DO NOT CALL!

reply to post by ColeYounger


Took me a sec to get it but Damn that pic is funny!

reply to post by SLAYER69


I've had great success with the Do Not Call Registry so I back up your idea here

The no call list is good advice but does not work 100%. Dish Network used to call me and once they called on a Sun night at 10 PM. I became livid and decided to act. I answered the phone and said, " I am recording this call to give to my attorney. I am asking to be taken off your list and if you do not abide I will sue you for harassment." I know, the victimization stance, but what else can we do bedsides dish out a threat? I then asked for the person's name and their company, then I asked to speak with a manager. I did this and never got another call! I have been on state and Fed no call lists, but they still get though. Threatening a lawsuit was the only thing that was effective.

ETA: This was 4 years ago, I might add, so perhaps this new list is more effective. Just wanted to throw another option out there.

reply to post by SLAYER69


A little tip from a former telemarketer....

Don't be a prick to the telemarketer.... You will not be placed on the "Do not call list" even if you demand it...

In fact, you'll probably be on the call back list....

Telemarketers hate their jobs... And it brings a little joy to the life of the telemarketer to piss you off if you feel its necessary to do the same

reply to post by Goteborg


LOL, love that you pulled up the Amway website, classic!

reply to post by SLAYER69


I registered on the DNC list years ago. I still get the occasional carpet cleaning offer or a notification that I've won something that I never entered for. It definitely doesn't eliminate all calls as a head's up but it does allow reporting of said calls. I do find it really funny though when I get a clearly government sponsored poll call. Didn't I tell them that I didn't want unsolicited calls? Oh yeah, it's for telemarketers. Pollsters are completely different. Irony at its best though.

Overall, I'd suggest it. As far as the other most obnoxious marketing thing on the planet--junk mail in the mailbox--all one has to do is go to the websites of the worst offenders and get off their mailing list. I went from an overstuffed mailbox due to the previous resident to mail being specifically to me and it didn't take much to do it.

Living in the Caribbean, there are no such organizations to protect us from cold calls, however we do get a lot of computer calls. I enjoy those, because they're on a VOX-type recording............ so, I am inclined to sing Nessun Dorma; sadly unlike the Master, I do not sing opera well. In fact, it's quite painful.

reply to post by SLAYER69


I worked in telemarketing for many years that list is not very accurate. There was a time you could put your number on it and you wouldn't get a call, not so much anymore.

There use to be a time when you had to remove someone. Now if you ask to be removed from the calling list they usually just end the call and don't do it just to be an ass.

I am SICK of getting spanish frigging solicitation calls. I don't speak SPANISH! Ahh it pisses me off!


I have put my numbers on that do not call list and yet I still get unwanted calls. It use to work very well but not so much anymore.

One could take Seinfeld's approach.

Out my way, I don't get a lot of calls, but thankfully Sprint makes it easy to block them.

And, because I don't want the telemarketer to feel bad (I mean, they are being paid to bother you, after all), some of the ones that I recommend are:

1. After speaking to a real person, make the excuse that you need to use the bathroom, and ask that they please stay on the line, as you will only be a second. Now, you can use this to your advantage - for inspiration, watch the following clips at your leisure (NOTE: I don't own these, so I am linking to the content instead).

Naked Gun: The Sound of Relief
Blazing Saddles: Bean Fest

2. Treat the conversation like the person on the other line is playing dumb.
For example:
TM: "Hello, Mr Anonymous, I was wondering if..."
You: "Hello, Mr. Smith, we've been expecting you."
TM: ??? **utters some phrase saying he/she doesn't know what you are talking about**
You: "Wait, you mean to tell me you don't remember what you did last weekend? At the party? I know you were there, and what they gave you".

See how long you can keep the conversation going - the goal is to make it vague enough that the telemarketer doesn't hang up.

3. "It's a Conspiracy" approach - I've heard this done on several of my local radio stations, where the person in charge would take a caller on, only to have that caller ask them if they've head about a certain conspiracy. Goal is to keep the telemarketer interested.

4. Reverse telemarketer - In this case, wait for them to say their name, and ask them to confirm their name is correct. Get a thick stack of papers, and ruffle them around so that they can hear them; muttering the person's name may also help with the illusion.

Pretend to find their information, and ask something along the lines of:
"Mr. X, according to my records, you ordered a quantity of Product Y, and then canceled your order. I was wondering if we offered to lower the price, you wouldn't mind filling out an order form?"

In this case, Product Y can be anything - And it doesn't have to be something everyone buys; Personally, I'd pick perfume.

5. Use a voice simulator while talking to them (Stephen Hawking's voice would be a good one). I mean, they have to sit all day long, so why not give them something to laugh about?

-fossilera

reply to post by SLAYER69


That is an EXCELLENT Website, and a particularly interesting
portion of the U.S. Governmental Body in my opinion.

I have frequented that helpful department before.

There is a great deal more tools available there than just the

"Do not Call" feature.

S&F

My grandmother, bless her heart, was an Alzheimer patient for about 15 years and gave me a lot of material to draw on.

I would answer the phone and when they paused their dialog for me to confirm something or speak I would say something crazy. An outlandish intricate plot or I would play a character. Dreaming up the next cray I was going to unload on the next caller was so fun I almost looked forward to the calls. ESPECIALLY at dinner time with speaker phone.

Great to have the family was stitches and enjoying their time together. It was dinner table improv at it's finest.
My family and I have gotten some great laughs over the years plus it taught my kids how to diffuse anger and teach the whole "it's how you react" concept. Thanks telemarketers! I've been happy to give YOU a laugh as well...if all you have is lemons and all that

Now my kids are grown and I have the blocker that only lets calls I want through and life is somehow a little dimmer.

Good info Slayer....if I get caught by them....I just usually go into:

"Good evening, morning, afternoon, sir, madam or miss. My name is Pollywannacrackhead. Today, tonight, this afternoon, morning, weekend, month...we have a very special Tupperware, Colon Cleanse, Dancing to the Oldies dvd offer for you, your family, your friends, co-workers, neighbors and immigration officials...."

I read every single word of that real fast...by the time I stop...they are gone....but yes, it may take a couple times.

I only do this because the DO NOT CALL list doesn't always work...but its the best idea out there.

Thanks Slayer

reply to post by Scotscorps84

she asked me if i had time to complete my loan application to which I replied "no sorry I'm masturbating at the moment"
she giggled and put the phone down

What if she'd replied, "It's okay, I'll hold."?

reply to post by CJCrawley


no back up plan for that.

reply to post by SLAYER69


I use the do not call service. But, for those really pesky ones that bypass it.

As soon as I have them pegged as a telemarketer, I put on my sad crying voice and tell them the person they are calling for, died that week.

I tell them their phone service will now be cut off, since they are dead. I make a big fuss about them calling at such a sad time for the family.

They don't call back.

Des

Did you ever think of just not answering your phone? You're under no obligation to pick it up when it rings. That's my policy anyway. If I don't recognize the number, I don't answer. If I do recognize it but it's someone I don't want to talk to, I don't answer. I only answer the phone about 10% of the time. Cuts down on a lot of hassle.

zazen
Did you ever think of just not answering your phone? You're under no obligation to pick it up when it rings. That's my policy anyway. If I don't recognize the number, I don't answer. If I do recognize it but it's someone I don't want to talk to, I don't answer. I only answer the phone about 10% of the time. Cuts down on a lot of hassle.

I don't have that option, as my business phone number is on all my business cards and website.

I would think that may be the case for a lot of people. The do not call registry was a great idea in the beginning, and still is a useful filtering tool for phone calls. But, a lot of telemarketers have found ways around it. Some just continue to break the law, and have *floating/rotating number banks they call from.

Des

I used to operate the switchboard at a car dealership. This one saleslady always got bill collectors calling into the office. It being my job to answer the phones, I had to pick up, but I learned the number and began to recognize their voices. I did tell them that they shouldn't call a business for those matters, but that didn't stop it. Eventually, I would be so polite and put them directly into the voicemail. I would mute myself until they hung up, listening to them curse me for foiling their genius plan to get Mr. XXXX to pay her debt! It was very amusing and probably the highlight of my calls!

If I could go back, I'd totally mess with them, politely of course!

As someone who has worked in the industry, many times your number gets through to telemarketers because you gave it to them. Read the fine print in anything you put your phone number on, most of the time there is a clause there that allows them to call you even if you are on the do not call list. And please, if you fill out a card for more information on something at a store, e.g. home improvement stuff at home depot, don't yell at the people that end up calling you. You asked for it.