Telemarketing Script

Here is a list of questions to ask each telemarketer when they call you. Print these questions, and put them next to the phone. Telemarketers are required by law to answer each of these questions. Write the answers down and as well as the date, time of the call, and anything else that will help you remember the call.
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  • 0
    John
    | 4 replies
    Nice Website Glad I ran across it.
    Try some of these tricks.

    You've probably heard these tips before....

    Tips for Handling Telemarketers

    Three Little Words That Work !!

    (1)The three little words are: "Hold On, Please..."

    Saying this, while putting down your phone and walking off (instead of hanging-up immediately) would make each telemarketing call so much more time-consuming that boiler room sales would grind to a halt.

    Then when you eventually hear the phone company's "beep-beep-beep" tone, you know it's time to go back and hang up your handset, which has efficiently completed its task.

    These three little words will help eliminate telephone soliciting.


    (2) Do you ever get those annoying phone calls with no one on the other end?

    This is a telemarketing technique where a machine makes phone calls and records the time of day when a person answers the phone.


    This technique is used to determine the best time of day for a "real" sales person to call back and get someone at home.

    W hat you can do after answering, if you notice there is no one there, is to immediately start hitting your # button on the phone, 6 or 7 times, as quickly as possible This confuses the machine that dialed the call and it kicks your number out of their system. Gosh, what a shame not to have your name in their system any longer !!!

    (3) Junk Mail Help:

    When you get "ads" enclosed with your phone or utility bill, return these "ads" with your payment. Let the sending companies throw their own junk mail away.

    When you get those "pre-approved" letters in the mail for everything from credit cards to 2nd mortgages and similar type junk, do not throw away the return envelope.

    Most of these come with postage-paid return envelopes, right? It costs them more than the regular 41 cents postage "IF" and when they receive them back.

    It costs them nothing if you throw them away! The postage was 39 cents before the last increase and it is according to the weight In that case, why not get rid of some of your other junk mail and put it in these cool little, postage-paid return envelopes.

    One of Andy Rooney's (60 minutes) ideas.
    Send an ad for your local chimney cleaner to American Express. Send a pizza coupon to Citibank. If you didn't get anything else that day, then just send them their blank application back!
    If you want to remain anonymous, just make sure your name isn't on anything you send them.

    You can even send the envelope back empty if you want to just to keep them guessing! It still costs them 41 cents.

    The banks and credit card companies are currently getting a lot of their own junk back in the mail, but folks, we need to OVERWHELM them. Let's let them know what it's like to get lots of junk mail, and best of all they're paying for it...Twice!

    Let's help keep our postal service busy since they are saying that e-mail is cutting into their business profits, and that's why they need to increase postage costs again. You get the idea!

    If enough people follow these tips, it will work ---- I have been doing this for years, and I get very little junk mail anymore.
  • 0
    Will replies to MKD
    | 1 reply
    I have voice-over-IP, and it does *exactly* this.
    I can forward any number I want to any other number I want, so all the one's I don't like I forward to themselves (I'm sure they have fun talking to their own sales department)
    VOIP typically comes as flat rate, so the forwarding is competely free. I use BroadVoice, because its cheaper and offers more than the famous big one, but  you could probably do it with anyone.
  • 0
    Crankshaft replies to John
    I do this all the time for junk mail. I send any other ads I received that week back in the Pre-Paid envelope. I have also heard of people (haven't tried myself though) affixing the envelope to a parcel filled with something weighted down and sending it back. (Don't know if it would go through...but it would be fun to try...LOL) We have to start paying these [***] back for wasting our time and resources. If I want to purchase something, or use a service of any kind...I will call you...do not call or contact me.
  • 0
    DA
    Yeah, I have been reading all the creative methods mentioned by commenters here and also over on whocalled.us and I've applied many of them myself. In the distant past I've even tried the infamous TeleZapper. Forwarding my phone to the phone company's toll-free annoyance call bureau number, all the local phone company's blocking features that cost but don't work, filing Do-Not-Call complaints, asking to be placed on the callers DNC list, phonetray sounds like it might be useful if you want a PC running 24/7,365, etc, etc, etc. But, they all either seem only partially effective, or simply impractical. The VoIP folks don't all have the individual blocking, the ones that DID like SunRocket seem to come and go out of business. Local land line companies like QWest have ineffective features that don't offer any real help; Congress left too many loop-holes in the Do-Not-Call, and should have opted for opt-in rather than opt-out, but because they are largely puppets of their corporate handlers aren't likely to do that anytime soon. BUT, THERE IS A WAY I just recently discovered for myself: Google just bought Grand Central which should guarantee they stay fiscally viable for awhile: http://www.grandcentral.com G.C. offers every feature under the sun. Selective blocking, selective voice mail messages, on-the-fly-full-duplex call recording (nice deterrent/evidence) call routing to multiple phone numbers, silently monitor voice-mail messages as they are being left/recorded, etc, etc, etc. And the BETA period is TOTALLY F-R-E-E. Free is a very good price. ;-) YEA GOOGLE! Now just give that number to your Voter Registration office, DMV, Utilities, and everyone, telling them that you have changed your number, print it on personal cards.  In the future, Grand Central hopes to offer number transfers so you can  keep your land-line # for use with G.C. too.
  • 0
    Jerry
    Another way to have fun ... there are all sorts of celebrity "soundboards" that can be downloaded online. I downloaded Arnold and had him talking to the last telemarketer - he got scared and hung up!
  • +1
    madman replies to Scott
    You really have to do your research to nab telemarketers. first I recommend black book online which has a reverse directory and other useful info.  Then you have to find the companys address and send them a certified letter demanding that they stop all calls.  I did that and my local police department actually came to my house looked at the numerous times they had called me from the caller ID log on my phone he called the company in front of me and told them he was the police and that they need to stop calling  and that if they did not the resident has the right to take them to court.  The calls from that Co. finally stopped. It was hard to find all the info, but if you are determined you can. I had all the papers ready to go for small claims court.
  • 0
    madman replies to MKD
    Please invent it.. what a blessing that would be.
  • 0
    MAGGIE
    I have been on the Do Not Call Registry since it's inception and it works very well.  We also have an unlisted number at home.  Another thing that I have done is that when I move I never give my new address to the USPS, because they will sell it, I just send out change of address cards to only those companies that I want to contact me. I'm a receptionist and I am constantly bombarded by scammers who usually have their number blocked, meet resistance with obscenities and hang up when I ask to speak with their supervisors.  I just tell them it is against company policy to give out our buyer's names and offer to take a message. I also get rid of research firms the same way telling them the info they want is confidential
  • +1
    MAGGIE
    | 1 reply
    I had a guy call and ask for shipping, when asked who he was with he said Delta.  I told him we don't buy from them, he called back in a week, same co name and when I gave him my reply he said he was a customer checking on his order and when I asked him for his customer no. he got mad so I hung up. These guys are very sneaky and it really helps if you are a company to have your receptionist also do A/P because they know who the real vendors are.  They are always changing their tactics but one of the easiest clues is "Uh, the maintenance manager, what did you say his name was?"
  • 0
    dee
    | 1 reply
    I have been receiving numerous calls on my cell phone from this credit card company 888-864-9519 with a guaranteed credit line and also a credit card that is how I was brought to this websit THANK YOU also watch out for
    another prescription broker I got taken with a promise of all my prescriptions for 65.00 a mont which I am now paying over 400.00 instead of 65.00 they took out a 100.00 I have turned them in and also have my bank on them you only get me one time their name is Select Benefits which was recommended to me by a state agency ??? I receive atleast 10 calls a day on my cell and more on my home phone and I am on a do not call list Yeah right What can be done
  • 0
    J K replies to Jason
    Where do you purchase these Asterisk boxes, they are new to me?
  • 0
    Jake replies to Bill
    | 2 replies
    You do not need DSL to subscribe to iobi home with Verizon.
    But it limits you to just 20 numbers that you can block.

    Anonymous call rejection is free and blocks calls from all PRIVATE numbers.
    So at least you'll have ten digits associated with the call.

    Actually, there needs to be positive identification, a way to direct calls from toll-free numbers to voice mail without ringing, and a way to block lots of numbers and ranges of numbers.

    Another thing is that the recipient of a call should be legally permitted to record it without notifying the caller.
  • 0
    jf
    If people would STOP buying things from some stranger that calls, then this whole thing would never have started in the first place!

     Who the hell buys something off of some unknown caller???

    I am on the don't call list, and evidently "surveys" are not included. They can survey you all they want! [***]
  • 0
    Mike replies to steven-W
    Same product I believe is available from Amazon and is about $130. It is called Caller ID Manager. Check it out: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000A83GMQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top/103-7566828-9997412

    Sounds great but does anyone have any real experience with this product?
    If it does what it says and works with VOIP I am buying one.
  • 0
    dbxr1
    very interesting things to know about telemarketing companies.  does this apply in canada as well?  i know the national registry is not set up here yet.

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