

When I make host coaching calls, I'm helping a host with her guest list, helping a host with her wish list, reminding her to make reminder calls, and getting her excited about her party. That's not sales.

Do you want to know when I do sales? AT A SHOW. The calls I make are all about customer service. VERY RARELY do I EVER take an order over the phone.

I'm only calling people who have given me their phone number and therefore have given me permission to call them. In the end, yes, I would love it if they want to book a party, but that's not why I call them.

It's a totally different intent and perspective than what this law was designed to cover.

 

[crazy4dabug]

http://www.the-dma.org/guidelines/tsr-guide.pdf

Here is the guide. However, I would question HO about how it applies to our calls. I don't call on a Sunday unless someone requests me to however, most are calling people who have given them a number to call them for a reason.

Someone in legal at HO should be able to answer any questions.

Only a couple states have Sunday retrictions though...

Interesting...not how I read it..but interesting.
BUT, what does the FCC have to say about it? Is it the same company? I've never heard the Federal COMMUNICATIONS COMMISION called by FTC!
Seems as though we're going around the root (source) here..not too it.

 

[crazy4dabug]

All I'm saying is that's your definition...not websters.
I appreciate your input but I'm just not willing to take the chance on a sunday. And everyone here needs to be aware of the law in their state so they can make their own INFORMED decisions...that's your informed decision...great. THis is mine.

 

[crazy4dabug]

http://www.cmor.org/research/differences.cfm

 

[crazy4dabug]

Research shows otherwise....
"Arriving at an exact definition for direct marketing is becoming more difficult all the time. The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) defines direct marketing as ". . . an interactive system of marketing which uses one or more advertising media to effect a measurable response and/or transaction at any location." This can be boiled down even further to the three basic properties of direct marketing: a definite offer is made; all the information necessary to make a decision is provided; a response mechanism is provided. Within that general framework fall all types of direct marketing options: sales letters, catalogs, telemarketing, direct response TV ads, the Internet. "

That was taken from this website.
http://www.motivationshow.com/article21

the website isn't on this topic. Just what a direct sales call can consist of.

 

[Sk8Mom209]

We are not cold calling. That is the difference.

We are contacting customers and prospective customers, for many reasons, not primarily sales and we have informed them we are calling and they are expecting us to call.

We are not breaking any laws.

 

[heat123]

Law or no law, personally I feel sundays are for Family and alot go to church or have get togethers so I respect that day, as I enjoy my sundays with family and never make calls on this day of the week.

 

[Sk8Mom209]

Law or no law, personally I feel sundays are for Family and alot go to church or have get togethers so I respect that day, as I enjoy my sundays with family and never make calls on this day of the week.

I completely agree. I live in a small town that has more churches per capita, than any other city in the area.

I do not make calls on Sundays, because it is a time for me to be with my family and in my town, most everything is closed, citizens do not shop, some do not even cook.

Having grown up in this community, I am very respectful of the day and if calls must be made on Sunday, it is someone I know very well and it is prearranged.

But, scaring other consultants by telling them it is illegal is not right. Over 70,000 consultants have been doing this for more than 26 years, and I think we would have heard something official from PC if consultants were being sued for calling on a Sunday.

 

[Veevahchef]

I used to work as a recruiter for The Diabetes Association. That is where I found out that Sunday early evening is the BEST time to call people. You find that most people are home, they are relaxed and happy to hear from you! I rarely waste my time calling any other day unless i have scheduled that time to call my customer. Chances are, on any other evening I will get an answering machine. People are so busy these days and really they are less likely to be positive about your call on a weeknight, than they are after a relaxing day like Sunday.
I don't make any PC calls during the day on Sunday though. Simply because I do believe that Sunday during the day, most people are doing family things and are probably not wanting to chat on the phone. BUT... Sunday evening is GREAT. I have always had the best response on a Sunday evening.

 

[dannyzmom]

hmmm I would have to disagree. It is the same. Sales...we are a direct sales company...that's our business.
It's what we do. We're not calling to chat, we're calling in hopes that someone will book a party thus bringing our income.
Theres so much info about it online that it confuses me. I'm not going to spend any more time on it...but I will play it safe.

I'd rather not take the chance. I'm for one not willing to try my customers or possibly upset them.

You may want to re-think the way you do your customer care calls if this is the case in your business. My calls consist of either my checking to see if all her products arrived safely, as ordered, and in working consition, if she has any questions as to how to use them, if she is enjoying them and if she wants me to email her some recipes for any of the tools. In that call I have not asked her to buy anything or offered to sell her anything. My other type of call is host coaching in which I am seeing what our headcount is, discussing recipe ideas, asking if there are any more people she needs me to send invites to, etc...again...not once do I offer to sell her anything or try to get her to buy anything.

I think it is important for the newer consultants on this forum to understand this clearly as I am a bit concerned that your post is going to freak people out -- WE ARE NOT BREAKING THE LAW BY MAKING CUSTOMER CARE CALLS. Yes, it is important to respect people's family time and if you know a particular customer observes the Sabbath then don't call her on Sunday. Know your customers...but don't fear that you'll get sued for making customer care calls - that is simply NOT the case.

I would encourage you to put a call into your upline - as high as you can go - I know my NED takes calls openly so I would encourage you to contact your National Exec Director for some clarification and guidance on this.

And again - for the newer consultants on this forum, have no fear - WE ARE NOT AS RISK OF BEING SUED FOR MAKING CUSTOMER CARE CALLS ON SUNDAYS.

 

[pchefkristin]

While I started the thread about calling this last weekend, my intent was not to make calls on Sunday, as I rarely do. It too is my family day. I was really wanting input on if the thought of calling on a holiday weekend was a wise choice. Saturday was my phone calling day for the weekend.

 

[DebbieJ]

You may want to re-think the way you do your customer care calls if this is the case in your business.

Nicely put, Carolyn.

Deanna, it seems that you have misunderstood what our business is really about.

 

[crazy4dabug]

Ok, I'm not going to argue with you ladies. I have not intentionally "Scared or misinformed" anyone. It's an interpretation of the law to put it quite simply. I never mentioned that calling to see if the shipment arrived or host coaching was included in "Sales"...you assumed these were the calls I meant.
When, in fact it's the calls trying to get bookings and for no other reason.
THIS is what is an interpretation of the law. You can interpret it as you wish. I feel it states it clearly for me. DO NOT judge me for making that decision or trying to inform ppl about it.
Everyone should be clearly informed of what the entire law states for their state. They should do that research if Sunday is their main day to make calls to TRY TO GET BOOKINGs...