Consent, DND and the checks before you dial at volume
An autodialler will happily break rules you have not read. What to confirm before the first campaign goes out — not after.
This is the tutorial with the most consequence attached and the least product-specific content, because most of the answers are legal rather than technical.
The thing worth internalising: an autodialler does at volume, quickly, and with a complete written record, whatever you configured. Every attempt lands on a contact's activity feed with a timestamp. That trail protects you when you are compliant and documents you thoroughly when you are not.
None of this is legal advice. The rules vary by country and change; confirm your position with your own counsel before dialling at volume.
Before you start
- A clear legal basis for each list you intend to call.
- Advice on the do-not-call regime in every market you dial.
- Your carrier's own requirements, in writing.
Steps
Establish your legal basis for each list
Customers who bought from you, people who filled in a form, and a purchased list are three completely different positions. Know which one you are in for every audience, separately.
Check the national do-not-call regime in every market
Registries, honouring periods and penalties differ by country and sometimes by state. A question for your counsel, not for a vendor.
Confirm permitted calling hours, then set them on the channel
Restricted call timings live on the line, with one timezone and date exceptions. Because campaigns inherit them and can only narrow, a campaign can never dial outside them by accident.
Check the timezone. A correct window in the wrong timezone is a compliance failure rather than a cosmetic one.
Ask your carrier what they require
Carriers have their own rules about volume, caller ID and consent, and they enforce them by cutting you off — usually without much warning.
Make DND terminal in your process
The DND outcome moves the lead stage and removes the contact from the calling list. Do not build imports, bulk edits or workflows that quietly put those people back.
Audit this: filter Contacts to DND and confirm the count only ever grows.
Say who you are, early
Many regimes require identification at the start of the call. Put it in the AI agent's first message, where it is in one place and you can see it.
Handle recording consent explicitly
Recording carries obligations that often include telling the caller. Confirm your position before you rely on recordings for coaching or disputes.
Keep the evidence
Every attempt is on the contact's activity feed, and stage changes are audit entries. That trail is your evidence — do not delete contacts to tidy up.
Check it worked
Before your first large campaign, have somebody who was not involved read the audience definition, the calling hours and the follow-up sequence, and ask them whether they would be comfortable receiving it. That is a better test than any checklist.
The parts people get wrong
- This tutorial is not legal advice. Rules vary by country and change; confirm your position with your own counsel.
- An imported or purchased list is where these obligations bite hardest, and where "we did not know" is least persuasive.
- Because hours live on the line rather than the campaign, your compliance boundary is set once and inherited everywhere.
The ones people actually ask
How does a number get on the DND list?
Numbers can be manually added by agents, or automatically added if a customer replies with standard opt-out keywords.
Does DND stop manual calls?
It restricts automated diallers and campaigns, but a human agent explicitly choosing to dial may still be warned but able depending on override settings.
Can a contact remove themselves from DND?
Yes, if they reply with an opt-in keyword (like START), the system can reinstate their consent.
Is DND global or per channel?
DND is bound to the contact record level, though specific consent flags may dictate which channels they opted out of.
What if I accidentally put someone on DND?
Admins or managers with sufficient permissions can manually clear the DND flag from the contact record.
What do I need to settle before dialling at volume?
Your legal basis for each list separately — customers who bought from you, people who filled in a form and a purchased list are three completely different positions. The national do-not-call regime in every market you dial. Your permitted hours, set on the channel. And what your carrier requires, because they enforce their rules by cutting you off.
How do I make sure DND is respected?
Make it terminal in your process, not just in the product. The DND outcome moves the lead stage and removes the contact from the calling list — but an import, a bulk edit or a workflow can quietly put them back. Audit it: filter Contacts to DND and confirm the count only ever grows.
What is our evidence if we are challenged?
Every attempt is on the contact's activity feed and stage changes are audit entries. That trail is your evidence, which is a strong reason not to delete contacts to tidy up.