Distance selling means selling by:

phone

mail order

email

the internet

digital television

Use distance selling for:

approaching hard-to-reach customers

repeat orders from established customers

reaching new markets through the internet

Costs are far lower than if you visit customers, or have retail premises. But there are disadvantages, such as:

you can't demonstrate your product

it can be difficult to convince the customer to trust you without meeting them

However, many businesses find distance selling cost-effective for standard products such as books and CDs - the customer already knows what they'll be getting.

Distance selling can also be a very useful way of getting repeat orders once you have built the initial relationship by meeting the customer.

Using the telephone means that as well as prompting the customer to reorder or buy new products, you can give customers an opportunity to ask questions.

Rules on distance selling

Businesses using distance selling must comply with a range of regulations. Read about the distance selling regulations on the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) website.

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If you are selling to consumers, you must provide certain basic information such as your business' name, contact details and product, delivery and pricing information. The customer generally has the right to return goods within a specified period.

If your business is a limited company or limited liability partnership (LLP) and you have a website, it must show the company's or LLP's:

full name

registered office and geographic addresses

registered number

place of registration

VAT number

email address

If the business is being wound up, it must also state that fact.

You don't have to provide key written details to customers about the service on offer before the contract is agreed. You can provide information on cancellation rights during the performance of the service, as long as you allow a reasonable amount of time for the customer to cancel before the service comes to an end. If you give this information after the service has started, the customer can cancel the agreement up to seven working days after they received the information.

You must ask customers and potential customers to 'opt in' before sending them sales or marketing emails, which (if the business is a company or LLP) must include the full name, registration number and registered office address. You must also give recipients a simple option to 'opt out' of any further sales or marketing emails.