Messing with Telemarketers (3 Viewers)

[MikesDad]

How hard is it to say "no thanks we're not interested" and hang up the phone?

It's not hard.... but when you get 2-3 calls like this every night it's a PITA to answer the phone. We handled the problem by disconnecting our land line at home

 

[MikesDad]

Lol. I probably added some fun to their day with my ridiculousness. You Nancy's are acting like i cussed her out. Perhaps you guys are overly sensitive

I think this post put me over the top with you.... time to look for the ignore function

 

[jbutler]

I used to be a telemarketer, back when I was a student and it was the best job I could find in a tough job market. I hated the job. I hated bothering people, but I was never an asshole to the people I called, and always was respectful to those who clearly wanted me to go away. It's a tough spot to be in, show some compassion next time.

Yup, had the same job one summer after freshman year in college and ditto. As far as it not being a "real job", the fact that gnu does this at work and his boss thinks its funny only validates that his job isn't real either.

i was a telemarketer during college for about 6 months. it was very low key, though. we sold subscriptions to various local newspapers throughout alabama. ended up getting fired after figuring out that the owner was screwing me out of part of my commissions. i still remember it pretty vividly actually. guy's name was wendell.

ME: (picking up paycheck from his office) Wendell I think you miscalculated my commission last week and again this week.
WENDELL: (long pause, looking annoyed) You're fired. Get out of here.
ME: Okay, see ya.

lol at not caring about getting fired when you're 20. i actually did like the job, though. i wasn't fantastic at it, but i did well enough that it paid better than most other part time jobs i could find.

 

[grandgnu]

Yup, had the same job one summer after freshman year in college and ditto. As far as it not being a "real job", the fact that gnu does this at work and his boss thinks its funny only validates that his job isn't real either.

I'm the Gatekeeper, they gotta get past me to get to the boss.

 

[grandgnu]

I think this post put me over the top with you.... time to look for the ignore function

 

[ssanel54]

It's not hard.... but when you get 2-3 calls like this every night it's a PITA to answer the phone. We handled the problem by disconnecting our land line at home

At that hour, its most likely the Penn State Boosters

 

[MikesDad]

Found it...

 

[grandgnu]

 

[MikesDad]

At that hour, its most likely the Penn State Boosters

They also mail 3-4 times a month

 

[grandgnu]

Found it...

 

[bergs]

Isn't there a no call list? I can't remember if business lines can be on it? the silly people who cold call in my industry have to check a number against the no call list before they can cold call.

There is a national no-call list but I've found that it's virtually useless. We were getting 5-10 calls per night. I had to forward my phone to a service that automatically screens the calls for telemarketers. Sometimes the phone rings once now and then that's it because it's been caught by the external service. It's great - I'll dig it up if I can find the link.

 

[bergs]

I'm the Gatekeeper, they gotta get past me to get to the boss.

This is an actual honest question - why would you want to represent your business unprofessionally? Sure it's telemarketers, but what happens the one time you make a mistake and have some "fun" with someone with a legitimate and pre-existing need to contact your business? It's one thing to do what you're doing at home and entirely another (at least in my mind) to do it at your place of employment.

 

[spikeithard]

Funny, just got one of those calls I mentioned in post 58. Came from a local number and has a regular name attached to it. it was from marriot hotels. I called it and it rang and went to a voicemail. It's like someone is rerouting a scam through someone's local number without them knowing. Weird

Sent using tapatalk!

 

[ssanel54]

There is a national no-call list but I've found that it's virtually useless. We were getting 5-10 calls per night. I had to forward my phone to a service that automatically screens the calls for telemarketers. Sometimes the phone rings once now and then that's it because it's been caught by the external service. It's great - I'll dig it up if I can find the link.

Canada has pretty strong regulations I believe, but in the US, I don't think the Do not Call List applies to Political, Non Profit, or Education groups. So you will most likely still get a ton of calls. For a number of these, your best bet is to answer, and ask them to remove you from their call list. The tricky part is that I do want the Veteran's to come to the house a couple times a year to pick up a bunch of donated items. I just don't want them calling me every week looking to schedule another pickup.

Like many have said, its easy enough to politely say no.

 

[grandgnu]

This is an actual honest question - why would you want to represent your business unprofessionally? Sure it's telemarketers, but what happens the one time you make a mistake and have some "fun" with someone with a legitimate and pre-existing need to contact your business? It's one thing to do what you're doing at home and entirely another (at least in my mind) to do it at your place of employment.

1. My boss and co-workers love it
2. I love it

Not to mention that these people call and ask for someone either by an incorrectly pronounced name (i.e. indicating no prior contact with said person) or ask to speak to a specific job title/decision maker (i.e. again, indicating it's a sales call with no prior established relationship)

Then when I ask where they are calling from (usually some grouping of 3-4 initials is given, "oh, I'm calling from SBL or MBR") and what the nature of the call is they give me some random line that makes it painfully obvious there is no pre-existing relationship and they're trying to sell us something. I try to keep the majority of these calls off the upper management.

 

[pltrgyst]

Now I understand that I'm a fairly serious old sociopathic asshole myself, but:

Gnu, you're enough of an asshole online that I have no interest in ever coming to one of your home games. In fact, I almost didn't come to Mark's home game just because you were going to be there. And you sure wouldn't be welcome at my home games.

Sayonara.

-- Larry

 

[grandgnu]

Gnu, you're enough of an asshole online that I have no interest in ever coming to one of your home games.

I'm an asshole when someone is an asshole to me. You give me the asshole, you get the asshole. I tipped a waitress $2 for poor service when the majority of people in the thread said I should've given her nothing and reported it to the manager, Butler chimes in he would've tipped her 20% and I'm an asshole.

Then I grief a telemarketer reading from a script with a silly voice, don't cuss her out or call her names, and I'm a sociopath with no empathy. Yeah, people act the asshole to me, I'll give it right back.

In fact, I almost didn't come to Mark's home game just because you were going to be there.

I knew you and I had butted heads on these forums a few times in the past, but figured I'd give it a shot anyway. Hell, you wound up sitting right next to me. Was I an asshole to you or anyone there? Edit: You also shared some of your scotch with me and seemed like an alright fellow, despite our disagreements online. At the end of the day, you're welcome to choose however you want. I bear ya no ill will and wouldn't have any qualms about playing poker or sharing a drink with ya.

 

[abby99]

One night during election campaign season my sister answered a call from a live person (most are recordings, easy to hang up on). She told the caller that if she got one more call from them, she was going to vote for the opponent. We didn't get any more calls from that candidate's campaign.

 

[jbutler]

I'm an asshole when someone is an asshole to me. You give me the asshole, you get the asshole. I tipped a waitress $2 for poor service when the majority of people in the thread said I should've given her nothing and reported it to the manager, Butler chimes in he would've tipped her 20% and I'm an asshole.

and the gnu paradox presents itself. he can stiff a waitress and taunt someone doing their job and he's not an asshole, but if we don't like that, we're "nancies" and "sallies" and thus he is justified in acting like an asshole to us as well.

gnu, take a look at your tipping thread again. i don't think you'll find anyplace in that thread where i either stated or implied you were an asshole. you asked what we would tip and i responded with what i would tip and why.

 

[ssanel54]

I'm an asshole when someone is an asshole to me. You give me the asshole, you get the asshole..

Gnu, I feel like this has been explained to you a bunch of times in the past, but It doesn't seem to sink in. Where opinions may differ - These Telemarketers are not calling you up to be an asshole to you, they are only doing their job (you made it clear after the fact that someone of your lofty stature does not recognize what they do as a job). And although they may not be good at their job, they are still not trying to do anything malicious other than reading from a script and offering a product that you don't need (even though you have admitted that you and your boss have bought from them before). Instead of politely declining, You decide to "give them the asshole" (though you just think you are being funny and brightening their day). You then post it to the forum, probably thinking that people are going to commend you for your comedic genius, but when there is a different reaction you get defensive.

For someone who claims to have Thick skin and relishes in NON-PC humor (which just sounds like a PC term for Racist), you are very quick to cry that the Mean Girls have it out for you.

 

[ssanel54]

Gnu, I feel like this has been explained to you a bunch of times in the past, but It doesn't seem to sink in. Where opinions may differ - These Telemarketers are not calling you up to be an asshole to you, they are only doing their job (you made it clear after the fact that someone of your lofty stature does not recognize what they do as a job). And although they may not be good at their job, they are still not trying to do anything malicious other than reading from a script and offering a product that you don't need (even though you have admitted that you and your boss have bought from them before). Instead of politely declining, You decide to "give them the asshole" (though you just think you are being funny and brightening their day). You then post it to the forum, probably thinking that people are going to commend you for your comedic genius, but when there is a different reaction you get defensive.

For someone who claims to have Thick skin and relishes in NON-PC humor (which just sounds like a PC term for Racist), you are very quick to cry that the Mean Girls have it out for you.

Oops, I didn't see Butlers post. There I go Blowing him again.

 

[spikeithard]

Instead of politely declining, You decide to "give them the asshole" (though you just think you are being funny and brightening their day). You then post it to the forum, probably thinking that people are going to commend you for your comedic genius, but when there is a different reaction you get defensive.

.

-

 

[Chicken Rob]

I'm an asshole when someone is an asshole to me. You give me the asshole, you get the asshole. I tipped a waitress $2 for poor service when the majority of people in the thread said I should've given her nothing and reported it to the manager, Butler chimes in he would've tipped her 20% and I'm an asshole.

Then I grief a telemarketer reading from a script with a silly voice, don't cuss her out or call her names, and I'm a sociopath with no empathy. Yeah, people act the asshole to me, I'll give it right back.

I knew you and I had butted heads on these forums a few times in the past, but figured I'd give it a shot anyway. Hell, you wound up sitting right next to me. Was I an asshole to you or anyone there? Edit: You also shared some of your scotch with me and seemed like an alright fellow, despite our disagreements online. At the end of the day, you're welcome to choose however you want. I bear ya no ill will and wouldn't have any qualms about playing poker or sharing a drink with ya.

Gnu at the BBotB:

 

[grandgnu]

A gross exaggeration, I don't recall any "lookers" or drinking, but hilarious nonetheless. You probably would've been better served with this clip to misrepresent me (NSFW)

 

[Quicksilver-75]

No horse in this race, but here are a few interesting fun facts:


Roughly one in 25 Americans is a sociopath. Not all sociopaths are dangerous criminals, but they certainly can make life difficult for others, given that the defining characteristic of sociopathy is antisocial behavior.

Sociopaths consider themselves charming, intelligent, and rational.

Sociopaths tend to be highly intelligent. Their high IQs often makes them dangerous.

Sociopaths have oversized egos and an inflated sense of self. They are narcissists to the extreme, with a huge sense of entitlement. They tend to blame others for their own failures.

Sociopaths are incapable of feeling sympathy, empathy, guilt, shame, or remorse. Their brains simply lack the circuitry to process such emotions.

Sociopaths seek to dominate others and "win" at all costs. They hate to lose any argument or fight.

Sociopaths are incapable of love and are entirely self-serving. They may feign love or compassion in order to get what they want, but they don't actually FEEL love.

Sociopaths speak poetically. They are master wordsmiths and expert storytellers.

Sociopaths never apologize. They are never wrong. They never feel guilt. They can never apologize. Even if shown proof that they were wrong, they will refuse to apologize and instead go on the attack.

Sociopaths create strife, argument, hatred, and incite emotional chaos among entire communities. yet they utterly fail to see their own role in creating it. They are delusional at so many levels that their brains defy logical reasoning.

Sociopaths will become angry or aggressive when their integrity is questioned, whereas a sane person would simply be happy to help clear up any misinformation or misunderstanding.

Sociopaths never answer facts; they always attack the messenger when dealing with attacks on their own integrity. They will ignore the evidence and instead attack the messenger as plotting to get them.

Sociopaths feel no remorse about hurting others, lying, publicly humiliating or manipulating people, or just generally acting in an unacceptable way.


In related news, internet trolls often exhibit sociopathic behaviors.


Fascinating stuff.


Here's a test. Most sociopaths will fail because they are unable to answer honestly:

http://illnessquiz.com/sociopath-test/

*CRY* I just found out my wife is a sociopath!

 

[Quicksilver-75]

Well I had to read a lot of posts to get the jist. And in doing so I realized that I, was inadvertently an asshole at Paulo's poker game for being a Canadian and asking the locals (Detroitites) about thoughts on gun control an argument that lasted well over an hour. Lol

And don't even get Paulo started about Libertarianism....

 

[spikeithard]

Sent using tapatalk!

 

[ChaosRock]

Well I had to read a lot of posts to get the jist. And in doing so I realized that I, was inadvertently an asshole at Paulo's poker game for being a Canadian and asking the locals (Detroitites) about thoughts on gun control an argument that lasted well over an hour. Lol

And don't even get Paulo started about Libertarianism....

Hahahahaha, man, you crack me up... And you were MOST DEFINITELY NOT an asshole... It was a simple conversation topic, right? LOL!!! Yeah, there's a couple of subjects that really get me going... LOL!!!

 

[slisk250]

Its a drag when my dad won't answer any call on his landline that he does not recognize on caller ID. He has missed some great opportunities to talk with us as we've travelled around the world but the old guy gets hounded every day from about 4-6pm.

 

[bergs]

Funny, just got one of those calls I mentioned in post 58. Came from a local number and has a regular name attached to it. it was from marriot hotels. I called it and it rang and went to a voicemail. It's like someone is rerouting a scam through someone's local number without them knowing. Weird

Sent using tapatalk!

I've had a few of these get through too. We're working some contractors for house stuff in neighboring towns so they looked semi legitimate. I picked up one of them and a DEAFENING ship horn blared and they told me I won something. I hung up, but I'm assuming I either won a cruise somewhere or got awarded a fully operational tugboat. Either way, lolshipaments.