Telecom sales FAQ: cable, satellite TV, wireless internet, price rules and pay

Some mix of cable internet, cable or satellite television, wireless home internet, home phone and mobile lines, depending on the carrier. Most of the skill is in building the bundle that fits what the household already uses and pays for.

Ask which carrier, and ask to see the identification and sales code the carrier issues to the people who sell for it. Ask who signs your agreement and who pays you. A legitimate dealer answers all three without hesitation, and its orders go into the carrier's own system in front of the customer.

More: Sales dealer · How to vet a company

Fiber is a glass line to the home. Cable uses the coaxial television line. DSL uses the telephone line. Fixed wireless reaches a receiver at the home over a radio or cellular network. Satellite reaches a dish. Each provider's broadband label gives the price and typical speeds of a plan, which is a fairer comparison than the technology's name.

More: Fiber vs. cable and wireless sales

Source: Federal Communications Commission: broadband consumer label compliance dates (DA 24-1276)

The carrier's order tool is the working answer: it accepts or rejects the address. For an independent check, the FCC's National Broadband Map lets anyone enter an address and see the fixed and mobile services that providers report are available there.

More: Serviceable address

Source: Federal Communications Commission: National Broadband Map announcement (2022)

As one total. An FCC rule requires cable and satellite TV providers to state the aggregate price for video programming as a single line item on bills, and to state that aggregate price whenever promotional material gives a price. If the price is introductory, the bill must show when it ends. The compliance date was December 19, 2024, with small cable operators following in March 2025. Quote the total and the date the promotion ends.

Source: 47 CFR 76.310 (cable and satellite TV: aggregate price)

FCC rules bar a carrier from switching a subscriber's telecommunications provider without authorization that has been verified. As the rule stood in November 2026, the accepted methods are a signed letter of agency, an electronic authorization the customer places through a toll-free number, or confirmation by an independent third party. Wireless carriers are generally excluded from those verification steps. Never complete any part of a verification for the customer.

More: Slamming · Third-party verification

Source: 47 CFR 64.1120 (verification of a change of telecommunications provider)

For most sales of 25 dollars or more made at the home, the federal Cooling-Off Rule gives three business days to cancel, and it covers services as well as goods. Separately, FCC rules require cable operators to give customers written information at installation about prices, installation and service policies, and billing and complaint procedures.

Source: Federal Trade Commission: Cooling-Off Rule (16 CFR Part 429) · 47 CFR 76.1602 (cable customer service information)

Lifeline is a federal program that gives eligible low-income households a monthly discount of up to 9.25 dollars on phone or internet service, more on Tribal lands. Households qualify by income or by taking part in programs such as SNAP or Medicaid. A rep may mention it only if the carrier participates, and should not describe it as the Affordable Connectivity Program, which ended on June 1, 2024.

Source: Universal Service Administrative Company: Lifeline · Federal Communications Commission: Affordable Connectivity Program ends June 1, 2024

Never enter an order the customer did not clearly agree to, add a line or a service they did not ask for, use someone else's sales code, or run a credit check without permission. Never quote a promotional price without saying when it ends. Carriers audit orders, and a rep who writes bad ones loses the sales code and the job.

The common reasons: the customer failed the carrier's credit check, the install was cancelled or missed, the household already had the service so it was not a new customer, the order duplicated another rep's, or the service was disconnected inside the chargeback period. Ask for the list of reasons at your company and how each one shows up on your statement.

More: Chargeback · Install rate

Each pay plan sets its own chargeback period. Ask for the number of days in writing, whether a downgrade counts as a cancellation, and whether mobile lines and television have different periods.

More: Pay and commission FAQ

Often not. Many dealers also staff retail kiosks, store counters and community events, and move reps between channels. If you want door-to-door work specifically, or want to avoid it, ask which channel the opening is for.

Yes, for people who want a short pitch, frequent pay and year-round work near home. The product is familiar to every household. The hard part is that most households have heard the offer before, so the reps who last are the ones who compare bills accurately and write orders that stay active.

More: Fiber vs. cable and wireless sales