"Hello, I'm
trying to reach <s/h name>. Is he/she
available? My
name is ____ and I'm
calling on a recorded
line regarding the shareholder meeting for the American
Funds <specific fund name>. We sent you a
proxy card to register your vote for the shareholder
meeting and haven't received it back, so we're calling to ask if
you would have
any objections to voting along with the recommendations of the
Funds' Board?"
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
NO
|
YES
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
I
see. Just to clarify, are you indicating that you'd like to
vote differently, or not vote at all today?
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
Shareholder Agrees to
Vote
|
<Use
Appropriate Rebuttal>
|
Shareholder
Declines
to Vote
|
||||||||||||||||||||
(read each
proposal and record vote as instructed by shareholder)
|
Would you like
our toll free number so you can call back at your convenience? Your
participation would be greatly appreciated and it would just take a brief
moment to vote your shares over the phone.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
I
am recording your < > vote and will send you a printed confirmation
to (address). For confirmation purposes, may I have the city,
state and zip code that we'll be mailing your confirmation to?
|
YES
|
NO
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Please call
<inbound toll free> any time between 9am and 11pm EST weekdays or
between Noon and 6pm on Saturday.
|
Thank you for
your time. Have a good day/evening!
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
Thank you for
your time and your vote
Mr./Mrs. _____
have a good _____!
|
Thank you for
your time. Have a good
day/evening!
|
SH
states ……
|
Response
|
“My
spouse takes care of it.”
|
I
understand. Is your wife/husband available to speak with
me?
(If wife/husband is
unavailable)
CSR: “Your
vote is very important to the fund, as your wife/husband/spouse is
unavailable, I would be more than happy to assist you with voting by
reviewing the proposal(s). This would only take a brief moment
of your time.”
|
“I
don’t know how to
vote
… ”
|
Your board of
directors has reviewed the proposal(s) and believes their recommendations
are in the best interest of the fund and its shareholders. Your
Board is recommending shareholders vote <Vote Recommended line from
briefly paragraph >. Would you have any objections to voting
along with the recommendations of the Funds’ Board?
|
"My broker takes care of
it "
|
I understand
that your Broker may help you choose your funds, however certain
proposal(s) for this proxy require a direct vote from the shareholder and
cannot be voted by your Broker. I can go over the proposal(s) quickly for
you now if you wish.
|
“I
don’t have the time right now …”
|
I understand,
however, your vote is very important. Voting now will only take
a brief moment of your time. Would you have any objections to voting along
with the recommendations of the Funds’ Board?
|
“I’m not interested
/
I
don’t want to vote /
I
don’t have enough shares to vote”
|
Every vote is
important to the fund and helps bring the fund a step closer to holding
the meeting. If not enough votes are received, the shareholder
meeting may have to be adjourned. Would you have any objections
to voting along with the recommendations of the Funds’ Board?
|
“I
sold my shares /
I
no longer own shares in that Fund”
|
I
understand. However you were a shareholder as of the record
date and therefore you are the only person who can vote those shares. As a
courtesy to the remaining shareholders, would you have any
objections to voting along with the recommendations of the Funds’
Board?
|
SH
states ……
|
Response
|
|
“I’ve
never received a call like this before”
|
This has
become a standard in the industry and the proxy statement mentions that if
your vote is not received you may receive a call offering you the
convenience of voting by telephone. Would you have any objections to
voting along with the recommendations of the Funds’ Board?
|
|
“I’ll
vote later”
OR:
I’ll
vote via mail,
online,
etc”
|
I
understand. We are calling today because your Board would like
to hear from all shareholders on this matter. Your Fund has asked us to
call to offer you the convenience of voting over the phone, which makes
the voting process much easier and faster. I would be happy to record your
vote for you now and send you a printed confirmation that your vote has
been recorded.
Would you
like to vote along with the recommendations of the Funds’
Board?
|
|
If
the shareholder only says YES
when they are asked if they have objections…
Agent note: use this rebuttal
if the shareholder’s YES means that either they don’t want to vote today
or do not want to vote with the Board’s
recommendations.
|
I
see. Just to clarify, are you indicating you’d like to vote
differently, or not vote at all today
?
|
SH
States …
|
Response
|
“Why
are you calling me?”
#
1
|
Your Fund has
asked us to contact you because we sent you a proxy card to register your
vote for the upcoming shareholder meeting and haven’t received it back, so
we are calling to encourage you to vote your shares. Would you
have any objections to voting along with the recommendations of the Funds’
Board?
|
“Why
are you calling me?”
# 2 (to use if the first answer
does not satisfy the shareholder).
|
Your Board
would like to hear from all shareholders on this matter and your Fund has
asked us to call to offer you the convenience of voting over the
phone. This makes your voting process much easier and
faster. Would you have any objections to voting along with the
recommendations of the Funds’ Board?
|
“I
don't accept these types of calls.”
|
I am sorry
for any inconvenience, however, I did want to let you know that this call
is in regards to your current investment in the < Fund name > and we
are simply calling to advise you of a shareholders meeting and are asking
if you would like to register your vote. Would you like to
vote?
Agent Note: if
shareholder is irate, or reiterates that they do not want to accept these
types of calls, please see the ‘Please do not call me again’ response
below.
|
Please
do not call me again.
OR
Please
add me to your do not call list.
|
I understand
how you feel about unwanted calls and will add you to our internal Do Not
Call list. However, I did want to let you know that this call
is regarding your current investment in the <Fund Family name> and
we are simply calling to advise you of the shareholder meeting and are
asking if you would like to register your vote.
|
“How
many votes do you still need?”
|
I have
limited information on that. What I do know is that every vote is
important at this point and that is why we are calling you and other
shareholders to ask if you would have any objections to voting along with
the recommendations of the Funds’ Board?
|
SH
states ……
|
CSR
Response:
|
|
Person
on line asks “Who’s calling?”, but has not yet indicated that they are the
shareholder.
|
My name is
____ and I'm calling on a recorded line regarding the shareholder meeting
for American Funds.
Is < s/h
name > available? / Is there a better time to reach them?
|
|
SH
says “I’m < s/h name >. Why are you calling
me?
|
My name is
______ and I’m calling on a recorded line regarding the shareholder
meeting for the American Funds < specific fund name >. We
sent you a proxy card to register your vote for the shareholder meeting
and haven't received it back, so we're calling to ask if you would have
any objections to voting along with the recommendations of the Fund’s
Board?
|
|
SH
asks “Who are you, & where are you calling from? / Are you
selling something?
..
AFTER you have
read the introduction to the script.
|
I’m calling
from Computershare Fund Services / DF King. Computershare Fund
Services / DF King handles proxy voting for mutual
funds. American Funds hired us to handle the proxy voting
for the upcoming shareholder meeting.
For your
information, I am calling on a recorded line. We sent you a proxy card to
register your vote for the shareholder meeting and haven't received it
back, so we're calling to ask if you would have any objections to voting
along with the recommendations of the Fund’s Board?
|