Diet and fitness enthusiasts love to say “you are what you eat.” If you’re a lead buyer making calls to contacts you bought from a third-party lead generator, you’re eating what they’re selling you, and you need to know what you’re putting into your body.
At a minimum, you need to cover this core ground with your lead gen vendors so you eat clean and stay lean:
- Ask your lead generation vendor to document their current consent and data-sourcing practices that they’ll use for your specific campaigns.
- Verify how they ensure compliance with the TCPA and consumer protection laws.
- Request documentation and transparency regarding the leads you purchase.
Essential Questions to Ask Lead Generators Before Buying
There are key vetting principles you need to follow to safeguard your organization when purchasing consumer leads for outbound sales calls. We emphasize below four main questions every buyer should ask a lead generation vendor:
1. How is consumer consent obtained and documented?
Understanding how vendors collect and verify consent is crucial. You must ensure that all leads have provided you—the lead buyer—explicit permission to be contacted, especially by phone and the specific technologies you’ll be using to contact them. This includes prerecorded/artificial/AI voice if you’ll be making those types of calls in your campaign.
Ask for details on their opt-in process, copy of the webforms and other collateral they’ll be using in the marketplace, and request proof of consent for each lead (and if they use third-party services like ActiveProspect TrustedForm to corroborate the bona fides of the leads).
2. What steps do you take to comply with federal and state regulations?
Lead generation vendors should have robust compliance protocols for laws like the TCPA, and state-specific telemarketing rules. Ask them to describe their compliance checks, how often they update their processes, and what safeguards they have in place to prevent violations and weed out potentially problematic opt-ins from likely litigators or other bad actors.
3. Can you provide transparency and documentation for each lead?
It’s essential that vendors offer comprehensive records, including timestamps, consent forms, and source information. This documentation is vital for audits or responding to consumer complaints, helping you avoid potential TCPA claims and regulatory penalties.
4. What is your supply chain like?
As Charlie Munger famously said, “show me the incentive and I’ll show you the outcome.”
If your lead gen vendor has incentives that are misaligned with your compliance goals—that prize volume over quality, or they’re re-selling leads that they themselves have not fully vetted to be suitable for your needs, for example—learn that in your due-diligence process, not after.
You want to learn more about their supply chain before you buy the leads and discover that they didn’t have good quality-controls in place to only provide you with qualified, compliant leads.
The video below summarizes the key information covered in this article, as well as practical advice and real-world examples that reinforce the importance of asking these questions before purchasing leads.
Final Thoughts
Beyond what’s covered in this article and the video, buyers should also evaluate the vendor’s reputation and history with compliance issues. Consider requesting references or case studies to confirm their track record.
Additionally, set up ongoing reviews of your lead sources to ensure continued adherence to regulations as laws evolve, and watch your own data when calling those leads to confirm that there are no red flags raised, such as unusual opt-out requests or complaints. When we eat bad food, our body usually tells us pretty quickly. Your data can do the same, so be sure to monitor it.
By being proactive and thorough, you protect your company, your customers, and your ability to operate smoothly in a regulated environment.
This article is only offered for informational purposes; it is not legal advice. Please consult a qualified attorney for your specific compliance needs.
Joe Bowser
Joe Bowser is a partner at Roth Jackson. He has been practicing communications and marketing law for two decades. He advises and defends calling and SMS platform providers (like Readymode), carriers/VoIP providers, and heavy users of those services in their wide range of compliance needs. In his spare time, you can find him taking his boys to their sports, getting in a workout of his own, or catching an Arsenal match.
