New Line for Telemarketers
- FJohnSharp
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- Tell us something.: I used to be a regular then I took up the bassoon. Bassoons don't have a lot of chiff. Not really, I have always been a drummer, and my C&F years were when I was a little tired of the drums. Now I'm back playing drums. I mist the C&F years, though.
- Location: Kent, Ohio
One of the things telemarketing has done is ruin the tone of voice with which people answer the phone. If they have caller ID and they don't know you, or if you call up and address them formally (Mr./ Mrs Doe), they answer with a cautious tenseness that you can actually hear fall away when they realize you're not telemarketing. Remember when people answered the phone expectantly? Hopefully? Remember when answering the phone was pleasant?
"Meon an phobail a thogail trid an chultur"
(The people’s spirit is raised through culture)
Suburban Symphony
(The people’s spirit is raised through culture)
Suburban Symphony
- emmline
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I agree absolutely. I know I can come across as rudely curt on the phone.FJohnSharp wrote:... they answer with a cautious tenseness that you can actually hear fall away when they realize you're not telemarketing. Remember when people answered the phone expectantly? Hopefully? Remember when answering the phone was pleasant?
Actually, Wombat, I do think it's funny, and why not give the telemarketing schmoe's call an interesting twist? You may as well have fun.
- Wombat
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Exactly, Em. Nobody gets hurt, I maintain my good mood and sense of humour and I actually throw back some of the presumptions they make. They make assumptions about the relative value of our time without having the faintest idea whether those assumptions are warranted. I might do market research if I were paid well enough. If I believe in their cause, I'll help an NGO for nothing. Same thing if I'm approached by the media as an expert on something.emmline wrote: Actually, Wombat, I do think it's funny, and why not give the telemarketing schmoe's call an interesting twist? You may as well have fun.
Have I mentioned how much I love my Zapper?
Several years ago, a friend got tired of listening to me go on and on . . . and on and on . . . about telemarketing calls. They were occurring at a rate of several per hour, including in the middle of the night. Signing up for a "no call" list hadn't helped one whit.
She kept telling me that I needed a Zapper. Having seen them on late-night TV (after having been awakened by telemarketers), I believed them to be in the same genre as Popeil's Pocket Fisherman and Ginsu Steak Knives. I thought they were overpriced and likely useless.
I wasn't spending $39 to find out.
She gave me one for Christmas. I installed it and caller after caller just . . . hung up. After a few days, there was a noticeable decrease in calls. After a week or so, there were almost no calls coming in. Now, I might get one every few weeks.
I offered to pay her for the Zapper, but she wouldn't have it. Said $39 was a small price to pay for not having to listen to me go on and on . . . and on and on . . .
I swear by the thing now. I recommend them.
Several years ago, a friend got tired of listening to me go on and on . . . and on and on . . . about telemarketing calls. They were occurring at a rate of several per hour, including in the middle of the night. Signing up for a "no call" list hadn't helped one whit.
She kept telling me that I needed a Zapper. Having seen them on late-night TV (after having been awakened by telemarketers), I believed them to be in the same genre as Popeil's Pocket Fisherman and Ginsu Steak Knives. I thought they were overpriced and likely useless.
I wasn't spending $39 to find out.
She gave me one for Christmas. I installed it and caller after caller just . . . hung up. After a few days, there was a noticeable decrease in calls. After a week or so, there were almost no calls coming in. Now, I might get one every few weeks.
I offered to pay her for the Zapper, but she wouldn't have it. Said $39 was a small price to pay for not having to listen to me go on and on . . . and on and on . . .
I swear by the thing now. I recommend them.
- Daniel_Bingamon
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A friend of mine had a story to tell about how he dealt with telemarketers.
One day he was working outside at the cartridge factory building when the phone started ringing. He was way over on the other side of the complex when the outdoor phone bell rang. Well, it continued ringing and ringing so he started out to get to the phone. Finally after a long walk (phone still ringing) he arrives and answers. It's a chimney cleaning service and they to want do a free first time chimney cleaning.
He was extremely irritated to come all the way in for a telemarketer so he set them up. "Hey, we have a chimney that needs cleaning" . So he gave instructions on getting there.
The people arrived and he took them into an old building and went up a big catwalk and into huge access door into the chimney.
Well here it is:
How's that for chimney, not what they were expecting.
The Chimney people said they had to leave to get special tools, they never returned after that.
One day he was working outside at the cartridge factory building when the phone started ringing. He was way over on the other side of the complex when the outdoor phone bell rang. Well, it continued ringing and ringing so he started out to get to the phone. Finally after a long walk (phone still ringing) he arrives and answers. It's a chimney cleaning service and they to want do a free first time chimney cleaning.
He was extremely irritated to come all the way in for a telemarketer so he set them up. "Hey, we have a chimney that needs cleaning" . So he gave instructions on getting there.
The people arrived and he took them into an old building and went up a big catwalk and into huge access door into the chimney.
Well here it is:
How's that for chimney, not what they were expecting.
The Chimney people said they had to leave to get special tools, they never returned after that.
Last edited by Daniel_Bingamon on Fri Jan 20, 2006 11:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- peeplj
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Arkansas has laws that make it a "no rebuttal" state. This is little-known but very nice when you know about it.
If a telemarketer calls us, all we have to say is "Excuse me, I live in Arkansas and it's a no-rebuttal state; please remove us from all lists which your company services."
They are legally obligated to comply, and they are not allowed "rebuttal;" they can't try to continue their sales pitch, for instance. All they can legally do is say something like "Yes sir, I will do that; sorry to have bothered you."
If they do anything else, and you get it on tape, you can file charges against the company.
--James
If a telemarketer calls us, all we have to say is "Excuse me, I live in Arkansas and it's a no-rebuttal state; please remove us from all lists which your company services."
They are legally obligated to comply, and they are not allowed "rebuttal;" they can't try to continue their sales pitch, for instance. All they can legally do is say something like "Yes sir, I will do that; sorry to have bothered you."
If they do anything else, and you get it on tape, you can file charges against the company.
--James
-
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- Location: Raarup, Denmark
Hi.
I live in Denmark where we also have lows against telemarketing, onely newspapers and insurrence is allowed to call without an invitation.
For some time now an american company have been calling all over the country offering cruses in the Caribian.
The call begins with a taped woice speaking very fast englih about you have been selected for an oppertunity to a crouse in the Caribiens and if you want more details press 9.
By the 4'th call I got tired about it and pressed 9 to get a person on the line to explain him that I didn't want them to call me anymore.
The person emediatly started on a salesspeadge allmost impossible to interrupt him . When I finally manneged to interrupt he wasn't interested in listening to me, instead his woice changed, more irritated, allmost angry, acusing me of calling him up???!!!??? waisting his time???!!!???
In the end I was so pissed of that I shouted in the pfone DO NOT CALL ME AGAIN!
Well not realy what I wanted to do, but it seems to work, they havn't called me since.
Peter Juul
P.S. Sorry about my english, but I hope that you get the meaning!
I live in Denmark where we also have lows against telemarketing, onely newspapers and insurrence is allowed to call without an invitation.
For some time now an american company have been calling all over the country offering cruses in the Caribian.
The call begins with a taped woice speaking very fast englih about you have been selected for an oppertunity to a crouse in the Caribiens and if you want more details press 9.
By the 4'th call I got tired about it and pressed 9 to get a person on the line to explain him that I didn't want them to call me anymore.
The person emediatly started on a salesspeadge allmost impossible to interrupt him . When I finally manneged to interrupt he wasn't interested in listening to me, instead his woice changed, more irritated, allmost angry, acusing me of calling him up???!!!??? waisting his time???!!!???
In the end I was so pissed of that I shouted in the pfone DO NOT CALL ME AGAIN!
Well not realy what I wanted to do, but it seems to work, they havn't called me since.
Peter Juul
P.S. Sorry about my english, but I hope that you get the meaning!
- Sliabh Luachra
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I always try to make the telemarketers day a little more exciting. With a job like that, I think they probably need all the excitement they can get.
Usually I interupt their spiel with. . .
"How did you get this number?!?!?! No one was to call unless they needed HIM released! Do you have any idea what you've done?!?!? He's out now. You've got about 10 minutes now! Run!!!!"
Then if you hit the hang up button really quickly and release it just as quickly, you can hear some of their reaction. It's seems to throw them off just a little.
The other one I tried is, "Can you call later, my wife and I are in the middle of a conjugal visit?"
Mark
Usually I interupt their spiel with. . .
"How did you get this number?!?!?! No one was to call unless they needed HIM released! Do you have any idea what you've done?!?!? He's out now. You've got about 10 minutes now! Run!!!!"
Then if you hit the hang up button really quickly and release it just as quickly, you can hear some of their reaction. It's seems to throw them off just a little.
The other one I tried is, "Can you call later, my wife and I are in the middle of a conjugal visit?"
Mark
- Walden
- Chiffmaster General
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So... you saying we shouldn't use the aerosol foghorn on them?emmline wrote:In the trenches though, I tend to recognize that he/she's just a poor schmuck who took a cruddy job and it takes the wind out of my sails.
Ideally there would be a way to launch humorous assaults on the people who devise the spiels and train the drones.
Reasonable person
Walden
Walden
- I.D.10-t
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Once a Information caller caught me in a particularly bad mood.
Her “Did you know that 6000 people die in the US of ______ a year?’
Me “It’s a large country lots of people die.”
Pause….
Her “Yes but…”
The conversation just got worse after that.
Oh and Walden, I would rather call people and offer to sell them something and if they decide to buy, use an air horn and say “that’s what you get you gullible basmati”
PS Note the sig.
PPS Is gullible a real word? I could not find it in the dictionary.
Her “Did you know that 6000 people die in the US of ______ a year?’
Me “It’s a large country lots of people die.”
Pause….
Her “Yes but…”
The conversation just got worse after that.
Oh and Walden, I would rather call people and offer to sell them something and if they decide to buy, use an air horn and say “that’s what you get you gullible basmati”
PS Note the sig.
PPS Is gullible a real word? I could not find it in the dictionary.
"Be not deceived by the sweet words of proverbial philosophy. Sugar of lead is a poison."