Do's and Dont's when Talking to a Telemarketer

I am a college student that is currently working for the largest telemarketing agency in America right now. I talk to probably 500 people every time I work. Out of those 500 people I might get 16 to 20 people who actually donate to my agency. We know that we wake you up in the morning, and bother you during your dinner time. Sorry, but it is our job, and yes people do actually give during those times. So if you are tired of hearing telemarketers, I think I have some helpful tips for people.

This is how everything works. First, a beep will sound in my headset, immediately I will say, "hello". Then your name and address will pop up, something like "Joe Smith". Now based on whether you say hello in return as a male or female determines if I call you "Joe", or "Mrs. Smith". If you reply yes, then I will continue on trying to solicit whatever I am selling.

Telemarketers think of you as a name and a client. If a telemarketer isn't getting sales, then the company doesn't need that telemarketer. Therefore, the more the telemarketer sells the better. If you say no, then we have hundreds of other people that we will call instead. Don't think by denying or yelling at us is going to faze us from calling another person. The more people called, the better the odds. Now there are several things you do not want to do if you are receiving a call from a telemarketer.

1. Immediately hang up the phone- don't do this, because the telemarketer might put you down as a recall. The reason being that you didn't say no to the pitch. So until the telemarketer is told no, then perhaps the line just got cut off.

2. Have a child answer as Mr. or Mrs. "Smith"- For a telemarketer, the name that pops up is usually the letter of the first name and the last name. So if I called this residence and the child said hello, I would immediately ask if this was Mr. "Smith", if the child said yes, then I would go into my solicitation thinking that this was the man of the house. Usually this isn't a problem, because I can tell a child's voice, but some kids and teenagers sound like adults. On some occasions kids believe that they have to give because of the aggressive salesman and pledge a dollar amount.

3. Yelling, Cussing, or Playing Games on the phone- The truth is that many telemarketers can only take so much denial and hate hour after hour. If you decide to yell, swear, or even play games with telemarketers, it is a bad idea. Because some telemarketers will just to spite you, put you down for a recall.

The best way to stop a telemarketer and make sure they don't call anymore is simply stopping the telemarketer after they tell you their name and association. This is how a perfect conversation to a telemarketer should go. The telemarketer will say hello and wait for your hello. After determining who you are, they will then tell you their association. Then immediately following that, they will try to get into their script. That is where you as the client need to stop the telemarketer. Say, "Excuse me (whoever they just said their name was), will you please take me off your calling list". The telemarketer can't pitch you another price or even ask you to give, because the telemarketer hasn't even told you what the product is. You weren't rude so he has no reason to recall you. Plus, by saying the telemarketer's name, you make it into a conversation. Now if the telemarketer tries to continue selling, then you should immediately hang up.

I honestly suggest you just listen to the entire solicitation to determine whether or not you want to give. After you listen to the entire thing, then remember that 3 NO's will end the conversation. If you say no once, the telemarketer will make the deal just a little bit sweeter for you. Another no, will leave the telemarketer only one last hope of getting you with the final offer. Then, the final no means that you won't be participating at this time. It may seem pretty aggressive, but that is how sales go. Let me give you an example: If I get through my speech, I will then ask you for a dollar amount, let's say $35 or $25 donation. If you tell me no, then I will say, I understand Mr./Mrs. "Smith", and every donation really goes a long way. Let me get you involved with just a $20 or $15 donation, I'm sure one of these levels is more comfortable. If you tell me no again, then I will say, I understand Mr./Mrs. "Smith", now I don't want to lose you over a dollar amount, how about a $10 goodwill donation. It would be greatly appreciated, fair enough? Now if you say no to that final offer, then I am left with nothing left to offer. So a simple, well maybe next time Mr./Mrs. "Smith" is all I can say.

I hope that I have helped someone with their telemarketing woes. I do feel sorry for the people that get called several times a day from agencies. I hope that you are able to use some of my information and apply it to the next time you receive a call. Thanks for reading.