The following is a guest contributed post from Todd Bryant, president and founder of

Is a telemarketing company in Texas on your mind? The phone solicitation field is certainly a good choice for a new business endeavor in the Lone Star state. But prior to starting your operations, you have to make sure you meet all legal requirements.

All phone soliciting businesses in Texas need to get licensed and comply with the  telemarketing bond requirement. By fulfilling the licensing criteria, they demonstrate to state authorities their suitability to conduct such operations. This is especially important since telemarketers across the U.S. have to comply with stricter rules since 2016.

When you’re applying for your license, it’s good to know that Texas has a state-specific DNC list, but also follows the federal list.

Below you can find the basic details that you have to learn in order to launch your telemarketing company in Texas.

What are the Texas telemarketing license requirements?

Your first step to obtaining your license for phone soliciting in Texas is to get well acquainted with the rules that govern your trade. You should consult the Telephone Solicitation Act in the Texas Business and Commerce Code, Title 10. It sets all regulations that you should adhere to in your licensing and operations as a telemarketer in the state.

The licensing body is the Secretary of State. In most cases, you should register with the authority, although there may be some exemptions. When applying, you should provide information about yourself and all other affiliated members, such as officers, partners and owners, as well as about your business entity and offices.

You should provide a list with all telephone numbers that you will use for telemarketing purposes and their physical address. Other requirements that you have to meet is to post a $10,000 security and to provide the filing fee of $200.

How to apply for your license

In order to start your registration procedure, you have to file a registration statement with the Texas Secretary of State. Once your profile has been approved, you will receive a registration certificate. It is valid for one year. If you’d like to continue your operations beyond this period, you need to renew it in advance.

The $10,000 security deposit can be in the form of a surety bond, an irrevocable letter of credit, or a certificate of deposit. The most convenient way to fulfill the security requirement is in the form of a bond, as it does not entail blocking the whole amount from your finances.

The bond is there to guarantee your legal operations and to prevent any misuse, fraud, or abuse during your telemarketing activities. It is a protection mechanism that ensures financial reimbursement to affected parties in case you transgress from applicable regulations. The bond is also a sign that your business is trustworthy. It should be issued by a surety approved by the licensing body, which is duly licensed to provide bonding in Texas.

Other Things to Keep In Mind

Telephone solicitors in Texas have to always identify themselves by name and clearly mention the company they are working for. The permissible hours for telemarketing in the state are between 9am and 9pm on all workdays and Saturdays, and between noon and 9pm on Sundays.

For violations, there are penalties set in Section 304 of the Texas Business and Commerce Code. For a single violation, the penalty is $1,000. If it is willful, the penalty is higher – $3,000.

Do you have first-hand tips from obtaining a Texas telemarketing license? Please share your insights in the comments!

The post Op-Ed: How to Get a Telemarketing License in Texas appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The following is a guest contributed post from Todd Bryant, president and founder of Bryant Surety Bonds

Thinking about starting a telemarketing business in Florida? The times are certainly suitable, as currently there are 3,000 active telemarketers in the state, down from 4,799 licensed salespeople back in 2012.

While the competition is lower, giving you a good opportunity in the field, the rules for telemarketers across the country are quite strict. Obtaining a Florida telemarketing license is your first step in launching your business. The licensing process entails that you meet all Florida telemarketing license requirements, including obtaining a telemarketing surety bond.

Getting licensed secures your compliance with the Florida Telemarketing Act, which governs the way the industry operates in the state. While it does mean you need to undergo a rigorous administrative process, your license is also a proof for your customers that you are safe to do business with.

Ready to start your telemarketing company in Florida? Let’s take a look at how to get a telemarketing license in Florida.

Getting to know the Florida telemarketing license requirements

As with any procedure to meet legal requirements, your journey to obtaining a telemarketing license in Florida starts with doing your homework.

The first point of reference is the Business Services division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Since this is the authority that regulates your trade, you should get closely familiar with the rules that it imposes on telemarketing businesses in the state.

Whether you are located in Florida or not, you still need a license to conduct solicitation of purchasers living in the state. Additionally, even if you solicit out of state purchasers, you also have to get a Florida telemarketing license.

All your salespersons need to be licensed as well. You need to inform the Department of all the telephone numbers you are going to use. The law requires that all salespersons identify themselves with their full real names and the name of their company when they are calling customers.

Your Florida telemarketing license application

Once you’ve gotten acquainted with the rules set forth by the Florida Telemarketing Act, the next step you need to take is to complete a Commercial Telephone Seller Business License Application and Commercial Telephone Salesperson Individual License Application for each salesperson on your team.

Make sure you fill in the application forms correctly, as any mismatches can slow down your licensing. You need to provide information about your business entity, criminal background check, and previous professional experience. A script or outline of the text that will be used for soliciting is also required.

Besides submitting the mentioned documents, you need to pay a $1,500 application fee per year for your business and $15 per salesperson per year. You also need to obtain a security of at least $50,000.

Getting your Florida telemarketing surety bond

To meet one of the most important requirements to getting a Florida telemarketing license, providing a $50,000 security, you have three options – a surety bond, a certificate of deposit or a letter of credit. Getting a telemarketing bond, however, is the top choice, since both other options mean that you have the whole security amount blocked.

A Florida telemarketing bond is a type of surety bond, whose purpose is to guarantee the lawful operation of your business. It ensures you will follow applicable state rules, thus protecting citizens from any abuse, and provides reimbursement to any affected parties if the bond rules are breached.

To get bonded, you need to pay only a fraction of the set amount, which is usually in the range of 1%-4%. The exact bond price you will end up paying varies from case to case. The surety examines the overall finances of bond applicants and sets the bond premium on the basis of their financial strength.

Don’t forget that similarly to your telemarketing license, your surety bond is a strong signal for your customers that your telemarketing business is legal and their interests will be safeguarded.

This short, yet thorough overview should be of help when you’re launching your telemarketing business in Florida. Have some questions or comments? Feel free to share them below.

The post Telemarketing in Florida, Anyone? appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The following is a guest contributed post from Todd Bryant, the president and founder of Bryant Surety Bonds.

Recently, the telemarketing industry has been falling under tighter regulations. Just last year the FCC gave robocall-blocking technology the green light in an effort to protect consumers from unwanted phone calls.

This year, it’s the FTC that has proposed new regulatory rules in the forms of amendments to the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR). The majority of these amendments have been in effect since Feb. 12 2016, so it’s important for telemarketers to know them in detail. Failure to comply with them can trigger a claim against their telemarketing bond, as well as other punitive action. So what should telemarketers be careful about?

#1 Making or Accepting Remote Payment Orders

Effective June 13, telemarketers will not be allowed to receive remote payment orders, whether inbound or outbound. This is an attempt at cutting a fraudulent practice where a telemarketer can debit funds from a client’s bank account for a sum larger than the payor agreed upon. Experience shows that payments like this are then harder to reverse by the bank, leaving numerous consumers disgruntled.

Of course, many telemarketers use remote payment orders just out for convenience, but this would no longer be possible. Even if a payor agrees that you generate a payment order with their payment details and then deposit it on their behalf, you still shouldn’t do it.

#2 Requesting Cash-to-Cash Transfers

Another frequently spread practice that is getting banned by the FTC is cash-to-cash money transfers, using services such as MoneyGram or Western Union. A cash-to-cash service is one way fraudulent telemarketers can request money from one location, pick it up at another and leave with the money without offering any real service.

Another similar method being banned is that of “cash reload”, where funds are added to a prepaid card. Major cash reload providers are already using a safer alternative, called the swipe reload process. Both measures are also coming into effect June 13.

#3 Oral Authorization of Charges

Amendments to the rule will require a tape recording with the buyer’s express verifiable authorization to be charged for a particular telemarketing transaction. This recording should clearly state and describe the goods, services or charitable contribution the payor is agreeing to. While a recording of the oral authorization of charges is not something new, the description of the purchase must now always be in it.

#4 Collecting Advance Fees on Non-Telemarketing Transactions

A ban is introduced on collection advance fees for loss recovery services on telemarketing transactions, but now the language of the TSR has been amended to include non-telemarketing ones as well. The purpose of this is mostly to include online scams under the ban.

#5 Calling People from the DNC Registry

There are a few exceptions introduced to when a telemarketer can call a person who is in the Do Not Call (DNC) registry. One of them is if you can prove you have an existing business relationship with the person you are calling. The second one is if you obtain an express written consent. Keep in mind: telemarketers are prohibited from calling a person at their workplace in an effort to circumvent the DNC. It’s also illegal to split the cost of accessing the DNC registry with another seller.

#6 Interfering With People’s Right to Be on the Entity-Specific Do Not Call List

There has been numerous attempts to prevent telemarketers from persuading people in any way to opt out of the DNC registry. The TSR amendment explicitly states a few examples to make the rule more clear:

• harassing consumers who make such a request,
• hanging up on them
• failing to honor the request
• requiring the consumer to listen to a sales pitch before accepting the request
• assessing a charge or fee for honoring the request
• requiring the consumer to call a different number to submit the request
• requiring the consumer to identify the seller or charitable organization making the call or on whose behalf the call is made.

As you can see, the amendments to the TSR introduce some important changes to the telemarketing industry. Make sure you read the full text of the rule, so you can stay out of surety bond claims and other legal issues.

What do you think of the amended rules? How are you going to protect your business, so you are not in violation of them? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The post New FTC Rules: How Are Telemarketers Affected? appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.