Some 'Pros' & 'Cons' of Ringless Voicemails

What is ringless voicemail?

It is also referred to as Direct To Voicemail or Ringless Voicemail Drops.

The technology has been available for many years, however, it was popularized by a company named slydial that sends one call at a time. They are one of the first providers and maybe the best service.

The premise of RVM software is to deliver a pre-recorded audio message into a voicemail without ringing the associated telephone at all.

How do ringless voicemail drops work?

There are two ways that ringless voicemail can happen.

The first way is to dial a phone number two times at the same exact time. When a residential phone number receives 2 incoming calls at the same time, one caller receives the voicemail while the other caller gets disconnected.

The second way is by calling a dedicated voicemail access phone number provided by the carrier. Service providers call the number directly and then dial into the consumer’s voice mailbox.

Direct To Voicemail (DTV) features

Below are some of the features ringless voicemail providers offer.

• Reach mobile phones
• Reach landline phones (if the carrier provides a voicemail box)
• Pay for delivered voicemails only
• Your message will be sent straight to voicemail
• The recipient receives no ring, no missed call and no charge

What actually happens

A small percentage of recipients' phones will ring and receive a missed call notification.

Because we have our phones with us almost all the time, some of your recipients will realize they have been 'slydialed'. They may or may not appreciate the fact that there wasn't a phone ring.

Because the nature of this technology relies on manipulating the carrier voicemail system, the reporting may not be accurate. As a result, the billing may not be accurate as well.

Is ringless voicemail legal or illegal?

The TCPA (Telephone Consumer Protection Act) is a federal statute enacted in 1991 designed to safeguard consumer privacy. This legislation restricts telemarketing communications via voice calls, SMS texts, and fax.

In general, it's illegal unless the recipient has previously provided expressed written consent to receive such calls.

A ringless voicemail drop alternative

Sigma Voice tested ringless voicemail drops in-house and with a few select customers on a beta testing basis.

The feedback we received from our customers was negative. Their customers didn't appreciate the nature of this type of messaging.

Internally, it was very time-consuming keeping up with the various carrier changes to thwart attempts to game their system.

Needless to say, we do not offer ringless voicemail service at this time.

With that said, there are several RVM providers to check out if you're interested.

In addition, please consider using a traditional voice broadcast instead. It's a straightforward approach and technology that has worked for decades and has only gotten better. It's a low-cost, effective option with detailed reporting.