Telemarketing Sales Rule
The Federal Trade Commission ("FTC" or "Commission") adopts amendments to the Telemarketing Sales Rule ("TSR") that, among other things, require telemarketers and sellers to maintain additional records of their telemarketing transactions, prohibit material misrepresentations and false or misleading statements in business to business ("B2B") telemarketing calls, and add a new definition for the term "previous donor." These amendments are necessary to address technological advances and to continue protecting consumers, including small businesses, from deceptive or abusive telemarketing practices.
What this rule actually says
The FTC updated its Telemarketing Sales Rule to crack down on deceptive sales calls and texts. The key changes: telemarketers must keep better records of who they called and what they said, can't make false claims about products or services, and face stricter rules around B2B outreach. Think: a hiring assistant AI that cold-calls companies can't claim it "guarantees" placements, and you need to log those calls.
Who it applies to you
- If you're doing outbound phone calls or SMS to sell anything, this applies. Your AI medical scribe that calls clinics to pitch demos? Yes. Your support chatbot that only responds to inbound customer messages? No.
- If you're calling or texting businesses (B2B), the new rules are stricter—no material misrepresentations allowed, period.
- If you're calling or texting consumers (B2C), the old rules still apply (Do Not Call list compliance, disclosure requirements, etc.). The 2024 update tightened B2B specifically.
- Geographic scope: This is US federal law, so it applies to any outbound telemarketing targeting US phone numbers, regardless of where your company is based.
- Data scope: If you're collecting records of calls made, recipient info, pitch details, or outcomes—you must maintain those records. If you're just processing inbound support requests, this doesn't touch your data handling.
What founders need to do
- Audit your calling / texting activity (1-2 days). Does your product make any outbound calls or texts to prospects? If no, you're free. If yes, continue.
- Document your pitch claims (2-3 days). Write down exactly what your AI says to callers. Scrub any language that overpromises or could be misleading. "Improves hiring by 40%" needs evidence; "helps you screen resumes faster" is safer.
- Set up call logging (3-5 days). Keep records of: who you called, when, what was discussed, and the outcome. A basic CRM or spreadsheet works. The FTC may audit this.
- If you're B2B focused, review your compliance posture (1 day). B2B rules are now stricter. Double-check you're not making exaggerated claims to business prospects.
- Monitor FTC enforcement (ongoing, low effort). The FTC publishes cases. If a competitor in your space gets fined, read the details—you probably do something similar.
Bottom line
If you're doing outbound calling or texting to sell anything, act now—audit your claims and set up basic call logging (a few days of work). If you're inbound-only, monitor but don't panic.