Telemarketers

Silver Member Joined: Dec 17 2011 Posts: 594

I get a lot of these phone calls. While most people find them annoying, I don't really have a problem with them. I'll often get calls from the same company for four or five days in a row.

Thing is, instead of politely hanging up, I figure that if they're calling me, they're "fair game" so to speak, especially if I've heard from them 3 times that week.

So if they're trying to sell me a cell phone, and I just have to pay for the service, I ask them to just send the phone, I want it for parts. If they want to clean my ducts, I ask them to please explain what a duct is. If I've won some sort of fake contest, I play along for a while, I guess just to see what comes next in the script, especially if I ask strange questions.

Anything wrong with that? Does anyone feel that this kind of falls into the category of asking about a product that I'm not interested in? You'd think that after I do it a bunch of times, they'd stop calling, but they never do.

Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

it's ethically wrong. These people are not trying to annoy you; they're trying to make an honest living. It's not the CEO of the vendor doing the calling, but some joeshmoe who usually works for a telemarketing firm and has a script he has to follow.

They don't get paid very much and sometimes their pay is linked to how much they mannge to sell. By stringing them along you're stealing their time that they could be using to call someone else, and by acting dumb you're insulting them for something that's not their doing. Cold-calling and trying to sell things to people who aren't interested is hard enough; don't add cruelty to the burden. Few people do this work because they like it; most take this kind of job out of desperation.

Just say politely "I'm sorry, I'm not interested, have a good day" and hang up so they can go on to the next customer.

Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

Silver Member Joined: Dec 17 2011 Posts: 594

I hear your point. But why would the same company call dozens of times to the same number, if they get the same response each time?

Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

They have lists of numbers that are sold by market research firms, exactly the way not-for-profits buy mailing lists. They don't go thru each list to see if some names appear on all of them.

Some telemarketers are more successful than others--the employer might take the difficult cases and assign them to other callers to try again.

The vendor who contracts with the telemarketing firm might specify that they should contact each person X number of times if they don't make a sale the first time.

They may have different household members' names and not know it's all the same household.

They may be hoping to reach another member of the household who's easier to persuade.

They may hope that by callling repeatedly they'll wear you down and you'll buy something just to get them off your back.

Clearly telemarketing works, otherwise companies wouldn't do it. It's worth it to them to waste a few calls and irritate a few people in order to reach the people who are interested or at least willing to buy when contacted.

BTW much of the time the callers are not employees of the company doing the selling but employed by a firm that contracts with sellers to do the telemarketing for them. This is true for many not-for-profits as well. Haven't you ever wondered why a nice young hillbilly-sounding woman asks to speak to a Tsh-Anna Me-tchel-sonn (your name is Channa Mechelson), introduces herself as Christine and says she's calling for the Jewish Institute for the Whatever?

Platinum Member Joined: Feb 20 2009 Posts: 7624

I agree with zaq. I haveo a friend who did telemarketing for a while to bring in some much needed cash. She was very polite, and obviously didn't call the same person twice unless they asked her to call back. Her salary was tied to commission, so she certainly lost out on potential income if people kept her on the phone just for fun. Trust me, these people aren't doing it to be annoying. The company has to employ SOMEONE, and its usually people who are deperate for money.

Platinum Member Joined: Jan 01 2006 Posts: 48152

I have also done telemarketing in the past. There's no reason to torture these people.

Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

believe it, nobody would be a telemarketer if they could do something else. you take a lot of abuse from the people you call, you get turned down a lot, the pay is poor, you're tied to a headset usually in a tiny booth in a room with dozens of other people doing the same thing you are, and you're expected to make a certain number of calls per unit time. It's not fun.

Posted: Sun, Jul 22 2012, 5:24 pm Post subject: Re: re: telemarketers

Posted: Sun, Jul 22 2012, 5:26 pm Post subject: re: telemarketers

I don't even answer the phone ~ however, a kooky side of me would love to prank them ~ live & let laugh Nervous

Platinum Member Joined: Apr 12 2010 Posts: 5784

Just tell them you don't want to be called, you answered all the questions and please take you off their list.

Worked with me.
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Platinum Member Joined: May 07 2008 Posts: 8963

Posted: Sun, Jul 22 2012, 6:39 pm Post subject: re: telemarketers

fine the fun part was the $ and 11:00 pm train rides home ... but I did find the answers intriguing & that big companies sold products dependent on the actual consumer

learned to disinfect phones with tons of alcohol too

Executive Member Joined: Sep 14 2009 Posts: 458

I second zaq's advice. You have to use these words: 'Please put me on your Do Not Call List.'

Don't just say 'please don't call me again'. Actually use the words 'Do Not Call List.' Hopefully that will do it.