Spam calls are never a good thing for anyone. However, it can get tricky if your cold calls end up on your customers’ blocked calls list. In this article, we will discuss the core of this problem, and what Aloware can do to both prevent and mitigate this.
How did these problems arise?
With the rise of robocalling, wireless carriers and smartphone manufacturers (e.g. Apple for iOS and Google for Android) implemented measures to prevent "spam/scam calls" to protect consumers.
While this is good news for the consumers, established businesses often see their numbers incorrectly marked as spam or outright blocked from reaching out to customers even for legitimate reasons.
The FCC’s SHAKEN/STIR protocol
Almost all robocallers use a combination of two bad acts: They falsify their caller IDs (i.e. consumer sees a number very close to their own), and the call only plays a pre-recorded message instead of having a live human on the line. With this practice becoming widespread, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has mandated a protocol where carriers must be able to identify the original caller ID of any call delivered to a consumer.
This protocol is the Signature-based Handling of Asserted information using toKENs (SHAKEN) / Secure Telephony Identity Revisited (STIR) protocol — otherwise known as SHAKEN/STIR.
The SHAKEN/STIR protocol ensures that caller IDs are verified, and the calling phone numbers belong to a registered business. Moreover, the same protocol paves the way for alphanumeric caller IDs in the United States, whereas the phone will show the business' name and logo when confirmed.
The National DNC Registry
The National Do Not Call Registry has been around for a long time, and businesses are mandated to check their consumer phone numbers against the DNC list before calling them. These days, the FCC is taking consumer complaints more seriously and refers the complaints to the wireless carriers. Wireless carriers will then in turn start blocking traffic from those calling numbers. The calling numbers will also be added to several blacklists.
Mobile Apps and Operating Systems
Both iOS and Android have built-in systems to check a phone number against numerous blacklists for spamming. Additionally, apps like Nomorobo, Hiya, Robokiller check these blacklists, and outright block a call or show "spam likely" on the consumer's phone.
Aloware’s solutions
We treat your business like ours, and we want to make sure you are getting the most out of every dial. This is why we’ve come up with a solution to navigate through these situations and unburden your call campaigns while still complying with the rules.
Solution 1: Register your numbers
Registering phone numbers to your business is the sure way to mitigate the risks of being marked as scam/spam likely. Aloware has implemented the SHAKEN/STIR protocol since June 2021, and compliance to our users is as easy as filling out a form inside your Aloware account. Once the form is filled out and if you are using Aloware’s local presence feature, all your numbers will be registered to your brand.
What happens when I register my numbers?
When you register your numbers, carriers will assign a "caller verified" status to calls you are making. Aloware will also send your business's name to the wireless carrier, and (in the future) the carrier will be able to display your business name to the consumer.
How do I begin registration? Is there a cost?
We provide a managed registration service to all of our clients. Just go to your Aloware account instance, click Account, and find Compliance. We would ask for your business details for verification and forward it to carriers.
Currently, Aloware is absorbing all fees associated with registering your phone numbers. While this might change in the future, we recommend that you register your business as soon as possible.
Solution 2: Automatically stop agents from calling DNC numbers
We have recently partnered up with DNC.com to provide scrubbing service against national and state-wide DNC registries. Scrubbing your lists ensures that your phone numbers do not receive complaints and won't be blacklisted.
Solution 3: Monitor and Remediate with NumberGuard
While registration and DNC compliance are critical first steps, aggressive spam filters can still flag legitimate business numbers. To bridge this gap, Aloware offers NumberGuard, a comprehensive reputation management solution.
What does NumberGuard do?
NumberGuard proactively protects your outreach by running regular health checks on your phone numbers.
- Carrier Database Scanning: It continuously monitors major carrier databases and third-party apps to detect if your numbers have been flagged as "Spam Likely."
- Real-World Testing: We test your numbers on actual mobile devices to show you exactly how your Caller ID appears to your customers.
- Automatic Remediation: If a number is incorrectly flagged, NumberGuard handles the dispute and remediation process with carriers for you, ensuring your numbers are cleaned quickly.
By adding NumberGuard to your workflow, you ensure that your registered, compliant numbers stay clean, maintaining high answer rates and protecting your brand’s reputation.
Start connecting with more leads with a better dialer solution that solves major dialing issues for you. Aloware provides you with tools and strategies to make selling easier. Let's talk about your contact center!