Reversal of the door-to-door salesman rant

[SciFiSam]

When I was 16, with no qualifications and with rent to pay, I took a sales job. Except they insisted it wasn’t really sales, it was just me seeing if the householders would be interested in having a salesperson coming to visit them. Didn’t make an awful lot of difference from the point of view of the person whose door I knocked on, though.

It was denigrating, soul-destroying work. I had no problem with those who said they weren’t interested, or who didn’t answer the door, but some people took downright pleasure in belittling me. The best example was the family who ignored me when I rang the bell, then when I moved on to the next door, came and stood in their porch making comments and laughing each time I was rejected (laughing overly loudly so that I could hear). Yes, they’re standing belittling a teenager as she wanders in the rain trying to earn money for my rent, and *I’m * the despicable one. :rolleyes:

The thing is, though, the householders’ attitude was caused by those salesmen who really are persistent to the point of harrassment. So I can understand their hostility. But these days I’m always polite to cold-callers and the like. It’s a shitty job, there’s no need to make it any shittier. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

[In_Conceivable]

*Originally posted by Jonmarzie *
[BI’m just asking people to know what they are saying no to. Is it too much to ask to let you have the opportunity to say no to a product? You don’t even know what you’re rejecting.
**

Did you ever think that maybe people don’t care what they are rejecting?

I will never by anything from a door to door salesman. You can knock on my door and offer me a solid gold watch for $3 and I am still going to tell you to go away. I never trust people who come to me looking to sell something.

[Doomtrain]

I trust people coming to my door as much as I trust those fuckers in a white van in the Kroger parking lot. My reaction is the same:

“Why, if it’s so great, do you have to beg me to buy it?”

[DogMom]

*Originally posted by Jonmarzie *
** I’m just asking people to know what they are saying no to. Is it too much to ask to let you have the opportunity to say no to a product? You don’t even know what you’re rejecting.
**

Ah, but I do. What I am rejecting is not a product, it’s a concept. I don’t give a rat’s moldy tail what you’re selling - I’m not going to have my house resided, reroofed, new windows put in, or my lawn mowed by someone who doesn’t list in the Yellow Pages. Someone who thinks the height of “good marketing” is trespassing on my property and taking up my valuable time.

You also don’t know me - and therefore you can’t possibly be aware that I don’t have enough time to read the magazines I already subscribe to, that you’re the eighteenth person this week to try to sell me a subscription I don’t want to a newspaper I can’t stand and won’t read, * and * that I don’t have a basement and neither do any of my neighbors so I’m real certain it doesn’t need to be sealed, and please stop lying to me by telling me that all my neighbors have taken advantage of your services.

It is unfortunate that so many door-to-door salesmen have given y’all such bad experiences. They aren’t all alike, though.

**

yeah. They are. The persona, the object, the reason is all the same.
It essentially boils down to, “Hi, you don’t know me, but hows about you invite me into your house while i waste your time trying to sell you something that you won’t buy even if you want one, because you don’t trust crap that’s being sold door-to-door. Please give me fifteen (or however many) minutes that you don’t have to spare so that I can benefit.”

THAT is what we’re rejecting. Not the product. The concept.

And I believe THAT is what GmRuyjin was getting at. D-T-D’s are essentially Human Spam. (and I apologize if I’ve misspelled his name…)

[joyfool]

Have door-to-door salespersons ever considered the following scenarios?

[ul]
[li]A jealous spouse? One who might have a neighbor spy on the one remaining at home, who then reports back that a good-looking male/female was there half the day. A possibility that might result in abuse.[/li]
[li]Illegal activity? You know, where there’s a meth lab in the bathroom or a gun running operation in the kitchen or, a la Risky Business, prostitution in the bedroom. And gee, you just now stumbled into something that you might be perceived a threat of. Maybe you’d need to be rubbed out then.[/li]
[li]Previous bad experiences? Like already listed, do you think single women really want to allow male strangers (as just one example goes) into there home when they’ve gone through traumatic situations? Enough said.[/li]
[li]Elderly and/or mentally challenged people? Want to take advantage of some generous old lady who’d more than happily give her pension to make the nice young man happy? Or sell to someone who honestly doesn’t have a clue what it means to buy some gadget with the last of the rent money because they don’t understand the concept?[/li]
[li]Small, unattended children? Not all latch-key kids are astute, mature, on-guard and ready to deal with these kinds of circumstances. What if something bad happened to one of them and you were the last person seen in that vicinity? Or little Mary Lou did say she talked to you but doesn’t remember what happened next and why she ended up all bloody.[/li][/ul]

Now obviously, that’s a pretty extreme list and what’s more typical is all that’s previously been stated. However, it IS something to think about and I’d be more than wary to ever work in that capacity for fear of the kind of reprisal I might face over bizarre interactions. I mean, I can imagine all sorts of folks crying theft, damage, physical/sexual abuse or harassment.

::: shudder :::

And lastly, as long as someone isn’t rude, despite whether or not they’ve heard your spiel, I’d think I would prefer a simple “not interested” to someone intentionally wasting my time just to toy with me. But hey, YMMV.

[Guinastasia]

I agree, people shouldn’t be abusive.

But saying, “Sorry, not interested” and shutting the door is hardly impolite.

[Mama_Tiger]

I don’t think I’ve ever been intentionally rude to a door-to-door salesman. Even when they’ve been rude to ME. But that still doesn’t mean I have to listen to their spiel or anything else. (Although my dogs do a pretty good job of keeping people from getting too eager to sell me anything!)

I do, however, make two exceptions in the door-to-door thing. I live in a VERY hot, humid climate, and so when the young Mormon missionaries come around, I always ask if they’d like a cold drink before they move on. They’ve always accepted, and quite gratefully. They’re somebody else’s kids. I don’t let them preach religion at me, but to let them come in sit down for a couple of minutes in air conditioning and have a cold glass of water is only being human. (The Jehovah’s Witnesses can suffer, they’re locals and should know better!)

And there’s one little Girl Scout who sells me cookies every year. I’m sorry, but NOTHING will keep me from my Thin Mints.

[DeadlyAccurate]

I was rude once, and the little shithead keyed my truck for it. What had happened is this: husband and I are sitting around on a Saturday when we hear rapid knocking followed by several presses of the doorbell. I jump up and run to the door, signalling for Mr. Deadly to hide as he wasn’t dressed. I open the door, expecting to see someone frantically explaining that someone was hit by a car or had a heart attack or a house was on fire (it was that kind of knock).

And what do I see but a 14-year-old boy trying to sell me candy. I was so pissed I angrily told him to “get outta here” before he could even get beyond his mumbled introduction, and I slammed the door in his face.

Now I just tell people I don’t buy from door-to-door salespeople (and that includes young children).

[Count_Blucher]

*Originally posted by Jonmarzie *
**I was a door-to-door salesman for a stint.

It really pissed me off to have the door slammed in my face, especially if I haven’t even said that I’m a salesman. All I get out is "Hello. **

This is a Hell of an OP, even if I rabidly disagree with you.

BTW- Let me please remind everyone reading here that Today is the First Day to sign up for the NATIONAL DO NOT CALL LIST. The site is a little slow, but if we all sign up, then we can banish telemarketers back into the HELL they came from. Here’s the Information Link:
Info on Do Not Call List

[cleosia]

I thought the first day was July 1st.

[lezlers]

I agree that it’s the concept of door to door salespeople, not the product they may be selling, that people reject.

I’ve never gotten a salesperson, but I’ve got chairity solicitations a lot. Those people are tenancious as all hell. I started a thread on my latest experience in IMHO. Unfortunately, I’m a big sucker, and sometimes I give.

The fact that they keep persisting after my first 2 or3 “no’s” is what drives me crazy. “But it’s a really good cause.” Yeah? There’s a ton and a half of really good causes out there. If I gave to all of them I’d be paying throughout my next 3 lives. I already give to the Humane Society and Greenpeace, monthly. Can’t do any more.

The fact that you’re so insistant that people just listen to your speil tells me that you’re one of the persistant types. That’s just wrong.

[Count_Blucher]

*Originally posted by cleosia *
**I thought the first day was July 1st. **

As we won’t see the effects of our work until October 1st <cough> electionday boondoggle <cough> being a day early or late shouldn’t affect us.

PS- Until this takes effect, expect a heavy telemarketer & tick season…

[Chanteuse]

I am one of those who has had a difficult time saying “no” because I don’t like to be rude. However, this once resulted in a salesperson in my home who simply was NOT going to take no for an answer. I read a little ditty once that said “There’s no guy got endurance like the guy who sells insurance” and boy does that say it! All the time we are trying to politely say “no thanks,” he is steadily filling out the paperwork on a policy! It became apparent that our best strategy would be to simply call up and cancel the check (we decided to go ahead and let him think he was making the sale to get rid of him faster) and as a safeguard, stop payment on it. This we did, and thereafter, I have been a little harder hearted.

As to DtD evangelicals, when they insist on offering their literature, my dad offers them some of our church’s literature and they back off a lot quicker!

That said, I do buy from kids whenever I can though, because I’ve damn sure been in their shoes many a time and I always hated it. I usually only sold the bare minimum needed for the school/youth group quota (and that only if I was really lucky). It’s hard enough for some kids (like me) who would rather eat glass than have to sell something, without having to deal with some people who are just crotchety assholes. (But shame on the little turd who keyed a car–NO ONE should pound on the door as if there were an emergency or as though they were DEMANDING your presence at the door and if they do, they are just begging you to be rude!)

[Doomtrain]

I even understand the JWs and Mormons somewhat, because God told them to go door to door, so they need to do it. If God told me to do something, I’d probably do it. God did not tell YOU to come to my door and attempt to sell me magazines. Some sweaty guy in a cheap suit named Murray probably did, and he’s considerably less important.

[ioioio]

I’m going to assume that you are a decent person who naively took a bad job. But the hostile way you defend that job makes my blood boil. People were rude to you because you commited far greater rudeness: you came to their house uninvited and disrupted their activities to try to sell them something.

** Now, I could’ve been saying something completely different, but you’ll never know that, will you? Maybe, my spiel was " . . . and I’m a ocllege student from Jonmarzie College, and I have decided to drop out, but since I don’t want to waste my scholarship money, I asked the school about it, and they said that I could give the money away to someone else. Now, I know that this sounds strange, but I heard that you have a high-school kid, and if they were going to college, I could give them a lot of money. Would you be interested in that?" **

Oh, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeze. Don’t roll your eyes at me and then put forth crap like this.

** At least let me tell you the reason I’m at your doorstep before you decide that conversing with another human being isn’t worth tearing yourself away from Dr. Phil for a minute. **

I owe you nothing. You are not there to converse with another human being - you are there to sell something. Your snarky little “Dr.Phil” comment shows your lack of respect for people. My time is the most precious thing I have, and what I choose to do with it is none of your fucking business.

** . If you aren’t interested in anything I could possibly be selling, buy a NO SOLICITING sign. It would save both of us a bunch of time. But, if you feel that you don’t want to buy one, don’t come to the door angry that I knocked on it. I am not the plague. If you allow me to speak, I don’t have the persuasive abilities of God. It is significantly more rude to open and close the door while repeating “No! Goodbye!” over and over.**

It is none of your business why I don’t want a “no soliciting” sign on my house. It would save us both a bunch of time if you’d stay away. It is significantly more rude for you to come to my house uninvited and bother me.

** Also, we aren’t stupid.**

It seems to me that you are. You can’t seem to figure out that people don’t want you bothering them or that when they make excuses, it’s because they want you to go away.

** When half of the block says that y’all have multiple kids (the nature of the product I sold is such that it is for school-age kids), then I will certainly think that you do, especially if there are multi-age toys and many bikes in the front yard. Don’t come to the door and say that you don’t have kids, especially in front of one. Lying is never good. You are teaching that kid you say is your grandson :rolleyes: a valuable lesson. Don’t lie, unless it’s to a salesman. They’re not people. You can say anything you want as long as it gets them away from your house.**

How dare you question my neighbors about me? That is totally out of line. If I found out which neighbors gave you information, I would let them know that it was unacceptable.
And then you turn around and get all moral about lying. You’re not people, you’re a nuisance. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that it is okay to lie to you. I would want my kids to learn to be assertive enough that they don’t get taken advantage of by people like you. Does your sales pitch not include misleading information? I’d bet a lot of money that it does. I’ll bet that the financing is designed to hide the true cost. I’ll bet that I can find a similar item much cheaper elsewhere. I’ll bet that if I’m dissatisfied with your product I’ll have a very hard time getting it replaced or repaired.

** Now, this next thing may not be true of others, but I’m pretty sure I can’t read minds. When you say “I’m busy,” I’ll assume that you are busy, and I’ll ask for a better time to come back. Don’t get offended when your bluff is called. **

I thought you said you weren’t stupid. And incidentally, don’t get offended if I say “fuck you.”

To say no to me, utter “I’m not interested,” or “No thank you.” Don’t say “I’m busy right now,” “I have company,” or “my wife handles that” and expect me not to come back. Again, don’t waste my time. Once I know you aren’t interested, I won’t bother with you, which is what we both want if you aren’t interested.

You’re contradicting yourself. Earlier you said that it was not enough to tell you that I’m not interested. You said that I should allow you to tell me what you were selling. You said that if I wasn’t interested I should buy a “no soliciting” sign. Go back and read your own words. Now you’re saying you won’t bother me if you know I’m not interested, and earlier you said you weren’t stupid, so how is it that you plan to come back when you’ve been given a polite excuse or an obvious lie?
Every time you mention me wasting your time, it really really pisses me off. The only moron here is you, and the only thing you’ve accomplished with your moronic rant is to increase the likelihood that I’ll be rude to the next jerk that comes knocking on my door UNINVITED.

[Weirddave]

I have never seen a bigger bunch of assholes than those posting in this thread. You know what I do when a salesman comes to the door? I give him a big smile, say “Thanks for coming by. I’m not interested, but I wish you lots of luck with your next call”. I then close the door ( normally, no slamming ) and go about my business. It takes all of 30 seconds. How hard is that? All of y’all should be ashamed of yourself, saying it’s OK to be rude, to lie, to scream and slam doors. 2 things: #1. Even if you think d2d salesmen are the spawn of satan, you’re letting someone you think is worthless goad you into acting like an ass. #2 You’re also letting them get you all angry and personally, I’d feel kind of foolish letting someone I think is scum get me all upset and flustered.

[Master_Wang-Ka]

So… um… does that make me an asshole? I hadn’t actually posted here yet when you wrote that, Weirddave.

I get four kinds of salesmen at my door:

1. Little Kids Selling Something.
   Band candy, Girl Scout cookies, or whatever. I will deal with these as I find them. Sometimes I want candy or cookies. Sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I have cash handy, and sometimes I don’t. I am always polite, though, and I generally don’t mind talking to them.
2. Young Men Trying To Sell Me Magazine Subscriptions.
   I hate these people. They invariably tell me the same stupid story about how they’re going to win a trip to Cancun or a scholarship and all they need is THREE MORE POINTS, and all they have to do to get THREE MORE POINTS is to MEET PEOPLE, and prove they did so by having them fill out these subscription forms…

GOD, I hate these people! I’ve tried posting signs. I’ve tried coming right the hell out and asking them, “Are you selling magazine subscriptions?” Does it work? HELL NO! They’ll just stand there, talking a mile a minute and grinning like they’re chewing on live wasps, ALL THE WAY UP to the point where it becomes ABSOLUTELY clear that this asshole is EXACTLY like the two hundred others I have chased off my stoop.

Polite? Only so far as the person admits “Yes, I am selling magazine subscriptions,” and does not fuck around with me or waste my time trying to be cute and jolly me up. I do not want your goddamn subscriptions. I am fully capable of subscribing to magazines without your help, and we BOTH have better things to do than stand here while you try to use your bottled sales technique on me.

Jerk me around with me and waste my time and make it clear that politeness is wasted on you… and you will learn how loud I can shout, bud.
3. Jehovah’s Witnesses.
I once did a whole thread on these people. I do not like them. I have my own religion, thank you very much, and I don’t much like anyone coming to my house to sell me theirs.

The sad part is that I had no real opinion about Jehovah’s Witnesses until they drove me over the goddamned edge. They must have come and knocked on my door at eight a.m. every stinkin’ Saturday morning for more than a month straight before I finally snapped and tried to kill one of them.

I do not feel guilty about simply telling them to leave. Any religion that feels that being spat upon by the infidels is part of earning your salvation deserves whatever it gets. And yes, I will attack the next one that shows up on a weekend before ten a.m., too.

4. Everyone else.
   Avon ladies. People trying to sell me vacuum cleaners, or cleaning agent. STEAK salesmen, believe it or not. A young lady selling deck furniture.

I have never been rude to any of these people, nor have I ever felt the need to be. In the case of the cleaning agent and deck furniture, I actually bought stuff. All I ask is that the salesmen be polite and respectful of my property, and don’t let the cats escape, and so far, they’ve all been quite good about that.

Except the Jehovah’s Witnesses, of course. It’s things like this that make me glad we didn’t sign the international agreement to ban land mines. Now if I could just GET some…

[margin]

God, my hatred for the JW knows no bounds. I used to live in a house that had a big screened-in front porch, and there was a tiny rip in the screen door near the door handle that I repaired with one of those patches. The door itself had a sturdy lock on it.
Well one day I came home and found some JW tract sitting on the welcome mat inside the porch, directly beneath what was now a six-inch long rip. That was it for me.

[StarvingButStrong]

*Originally posted by Wang-Ka *
**I In the case of the cleaning agent and deck furniture, I actually bought stuff. **

OMG. YOU are one of those horrible people.
Don’t you realize that if no one ever bought from d2d salesmen/ phone salesmen/unsolicited e-mail then there would shortly be NO d2d salesmen/telemarketing/spam?
Do you REALIZE how much lost time and annoyance your actions have set all the rest of us up for???
I think you owe each and every one of us an apology.

[Doomtrain]

*Originally posted by Weirddave *
**I have never seen a bigger bunch of assholes than those posting in this thread. You know what I do when a salesman comes to the door? I give him a big smile, say “Thanks for coming by. I’m not interested, but I wish you lots of luck with your next call”. I then close the door ( normally, no slamming ) and go about my business. It takes all of 30 seconds. How hard is that? All of y’all should be ashamed of yourself, saying it’s OK to be rude, to lie, to scream and slam doors. 2 things: #1. Even if you think d2d salesmen are the spawn of satan, you’re letting someone you think is worthless goad you into acting like an ass. #2 You’re also letting them get you all angry and personally, I’d feel kind of foolish letting someone I think is scum get me all upset and flustered. **

Yes, I AM an asshole. And I will continue to be one.