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I guess the remaining 130 million haven't decided that these calls are enough of an annoyance to bother with the 40 seconds it would take to avoid them.
I'd be willing to bet that a lot of that 130 million who object to telemarketing calls but aren't on "The List" don't know about the Do Not Call list.
I really don't understand this hatred of people who call you on the phone. I don't think you have any obligation to be polite or courteous in any way, but neither do I believe you have any need to be obnoxious or vindictive to someone just because they called you. If you're on the DNC list, that's an entirely differnt matter, because you've done what you need to do to avoid what you see as an annoyance. But if you aren't on the list, and someone calls you, why do you feel the need to be abusive or rude to them? If it's so bothersome, as someone else said, put yourself on the list, and then abuse the hell out of anyone who calls in spite of that. But until you are on that list, you haven't done the one simple thing that would tell people that you view their call as unwanted.
And for the record, yes, it is successful, if it's done right, as many different people & companies could tell you if they didn't feel they were going to get ripped apart by the self rightous & outspoken few. If it weren't successful, there wouldn't be an entire industry built around doing it.
When last I checked, there were roughly 70 million numbers on the national DNC list, out of approximately 200 million residential & personal phone numbers in the US. I guess the remaining 130 million haven't decided that these calls are enough of an annoyance to bother with the 40 seconds it would take to avoid them.
With all due respect, I think that is a simplistic view and one that makes a big assumption in order to validate your opinion.
The assumption, obviously, is that you apparently believe that if someone isn't on the DNC list that they welcome or deserve calls. There are many possible reasons someone may not be on the list, so that is not a supportable assumption. Some people may not be aware of the list. Others may have been removed from the list by changing their calling plan. Others may have had technical difficulties in joining the list. Others may be lazy. Others may think that their rude behavior is a better deterrent. None of these reasons mean that the person welcomes calls.
The simplistic part is to think that the parasites have the high moral ground because the hosts have not taken steps that have the potential to prevent the abuse. And in fact, that logic supports rude behavior from unwelcoming recipients of calls. Any legal defense against the parasite is acceptable. The parasite is causing the conflict, and it is not incumbent on the host to justify their defense or to choose the defense that the parasite thinks is more appropriate. If the parasite doesn't like the reception they get, they should stop taking the action that is causing the rude reception.
Responding rudely to a telemarketer parasite is no different than boycotting. It is taking a legal action against someone who is acting in an offensive way in an attempt to exert pressure on the offensive actor to stop their parasitic, in this case, activities.
And trying to justify it by claiming that it is a successful industry is circular logic that proves nothing. I continue to get emails from Nigeria requesting my bank account information. Using your logic, that proves that those emails are successful, and apparently justifies their use.
With all due respect, I think that is a simplistic view and one that makes a big assumption in order to validate your opinion.
The assumption, obviously, is that you apparently believe that if someone isn't on the DNC list that they welcome or deserve calls.
That's an inference you made, and possibly an opinion you have. It's not my opinion, nor is it something I said or implied. I meant exactly what I said. If they haven't taken the step necessary to put themselves on the list of people that cannot be called, then the call isn't so annoying that it's compelled them to take a very very simple action. You may disagree, and I respect that, but please don't misstate my belief. I said nothing about what a person wants or deserves.
I do, by the way, find it at least mildly amusing that you, practicing member of the group of professionals that has more jokes about it and the lack of ethics of it's members (and I don't say they are deserved, just that they are common) than probably any other profession including mine and telemarketing, are so quick to resort to the stereotypical name calling & vitriol spewing aimed at a group of people doing nothing more than plying their trade, legally.
And as to the Nigerian bank scam; well, it is apparently successful enough that people keep using it. We hear every now & then on the news about some poor sap who was ripped off this way. Of course, that happens to be an illegal activity, not becasue they are sending e-mail, but becasue of the lies & deceptive statements. But as far as a marketing strategy on the part of the scammer, it in fact does appearr to be successful, and from a purely business point of view, and ignoring the illegal activity that occurs once the e-mail is responded to, justified.
As annoying as cold calling is, I can assure you the people who are doing it aren’t waking up in the morning “thrilled” to make cold calls. They are just regular people starting from the bottom trying to work their way up the ladder or trying to grow their business. I make all of my employees start out by making cold calls. It teaches them to be quick on their feet and deal with rejection, which I believe are good characteristics for salesman to have.
The largest customer I have in my book of business was from a cold call. After about 2 hours of brutal calling I was about to call it a day. I made myself make 1 more call and I ended up making more money on that 1 call than most Americans make in a year. Yes, cold calling is hard, and very annoying but if it didn’t work people wouldn’t do it.
Yes, cold calling is hard, and very annoying but if it didn’t work people wouldn’t do it.
As someone said above, this also applies to Nigerian scams (which have been working successfully since the 1920's, at least). So it's not really a good justification for cold calling.
That's an inference you made, and possibly an opinion you have. It's not my opinion, nor is it something I said or implied. I meant exactly what I said. If they haven't taken the step necessary to put themselves on the list of people that cannot be called, then the call isn't so annoying that it's compelled them to take a very very simple action. You may disagree, and I respect that, but please don't misstate my belief. I said nothing about what a person wants or deserves.
I do, by the way, find it at least mildly amusing that you, practicing member of the group of professionals that has more jokes about it and the lack of ethics of it's members (and I don't say they are deserved, just that they are common) than probably any other profession including mine and telemarketing, are so quick to resort to the stereotypical name calling & vitriol spewing aimed at a group of people doing nothing more than plying their trade, legally.
You're right. You didn't say that the poeple who are not on the DNC list welcome calls (I won't parse words and point out that you are incorrect when you imply that I wrote about anyone "wanting" calls). However, you did say that they "haven't decided that these calls are enough of an annoyance" for them to get on the list. My mistake was thinking that you were commenting about how those people feel about receiving calls. But instead, I guess you were commenting on how they feel about the list.
And your weak attempt to misdirect the conversation to a comparison of industries is a complete failure. On one hand, the stereotype that some apply to lawyers is a result of the actions of some lawyers, not the required activities of all lawyers. I don't bristle at that stereotype because I understand where it comes from and realize that there is a legitimate basis for it. If it is applied to a particular lawyer without discerning whether that lawyer exhibits those traits, it reflects ignorance on the part of the person applying it.
On the other hand, the condemnation of telemarketers is based on the actions that all telemarketers, by definition, take. Which is telemarketing. So it is not a stereotype.
Finally a decent post. I am in your shoes now and like you said, we do what we have to do.
Although I still hold down my regular job, I am transitioning to full-time self employment. For what I am doing cold calling is my source of marketing untill I get more resources to put into a marketing program. For me I only call on businesses and they expect cold calls.
I do what I have to do.
Good luck to you!
Ron.
Quote:
Originally Posted by my2ndhometown
I am an insurance agent and occasionally make cold calls. Although I hate doing it, it is a cheap and quick way to get business. When you own your own business you gotta do what you gotta do to get ahead.
Making those first few calls is the hardest, but you just have to push past it. I would recommend making your calls in the morning when you are the "freshest" and most energized, people can really feel your energy over the phone. If you speak with someone who is rude just thank them for their time and make another call. Don't let it get to you, remember, you will never meet these people (unless you end up doing business with them) so don't let it get you down. Set goals for yourself each day (like the number of leads you want to get) and don't give up until you reach those goals.
I take great delight in being rude to cold callers, as these people have created a business model out of annoying Americans. If I ruin a cold caller's day, I feel that I have done a service to reasonable, hard-working Americans everywhere.
In the same vein, I think all Americans should take their "junk mail", fill the envelopes with rocks and dirt, and send them back. Junk mailers will pay for the shipping, and the business model would collapse.
Don't you think that most cold callers that have been around a while have heard it all?
The vast majority will move on to the next call and not give you a second thought and even though you say you take delight in it you actually set your brain in motion to be in a negative mood.
This may sound childish to some, but it really is an attitude that has a lot of merit. The people who are making cold calls and suggesting that they deserve courtesy just don't get it. If you are doing it, you are a parasite. If the recipients of cold calls can make the experience so unpleasant that the parasites stop doing it, there will be millions of happy people around the country. You deserve any discourtesy that you get, and I can only hope that at some point you will wake up and realize that you are a menace that no one likes.
My interaction with these parasites depends on what I am doing when interrupted. Ideally, if I can waste as much of their time as possible, I am happy. And so are the folks who didn't have to be annoyed by the parasite that was tied up on what will end up as a very unproductive call. If I am short on time, I will simply make it clear to the caller how much I despise their ilk. It is my right to do so, and I will exercise it. Maybe I should get an air horn.
Mike, please tell me what is the response that you have gotten that you hated more than any other.
Don't really know because as soon as the call is over it is gone out of my memory.
Besides the fact that you are just looking for something to use the next time and I won't give that to you.
As someone said above, this also applies to Nigerian scams (which have been working successfully since the 1920's, at least). So it's not really a good justification for cold calling.
Ok...... Here is another justification. Cold calling makes me money, which inturn puts food on the table and makes my wife and kids happy, which makes me happy. While some of you may argue, as long as the cold callers intent is good (which is why Nigerian scams and cold calling have nothing in common) no one gets hurt.... I really believe that what i sell will help people and in a lot of cases saves them money. So that is why I force myself to make calls and if some people get upset about it I'm sure it won't cause them any sleepless nights.
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