The Evil Known as Telemarketers.

[ElMarko]

Let me chime in with a "Me too!"

A person's occupation should have absolutely nothing to do with the amount of respect they get for being a person (which means, you treat them depending on actions...).

Like deciding to take a telemarketing job.

[DesignFox]

Hey, here's an idea. Why don't we campaign against the people that actually BUY from telemarketers? Let's face it, if it didn't work, the telemarketing companies wouldn't exist.

Instead of abusing the employees, start an information campaign to get people to stop buying things over the phone.

[Pedersen]

A person's occupation should have absolutely nothing to do with the amount of respect they get for being a person (which means, you treat them depending on actions...).

You're right! I mean, if someone's job is hired assassin, why, that person deserves as much respect as anybody else.

Same for people who have job titles like "Mob Boss", "Enforcer", etc.

Sure, that's not what they put down on resumes and on tax forms, but there are people out there who do just that for a living. And they are just as deserving of respect as everybody else, right?

[Zyanya]

I'm just wondering, Zyanya or ElMarko, if you've ever been in a position where you had to take a job you hated and knew other people would hate you for, simply to feed yourself and keep a roof over your head?

You mean have I ever lived in a place where jobs were scarce and money hard to come by?

Sure did. Somehow I managed to find a way to make ends meet and keep a roof over my head without being part of a scam.

Seriously, if you're eating dinner...*gasp* don't pick up the phone! Check the caller ID if you have it. Those are two solutions right there that don't include being rude.

So I should pay additional money for a service because if I don't, obviously that gives you the right to intrude on the privacy of my home? Is that how it works these days?

I think there are too many people that get overly upset about stupid shit.

Yeah, like how people get upset that some folks don't like when the privacy of their homes is intruded upon and take it personally that we feel it is acceptable to slam the phone down on the one doing the intruding.

but making a phonecall at dinner time isn't abusive

Yes, it is. You were not invited to call. You know that you will be interrupting. And in most cases, you know what you are selling is overpriced trash or a scam. Yes, making that sales call at dinner time is making an attempt to abuse the good nature of someone else. Opps, you got the house of someone who doesn't put up with that bullshit. Gee, poor you.

so my husband who took the only job he could get to pay for school

No, he didn't. There are other jobs. Not my problem that he wasn't willing to keep looking. I've cleaned restrooms rather than work telemarketing, so don't give me that bullshit line.

[DesignFox]

So I should pay additional money for a service because if I don't, obviously that gives you the right to intrude on the privacy of my home? Is that how it works these days?

Simply hanging up costs you nothing. So, if you don't already have caller ID, which a vast majority of people I know do, then you won't have to pay for anything.

No need to get hostile.

I don't agree with what some of these comanies do. I'd like them shut down as much as anyone else. But attacking the employees is not the way to go about solving the problem.

For the record, if you are on the Do Not Call list, then only businesses that you have done business with can call you. Everyone else is supposed to fuck off, and if they call you anyway you can take legal action.

BlaqueKatt's SO was calling the bank's existing customers to sign them up for services WITH THE BANK. So his calls would not be blocked by the DNC list, and really, the bank isn't doing anything wrong. Once the customer states disinterest, if they keep calling, THEN they are in the wrong.

And I don't think I blame the people who choose a telemarketing job over cleaning toilets. Assuming they have that choice. I'm sure the toilet cleaning job pays half to two thirds what the call center job would. If you need to make ends meet, you do what you need to do.

FTR, I would only take a telemarketing job as a last resort...I don't like calling people and I refuse to scam people. But telemarketers aren't automatically scammers...and some scammers aren't even telemarketers.

[Rapscallion]

When I was in retail, we had plenty of calls from people trying to sell us things. It wasn't always a scam - in fact, we did sometimes buy from them and managed to get some better insurance deals for the same cover from time to time. It's not always a scam.

I was never impolite to people. Some I played with, but I was always honest and polite. There was one company called Universal Utilities, and they called roughly two or three times a week. I got them to stop by getting their reps out every time they called us - that stopped them (eventually).

Pederson? The example you give of respect for certain people is somewhat flawed, I fear. Telesales people are legally allowed to call within certain boundaries. Enforcers/thugs are performing actions against the law. If telesales was made illegal, then sure, I'd lose respect for them as people.

Is it right to invade someone's privacy? Their home? It's a grey area - it's not as if they're breaking a window and climbing through, so the language involved doesn't really match with the events. Impersonal, sure, but actually stepping foot on your property? Not quite the same league. There's the DNC in the US and the Telephone Preferential Service in the UK - the UK version works fine - I get only the odd call - perhaps once every six months or so. There are legal means to get them to stop - if you don't use those methods then they are still legally able to call you, and thus I can only conclude that someone who knows of these and doesn't use them is just spoiling for a fight.

I suppose in conclusion I should point out that I have a decent income, a decent standard of living, no debt save for my mortgage, food on my table, entertainment to suit me as and when I need it. I'm not looking for anything relatively trivial to annoy me.

Life could be much worse.

Rapscallion

[Boozy]

I thought the issue here was not whether or not we like telemarketing, but how we handle it. Most people agree that the act of telemarketing is, by its very nature, rude. The question is, what are we going to do about it?

What is wrong with just hanging up? What is cursing and screaming going to accomplish? If you have a legitimate telemarketing firm calling, they will remove you from their list when you say, "I'm not interested." If they're illegal or running a scam, they don't give a shit about you yelling at them.

Losing one's shit does nothing to improve the situation.

[Zyanya]

Simply hanging up costs you nothing. So, if you don't already have caller ID, which a vast majority of people I know do, then you won't have to pay for anything.

Sorry, I consider my time worth something.

For the record, if you are on the Do Not Call list, then only businesses that you have done business with can call you. Everyone else is supposed to fuck off, and if they call you anyway you can take legal action.

Which doesn't always stop them.

And I don't think I blame the people who choose a telemarketing job over cleaning toilets. Assuming they have that choice. I'm sure the toilet cleaning job pays half to two thirds what the call center job would.

You'd be surprised. I'd go so far as to say amazed. I also had nowhere near the stress and didn't have to sacrifice my moral and ethical standards.

No need to get hostile.

No need for them to call me. They don't call me, I don't get hostile, yay, everyone is happy, the end.

I'm not looking for anything relatively trivial to annoy me.

Fifth day in a row you get woken up by one of these jackasses because you don't dare turn your phone off because there are people that may need to contact you and if they do, it is an emergency situation? Yeah, you'd be annoyed to. Maybe even pissed off, especially when it's the same jackass for the fifth time and I am already on the DNC.

If they're illegal or running a scam, they don't give a shit about you yelling at them.

See, here is the problem. About 75% of the time, a 'please don't call again, I am on the DNC' works. 15% of the time, I have to change it to 'look, don't fucking call here again, I'm not interested and I am reporting this'. And on several occasions I have had them LAUGH at me for saying 'don't call again, I am on the DNC' and say 'but you can't report us'. The worst by far are the charitable organizations who respond with 'we are exempt from that what donation can I put you down for?'. At least twice with charitable organizations I have had to go so far as to be screaming at a supervisor before they stopped calling me. I'm not even going to get into the collection agencies that have the wrong number, they'll call back 30 seconds after you hang up on them to call you a liar and a crook.

[Dreamstalker]

If people want to sell things, great. Do all the marketing you can think of....but for fuck's sake, don't get right in the face of someone who is clearly trying to avoid you and has no interest in what you're selling.

Amen! I would go so far as to apply this to non-profit canvassers as well (one downtown resorts to horrible pickup lines while keeping pace with you). If I was even remotely interested, I would stop/say so.

Do Not Call does have some glaring loopholes, such as third parties calling "on behalf of" banks or anyone you might legitimately do business with. Sorry, just because I bank or have a credit card with X does NOT mean that I want to be marketed to.

Oddly, since changing my registered Citibank phone # to my cell, I have received zero marketing pitches from them (one who did sucker me in when I was residing in the dorms, I cannot cancel as they want the # they called as "verification"...even if I could remember that number, it in all likelihood no longer exists).

[kibbles]

Well those don't sound like legit companies if they laugh at you for saying you are on the DNC list. Once those words are spoken, a telemarketer who are just trying to do their jobs would comply with your wishes immediately.

Just because you have had bad experiences do not mean every telemarketer should be disrespected.

[Zyanya]

Just because you have had bad experiences do not mean every telemarketer should be disrespected.

Just because it's the only job you could get doesn't mean it's worthy of respect.

You disrespect me by calling me up on my time on the phone I pay for to try to sell me something without having been invited to. Then you have the nerve to demand I respect you. That's funny, in a sad kinda way.

[IDrinkaRum]

I have Caller ID - it comes free with my phone package I get through Verizon for my land line. If I don't recognize the name/number, it comes up as an 800 or 866 number or if it comes as a no name/no number, I don't answer, I let the answering machine get it.

When I worked nights, or went to bed late at night/early in the morning, I'd turn off my ringer and let my answering machine answer.

When I'm eating (before I had Caller ID) I wouldn't answer the phone when I was eating (and I don't bring my cordless phone into the bathroom with me neither).

Problems solved. Easy, IMHO.

[Dreamstalker]

I also have Caller ID and love it. Don't recognize the name/number? Let the machine get it (99.9% of the time a message never gets left anyway).

Interestingly, the vast majority of numbers from the past month are what look like telemarketers (800/866/888/I think there are one or two 000-000-0000 as well).

[DesignFox]

and I only use my cell phone...which gets turned to silent when I'm sleeping. I have zero problem being awakened by telemarketers.

When I did have that problem, a simple grumbled "not interested" or quick hang up didn't disturb my sleep much. And I used to work late at night, too.

I just see no need to be hostile. The people who laugh in your face, or refuse to leave you alone...well, they must not be working for legit agencies. If they are being that harrassing- take dates and times and REPORT them.

I would not go so far as to paint all telemarketers with the same brush and treat them like dirt beneath my feet. It's wrong.

Like I said, a campaign to get people to stop buying shit over the phone would put a stop to a majority of the calls. If it didn't work, companies wouldn't do it. Vote with your wallet and encourage others to do the same.

and REPORT bad companies. The problem won't go away by complaining about it, or by harassing the majority of people who are really just doing their jobs. Sure, it's a pain in the ass. Sure, it's horrible and you shouldn't have to do it. But if someone is breaking the law by harassing you when you've specifically asked to be taken off the call list, DO SOMETHING about it. Punish the assholes that deserve it!

The average telemarketer isn't going to laugh in your face, harass you, or continue to call once you've asked them to remove you from their list. I don't feel that those people deserve the acid they receive.

*shrug*

I don't see how spouting venom solves anything- especially when misdirected.

But then, I always believe in treating people the way I would want to be treated. I rarely fly off the handle, and sometimes I'm easy going to a fault. I reserve my animosity for the few people who deserve it...and even then...meh I don't usually feel like wasting the energy on them. I have more important things to do.

If anything, some of those bad companies, that actually harass people...I wouldn't be suprised if those people get off on causing problems. I like to disappoint people like that.

[kibbles]

Just because it's the only job you could get doesn't mean it's worthy of respect.

You disrespect me by calling me up on my time on the phone I pay for to try to sell me something without having been invited to. Then you have the nerve to demand I respect you. That's funny, in a sad kinda way.

The only thing I see that is sad on this forum is people thinking another human being doesn't deserve respect. That says a lot more about you than it does about them IMO.