I didn’t realize that those incoming phone calls costed you money. :rolleyes:
Umm…hmm, let’s see…the phone company only has enough lines to handle about 50% of phones being in use simultaneously. If the volume of calls drops, the phone companies have to invest less in infrastructure, causing phone service prices to go down.
Also, I paid for the right to use my phone as much as I choose to use it. If I’m on the phone (long distance, for extra emphasis) and I get a telemarketer call, it most certainly does cost me money. To deny that telemarketing costs us money is just wrong.
Truth does not change because it is, or is not, beleived by a majority of the people.
-Giordano Bruno
Easy, girlfriend. You’re using rhetoric I haven’t heard some people use to describe serial killers. It’s fun to rag on telemarketers, but let’s not flip out.
Telemarketers shouldn’t be considered a pain…they are calling up to find out if you would like to spend your money on whatever it is they are offering. Usually, they have a number of reasons that you should do so, and will not let you off voluntarily.
My suggestion is this, listen to their pitch politely, state the reasons that you have for not purchasing their service/product. Then you have a perfect opportunity to sell any old stuff you have around the house that you would like to get rid of. You don’t have to advertise for a garage sale, you have someone on the line who understands that you are simply trying to provide a service and make a living. Don’t take no for an answer. I don’t think they would have any reason to be upset.
On the downside, I guess they would know how to get out of it…
I always use the ‘put me on your don’t call list’ and it cuts down significantly, but some asshole last week said “excuse me?” and I repeated. Then the SOB says ‘Yeh, right’ and hangs up on me!!! I really wish the FTC would make telemarketers enable a *69 so I could have my way with bothering them for a change! And thanks for the *57 info, I’ll use that from now on. later, Tom
Uhm…Ya kan’t git there from heyre!
One trouble is multiple callers from the same list.
Telemarketing scams the CALLERS as well as the rest of us.
A “job” posting gets 4-5 people to sign up. They get a computer printout of people to call. They all get the same printout.
So, we get 4-5 calls. (L.A.Times subscription offers are the ones this week here)
But, since the possible money to be made has just been cut by 4 or 5, the callers soon quit. They work on commission, BUT only if they are still on board when the check clears. They can’t afford to hang on that long, so the CALLERS get paid nothing and the company gets 4-5 tries for each number.
If this part was illegal, the rest would go away too.
Flymaster: You were getting $10 an hour for shit jobs?!? Where the hell do you live? I work a shit job (truck stop cashier) and I’m making $6.50 an hour, which believe it or not is a competitive wage for this area. If either me or my husband was making $10 an hour then the other one could be a stay-home parent.
Favorite telemarketing customer refusal:
Me: "Hi, I’m calling about your subscription to…
(Piercing wail of fire alarm, followed by equally piercing scream): “AAHHHHH! My kitchen’s on fire!”
Now THAT’S creativity!
I suggest you look into bussing tables. You only get ~$6/hour, but with tips, and the lack of taxes on those tips, it works out to about $10/hour. Plus, I have many friends that work in food service in the local hospital. They get base pay of $7.50 (I believe) plus time and a half for weekends and holidays (which seems to include holidays like arbor day. Plus, working after 7 oclock gets them an extra $2/hour. And, when some of them pull their crazy 6am - 10pm saturdays and sundays, they end up pulling in close to $13/hour with bonuses and other things like that. All for washing pots and pans.
But, in general, any job that involves tips will get you about $10 an hour. Many waitresses that I know (18 years old, not even HS graduates, first waiting job) pull in upwards of $20, and that’s just at a chain pizzeria (you know, one of those upscale gormet pizza chains). Any chili’s type place will hire inexperienced waitstaff and train them.
Yes, today I was rudely awoken from my afternoon nap by some piece of shit AT&T dickhead. I swear they call me 2-3 times a week. One week it was every night at 6:15. I’m getting good at knowing whos a telemarketer though, that little 2 or 3 second pause before they come on the line gives me a big clue. I usually hang up before they even come on. But for some reason I stayed on today, only to say, I have MCI and that I’m not interested in AT&T. Do you know how many times I’ve told that stupid ass company that same line??? I HATE AT&T. Because of them bothering me to death, I’m never going to go with their service. Don’t they know that constantly bothering innocent people in their home will be BAD for their business???
They are subhuman. They are assholes. And I agree, there are more jobs out there, than being a telemarketer. If some poor person needs a job so bad, let ME find them a job.
Since my chief complaint against TM scum is the intrusion itself, I do not engage them at all. I never say a word to them, and in fact, am so well attuned to the call-center background sound, they often don’t get a word out themselves before I hang up–they never redial. They deserve NO time,consideration, politeness or even an acknowlegement of their pathetic existence, which is in itself an offense.
I did buy a nice little gadget for $13 from Best Buy that connects to the phone, about the size of your thumb with one button and a light. TM calls, you recognize their vile presence, hit the button and hang up. The device delivers a digitally recorded, professionally spoken announcement that this number does not accept this type of call and to remove it from their list. The message repeats and the light goes out when the line is released. The calls have actually tapered off since I’ve used it.
Attention all Spokesmen-for-the-Poor: Being poor is not a free pass to be an asshole nor is it an automatic grant of nobility. You are no worse people than the richest among us, but you are also no better just because you’re “poor”. TM jobs are not anyone’s only option in life and no excuse for doing what they do. Furthermore, may anyone who takes up this sordid profession be automatically sentenced to 10 extra years of abject poverty by the Great Wheel of Fortune. Double that for the managers, executives, administrators, technicians and support staff.
For all the people who are annoyed by long distance companies’ telemarketing practices and wish to show your annoyance by removing your dollars from their pockets, switch to one of the 10-10 long distance companies. Sure, it’s a hassle to dial, but all you have to do is program their prefix into your speed dialer, then dial your #. Most of them never telemarket, they have better rates, and I swear I’ve got better sound quality when calling Hawai’i than I get with a major carrier. Just watch your phone bill from month to month; if they change rates, switch to another one. The only problem is that while you normally would only get calls from everyone but your carrier, now you get calls from them too. But at least they don’t get your money.
Plus:
A little tip when dealing with any sales calls; follow the script closely:
Caller: “I’m calling from Joe’s Auto-Glass-Carpet-Cleaning-Insurance-Long-Distance-Credit-Card-yaddayaddayadda, and I’d like to…”
You: “No thank you. I’m not interested.”
Caller: “Well, if I could take just a minute of your time…”
You: “You know, I work in sales. I know all your tricks, and I’m not going to buy what you’re selling.”
It helps to be a good liar if you’re not a salesperson, and if you are in sales, like me, then you are already a good liar.
This works like a charm. The only company that calls me anymore are those bastards from some outfit called the IRS, trying to sell me something called a “thorough audit of my 1040 tax return”.
Have to go, I think I hear jackbooted thugs at the door.
Umm…most of the 10-10 companies ARE major carriers. There may be a few that aren’t but the VAST majority of them are.
Well, not in the sense that you’re thinking. I’m not the guy that calls your home at 8:30 at night to prattle a script to you.
I’m the guy that calls your place of business. I do not use a script. I will typically give my name, my company, and a short description of what I am selling. I will do this in less than 20 seconds. I will then ask to speak to whomever it is that makes decisions on that sort of thing. It’s quick, it’s painless, and it gets things done.
You’re dealing with scrubs there, it sounds like. Try that on a professional, and you’ll realize a few things really quickly.
For starters, someone who knows what they’re doing isn’t going to be phased at all by you trying to rattle their cage. A good telesales rep is quick on his/her feet. They know your angle, and know how to offer a rebuttal that you’re not going to expect.
Secondly, a pro has dealt with you before. Maybe not you personally, but someone who is much more intelligent and filled with more vitriol. Your attempts to hurt his or her feelings is entertainment. You are the person that everyone laughs at during smoke breaks.
We compare notes. Sometimes, if you were really trying hard to be mean, we’ll hand your number out amongst ourselves, and several people will call you so that we can all have a few more laughs at your expense. It’s your stress, not ours. Sometimes, your hatred will be legendary, and people will call you for years, just to see what you’ll say next. This is no lie.
If a professional smells you lying, and we will, they’ll call you on it, and you’ll feel even worse.
Finally, a good sales rep knows when to just hang up on you. You would have been a waste of time anyway, and there’s someone else to call.
Flymaster said:
Do you mean they are owned by the large telecommunications firms (ATT, MCI, Sprint) that do a lot of telemarketing, or do you mean that they are major carriers because of their market share, but are independent of the big three telecommunications firms?
As far as I know my carrier, VarTech/10-10-811, is independent. If I find anything to the contrary, I’ll just switch to 10-10-811-55-4463-1776-blah blah blah whatever, just as long as it’s not owned by one those spawn-of-the ninth-ring-of-hell, annoying, dinner-interrupting, make-the-phone-ring-so-the-baby-starts-crying-just-when-she’s-fallen-asleep companies.
IIRC, and I’m not sure if I’m making the matches right:
10 10 321 = Sprint
the “lucky dog” one = ATT
and I know MCI is one of the big ones too.