A Telemarketer Just Called Me....

[DemocratSinceBirth]

I must get three calls a day from companies asking me to refinance....


The telemarketer asked if I'm still paying a mortgage...


I said no...... I live in a shoe....

[IdaBriggs]

1. Don't Call List

Aren't you on the "do not call" list? Its really cut down the annoyance for us! :) Ida

[DemocratSinceBirth]

2. I Never Got Around To It...

They are a pesky bunch...


I feel sorry for some of them...

[IdaBriggs]

3. You might want to do it.

The quiet is lovely, and its the ONLY good thing to come out of this administration. :)

[mountainvue]

4. Yeah,

we're just trying to make a living in the Bush economy like everybody else. Telemarketing is a lucrative way of marketing, otherwise we wouldn't be doing it.
I'm a mortgage broker and that's one way my small, woman owned business markets itself.
Further, a lot of the people who telemarket are folks who are working a second job for the extra income.
But if it makes you feel better to belittle people who are trying to make it by having this type of job, then by all means, go ahead.

[HawkerHurricane]

5. Interesting Idea...

care to give me your home phone number and tell me when you're eating dinner so I can call you and discuss it?

My phone is there for my convenience, not the convenience of salespeople.

[mountainvue]

8. If you were to call me during dinner

I wouldn't answer my phone.

[HawkerHurricane]

12. I imagine that I'll have to try sometime after midnight, then.

Or perhaps, better still, I shouldn't harass you at all.

And all I ask is the same from you and any other telemarketers: Don't harass me. Don't call me. If I wish your services, I will call you, on your business phone, during your business hours.

My phone is for my convenience, not anyone elses.

[mountainvue]

15. As I said,

if there was no money in telemarketing, businesses wouldn't be doing it. I don't call anyone who is on the Do Not Call list. And honestly, what telemarketer has ever called you after midnight? A bit of exageration there?

[HawkerHurricane]

21. Yes, I exagerated for comic effect.

However, since I have been known to work odd hours, I might be sleeping at any time of the day or night. A call at noon could wake me up. And no, not answering the phone/turning it off is not an option; it could be someone I care about in trouble.
Yes, I'm on the do not call list. I get phone calls still, apparently from India where the do not call list rules are not enforced.

[mountainvue]

25. As I said, the Do Not Call

legislation displaced quite a few jobs.

[HawkerHurricane]

29. So did laws restricting logging.

Shall we get rid of them, too, in the name of full employment?

How about pollution control laws?

Child labor laws?

Laws about how many hours a trucker can work a day?

Telemarketing is harrassment on a phone I paid for. Do Not Call was and is a good idea.

Yes, it causes unemployment. So does mowing my own yard.

[mountainvue]

30. You mowing your own lawn

does not eliminate 2.5 million jobs. That's the estimate on the telemarketing bill.

[HawkerHurricane]

32. But if everyone was required by law to mow thier own lawn...

And who made the estimate? Telemarketing companies? People being paid by telemarketing companies?

Telemarketers and door to door salesmen and spammers: people harrassing me to make money.

[MercutioATC]

40. I'm with Hawker on this one. Crack sales are "lucrative", too...

...doesn't mean it's justified.

I have an unlisted number and I still get calls. Having done a stint for three weeks as a telemarketer about 15 years ago, I know how. We were given a list with an exchange at the top of the page and the numbers 0000-9999 sequentially listed. We called every number in the exchange. Now computers do the same thing. If my number is unlisted, that means I don't want calls from people I don't give my number to. Period.

I can deal with direct mail. It's easy to throw away.

Telemarketers themselves aren't evil, they've just chosen a lousy profession. It's the telemarketing companies and the people who use them that are the problem.

[Endangered Specie]

22. I have...

since Im on the east coast, it can be 9pm in the west and midnight here.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

6. Don't You Think Three Or Four Calls A Day Is Excessive

NT

[mountainvue]

9. Yes. n/t

[arwalden]

7. Surely These People Are Smart Enough Not To Take It Personally...

and just accept the negative comments as part of the job they signed up for. They'll just need to face the reality they they are intruding uninvited into people's homes... and as such, they'll need to develop a thicker skin or get another job.

I have no sympathy for them at all. (Well perhaps I have sympathy that they need the second job to make ends meet... but no sympathy for the job they chose.)

-- Allen

[mountainvue]

11. When I cold called

I did not take it personally.
I'm not asking for your sympathy.
I do see an awful lot of thread here on DU about people losing jobs. The people in these jobs are trying to make an honest living. Obviously they need the money.

[Endangered Specie]

23. I do not consider...

a job involving nothing but constant invasion of privacy an "honest living".

[coloradodem2005]

17. I almost agree but...

...as shitty as things have been, it is hard not to wind up doing stuff like this. Seriously, you know why these jobs have so many openings? It is because people don't want to do them. It is a tough market out there and sometimes people are taking jobs like that these days because they don't feel like they have any other choice. These people wanted to hire them but the more desirable jobs, that don't require this did not want to hire them.

[mountainvue]

20. Correct. Not to mention

how many were displaced when the Do Not Call list went in to effect. I don't have the numbers in front of me but quite a few jobs were lost when this legislation was passed. And as we all know, that only hurts our already hurting economy.

[coloradodem2005]

39. Do you think that the no-call list was a good idea?

That was probably the only thing I agreed with that Bush did. Though, I agree with what you are saying about the problems for telemarketers.

[Endangered Specie]

10. I have land on Mars Id like to sell to you,

please reply with your number and I will call you sometime around 6-7pm, or some other time late at night when its most (in)convienent for you.

and if you think that bit of sarcasm is rude on my part, imagine how it is for the rest of us who DO have this happen to them?

[mountainvue]

13. I guess all the outrage on this site

about people losing their jobs is a bunch of BS. In some parts of the country, these are the only types of jobs available. What would you have these people do?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

14. Call Each Other....

NT

[mountainvue]

16. Nice talking with you. n/t

[DemocratSinceBirth]

18. You're Taking This Thread Much Too Literally

NT

[Endangered Specie]

19. There is some interesting irony here...

The vast majority of stuff sold by telemarketers isn't exactly quality merchandise, I mean lets face it, if you have to invade someones privacy when they least want to to be in order to market the product, it musnt be that good (too good to be true) (same principle applies to spam).

2nd mortgage, phone bills, etc... usually designed to rip people off. I wouldnt be suprised if some of the people working as telemarketers are forced to work that job because they got ripped off (ironically, possibly sold to them BY telemarketers!).

Its not so much the telemarketers that I have a beef with as it is the scam artist companies that require them.


edit for a little grammar check.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

24. I Get The Same Call From The Same Person From The Same Company Repeatedly

What's up with that?

[Endangered Specie]

26. You must really need insurance...

or your the only one left that they can call ;)

[DemocratSinceBirth]

28. It's An Indian Woman...

I get calls from local remodeling companies...


If the caller sounds earnest I will listen to their pitch....


But most telemarketers are drones.....

[mountainvue]

27. I don't know. n/t

[mountainvue]

31. For your consideration:

FTC's Do Not Call Registry puts telemarketing jobs on the line

But the telemarketing industry says it also will wipe out as much as half of its $100 billion in annual sales, send ripples through the fragile U.S. economy and put 2 million of its 6.5 million employees out of work. Industry officials say many of those workers are tough to employ: About 5% are disabled, 26% are single mothers and 95% are not college graduates. Average hourly wage: $9.67.

(snip)
Among the most affected marketers will be newspapers and magazines, financial-service and credit card companies, and phone and pay-TV providers. The big corporations say they are taking the list in stride and will simply shift marketing dollars to avenues such as direct mail, TV, radio, print and online advertising. Those pricier options, however, will raise their costs and possibly boost retail prices.

(snip)

Less resilient are thousands of small businesses that rely more heavily on telemarketing, including real estate brokers, insurance agents, and home repair and security services.

"If you haven't been to your dentist in two years, they can't call you anymore" to remind you to come in, says Lynn Wunderman, CEO of marketing company I-Behavior. Companies that have a business relationship with a customer can call, but only for 18 months after the last purchase.

[Endangered Specie]

33. and because "The telemarketing industry" says so they must be right...

well duh, what do you think theyd say?

What do you think oil companies said about the idea of lead-free gasoline?

Most of these businesses are frauds and scams, I cant say Ill lose any sleep if they go under.

"If you haven't been to your dentist in two years, they can't call you anymore"...something wrong with the US post?

[mountainvue]

34. Do you have anything to refute

what I've posted?

Nevermind, you've got yours right? Who cares about anybody else? Just don't call EndageredSpecie, 'cause you're a fraud and a scam!

[HawkerHurricane]

35. Let me see if I have this straight...

If I don't want people calling on MY phone to sell me whatever, I'm a pig who doesn't care about the unemployed.

If I want to let people call me whenever THEY want, I love the poor.

Got it.

[Heddi]

36. you don't seem to understand

that my phone is just that -- MY PHONE.

I pay the phone company for the line. THe phone number is mine (meaning that no one else has it).

Telemarketers calling me is no different than door-to-door salespeople coming knocking at 8am all day long (and I'm old enough to remember door-to-door salespeople).

Telemarketers are no different. I'm a college student--so is my husband. We both work full time jobs. We both spend inordinate amounts of time either studying, preparing for school, thinking about school, or trying to wind down from being in school.

Having some fucking "do you want to refinance" call at 8 am on a Saturday morning isn't my idea of a nice way to wakeup. Especially since we DO NOT EVEN OWN A HOUSE.

And before you start on again with your "you must want people to be out of a job"---let me tell you that I worked in telemarketing for many years because it was the only place that would hire me to work afternoons and nights b/c of my class schedule.

I hated doing it, especailly since I'm not very nice to people who telemarket to me. Although my job wasn't specifically in telemarketing, and we didn't do cold calls---it was for focus and research groups and we called a dedicated list of clients who asked to be called.

But sometimes they didn't want to talk. SOmetimes it was too late in the evening. Sometimes they worked night jobs and were asleep at 2pm.

I didn't take it personally if they got rude with me. If they yelled at me. If they hated the sheer fiber of my being because of what I did to make ends meet. It's part of the job.

Before I worked in telemarketing, I worked in newspaper sales which required me to sometimes cold call businesses and even residences. I didn't like it, and I did it as little as I could while retaining my job.

Again, I didn't take it personally when I was hung up on, cursed at, had whistles blown in my ears.

---

Not wanting people to call me at all hours of the day and night has NOTHING to do with "wanting people to lose their jobs". In case you haven't noticed, the Do Not Call List hasn't affected NEARLY as many telemarketers as has the practice of closing up shop in the US and moving the call centers to India or other countries. THAT is what you should blame for the supposed loss of "2.5 million jobs"---NOT the Do Not Call List.

And I have to agree with the poster above who said that if we want your business, WE WOULD CALL YOU.

I'm sorry that you have to rely on cold calling and telemarketing to make your business thrive. DO NOT lay that blame on ME, the consumer, the OWNER OF THE PHONE and RENTER OF THE PHONE LINE who is frankly sick and fucking tired of having my phone ring from 8am until 8:59pm from every mortgage broker, insurance sales, and in-home pool installation in the fucking greater Seattle Area.

Or at least urge your telemarketing friends to do a bit..just a BIT of basic research before they go a' calling---

For instance---as I said earlier---even being on the DNC list doesn't stop the MYRIAD of Mortgage Refinancers who call my home on a disturbingly regular basis---but I don't own a home. I rent. I own NOTHING but my car (which is paid for). I AM IN AN APARTMENT.

Same with the people who want to build a pool in my non-existent backyard. I DON'T HAVE A BACKYARD>

SO instead of opening the phone book and going from A-Z, how about use a little common sense and do a bit of research before you start calling folks that live in trailers, or apartments, or duplexes, or condos, or any other number of situations that DO NOT WARRANT YOUR CALL> Maybe THEN you'll get people who are more sympathetic to your business needs and would actually hear you out instead of hanging up by the time you say "Mortgage".

And I like how you suggest that we just not answer the phone. Or unplug the phone. OF course, I could live on my cellphone but that's impossible since the telemarketers have my cellphone number and always seem to call me when I'm in the middle of traffic, or the middle of class, or the middle of sleep.

Why should my phone be off limits to ME? I PAY FOR THE MOTHERFUCKING PHONE LINE. I'll answer it any time and in any way I see fit. If you're not prepared to hear a rant on the other end of the phone, then you need to find a better way of marketing (ever heard of direct mail? Valpak? Phonebook????????????)

I will not pay $30 for a phone line that, according to you, I should just let ring and ring because of RUDE TELEMARKETERS who don't understand that yes, Virginia, people DO work odd hours, and just because YOU are at work at 4pm doesn't mean that *I* am at work, or if I'm at home, that I want to take your call. Or that I want to wake up to the ring ring ring ring ring even if I don't answer it.

Or I suppose I should just tell my mom to make sure to call me in advance so I can pencil in the next time she calls me for a family emergency, or make my husband use his psychic powers and tell me when he needs a ride home from school so that I don't make you have a bad day by answering the phone when someone who was NOT INVITED to call my phone decides to callme to see if I need a windshield repaired.

Telemarketing, when one is not signed up on a call list for the company, is akin to trespassing on my property, and I think it's hillarious that people would get PISSED because I don't want them calling me, for any reason, at any time, unless I ASK THEM TO CALL ME.

Sheesh.

[mountainvue]

38. I don't depend on telemarketing

to market my business. I do direct mail, the phone book, print ads, etc.
When I telemarket, I buy lists of homeowners who are not on the Do Not Call list.
I'm sorry you hated your telemarketing job.
I was merely trying to provide the other side of the telemarketing argument.
Have a nice evening.
:)

[Endangered Specie]

37. Well..

(actually, I dont have a job ;) )

We could start with the fact that I don't believe what the "telemarketing industry" says, especially if its in their best interest to say it, not to much brain power to understand that potential conflict of interest. As far as the workers go, I find it ironic that the tele co's are trying to elicit sympathy when they are more than happy to ship the jobs over the pond.

Industry officials say many of those workers are tough to employ: About 5% are disabled, 26% are single mothers and 95% are not college graduates. Average hourly wage: $9.67.
-It is unfortunate that people will lose their jobs, but considering what they do is in my book, illegal, and an invasion of privacy (unless they abide by the DNC) that is the way it is.


"Among the most affected marketers will be newspapers and magazines, financial-service and credit card companies, and phone and pay-TV providers. The big corporations say they are taking the list in stride and will simply shift marketing dollars to avenues such as direct mail, TV, radio, print and online advertising. Those pricier options, however, will raise their costs and possibly boost retail prices."

-they love to scare you with the threat of boosted prices, they must not have heard of competition.


Less resilient are thousands of small businesses that rely more heavily on telemarketing, including real estate brokers, insurance agents, and home repair and security services.

- If I want those services Ill call them. There are other ways to advertise that are non-invasion of privacy, and that is the real issue here. THe DNC allows people to select whether or not they want phone calls from marketers. How would you like it if I called you day and night and it was illegal for you to block my number from calling you?


by the way, your missing an "n" and there is a space between Endangered and Specie ;) If Im going to be called a fraud and a scam I want my name printed right!

[MercutioATC]

41. We have this wonderful thing called the U.S. Postal Service.

I've heard they'll deliver a message ANYWHERE you tell them to!!!

Can you believe it?!

If you want to keep in touch with past customers, this seems like an avenue to explore.

:eyes:

[DemocratSinceBirth]

42. That's Almost As Bad...

Don't you think proprietary rights extend to one's mail box...

[MercutioATC]

43. It's better than the telephone..I can throw away junk mail without looking

at it if I choose. I get the mail when I want to...it never bothers me when I'm doing something.

And no, proprietary rights don't extend to one's mail box. You may own your own telephone, but the government owns your mail box (that's why it's illegal to place anything in somebody's mail box).