Use Local Caller ID Numbers in Fundraising Telemarketing

Charities have used the telephone as an effective fundraising channel for years, reaching both previous donors and those who haven't yet supported the cause. A successful fundraising telemarketing campaign has standard components — calling lists, scripting, rebuttals, training, data collection, and donation capture — but one simple, often-overlooked step is securing a Local Caller ID number for the outgoing display.

What is a Local Caller ID number?

A Local Caller ID number matches the area code of the called party's phone number. Telephone fundraisers using this strategy typically rely on about 110 unique area code numbers for a nationwide campaign. Pairing that local number with your charity's name as a display name can increase answer rates by as much as 40%.

What is a display name?

Alongside a local number, you can display a name via CNAM — the centralized database phone carriers use to store the display name each customer wants shown for a given Caller ID number. Displaying the charity's name buys a few seconds of trust: when an agent says "Hi, this is Kelsey calling with QVD Fundraising," the called party has already read and processed that name on their display.

How do you set it up?

Securing a Local Caller ID number is simple. After setting up an account, you provide three things: the area code or state you want the number in, a display name (up to 15 characters including spaces), and a toll-free ring-to number so callbacks route to your fundraisers. We also have tools to help determine how many Caller ID numbers you need based on the distribution of phone numbers in your campaign data.

Why it matters for fundraising specifically

Improved answer rates mean speaking to more potential donors in less time — and speaking to more potential donors means more donations at a lower cost of acquisition. No one answers toll-free numbers anymore; across a household's Caller ID display, an 800 number reads as "telemarketer."

Caller ID number hygiene matters too

Crowd-sourced call-blocking apps flag numbers as spam based on how frequently they call app users within a given interval. To stay ahead of this: look up your Caller ID numbers online to check for negative mentions, and use a service that scrubs your numbers before assignment and on an ongoing basis. Replacing numbers that pick up bad marks is standard practice for enhanced telecom providers like Quality Voice & Data — high calling volume alone doesn't make legitimate calls illegal or unwanted, even when they get caught in the net meant to stop illegal robocalls.