Telemarketers and Junk Mail

1

13788

Guest
Finedessert: Subject: Andy Rooney's tips for 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 call so much more time-comsuming 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 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.

What 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. Since doing this, my phone calls have decreased dramatically.

(3) Another Good Idea: When you get "ads" enclosed with your phone or utility bills, 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 cost them more than the regular 37 cents postage "IF" and when they receive them back.

It costs them nothing if you throw them away! The postage was around 50 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 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 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 quessing!

Eventually, the banks and credit card companies will begin getting their own junk back in the mail.
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.

Happy Mailing.

Posted by Grandpa
 

Pecker

Retired Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2002
Posts
54,502
Media
0
Likes
323
Points
283
How about a modification to the whistle tip given to women back in the 1960's to stop 'annoying' phone calls:

Hang a police whistle next to your phone.  The next time you receive a sales call blow the whistle into the receiver.

If you receive complaints that you broke some poor slob's eardrum, just respond that it sounded like heavy breathing to you.

Pecker
 

B_DoubleMeatWhopper

Expert Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2002
Posts
4,941
Media
0
Likes
113
Points
268
Age
45
Location
Louisiana
Sexuality
100% Gay, 0% Straight
Gender
Male
One thing that I've found that works with telemarketers: a few words into their spiel, I say (in my butchest baritone voice), "I'm wearing a black teddy and and five inch heels; are you touching yourself?" It tends to get them flustered and embarassed and they don't have to nerve to continue. It didn't work one time; this sickie abandoned his sales script and came up with filthy fantasies of his own invention! :eek:
 
1

13788

Guest
aussiechick63: The best thing that works for telemarketers is having a silent phone number.
I have had one for nearly two years and have never had a telemarketer ring me since I got it changed. The peace is blissful.
 
1

13788

Guest
7x6andchg: Aussiechick63-

For "silent" phone number, since you probably have a different meaning in Australia, do you mean unlisted in the phone directory, or literally one that no one knows at all?

Here in the US, even if it is unlisted, a lot of telemarketers just like to use random dialers...i.e. 555-1111, 555-1112, etc...then keep track of the ones that actually connect over time.

It also doesn't help that the PHONE COMPANY sells the lists of NEW numbers to them either. I like DMW's method!

7x6&C
 

MisterMark

Expert Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2002
Posts
2,021
Media
10
Likes
127
Points
383
Location
Palm Springs, CA
Sexuality
99% Gay, 1% Straight
Gender
Male
If you can spare about $15 a month, I highly recommend Call Waiting with the Call Intercept feature. It forces callers to identify themselves, either through Caller ID, or by giving their name before you receive the call. If you don't want to hear from that particular individual when they call, all you do is press a button to send them to your voice mail, or you can also have the system tell them to just go away.

I used to received 1 or 2 telemarketing calls every day, and now I receive absolutely none.
 

Pecker

Retired Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2002
Posts
54,502
Media
0
Likes
323
Points
283
[quote author=Mark_LPSG Admin link=board=99;num=1052309621;start=0#5 date=05/09/03 at 14:25:08]
I used to received 1 or 2 telemarketing calls every day, and now I receive absolutely none.[/quote]

Only 1 or 2? I receive 20 - 30 per day! I could pay the phone company $5 per month to block them for me but instead I use my Caller I.D.

If it rings and the Caller I.D. says "Unknown Caller" or "Unavailable", I let the answering machine do its job.

Salespeople rarely leave messages.

Pecker
 
1

13788

Guest
7x6andchg: Pecker-

I do the same thing. Caller ID is my friend.

To be brutally honest, sometimes I long for the days of switchboard operators and PEnnsylvania 6-5000...

Paul
7x6&C
 
1

13788

Guest
aussiechick63: 7 x 6
In Australia if you have a silent number it means that you are not listed in any directory. The companies are not allowed to sell your phone number to anyone either if you have a silent number.
I have never had a problem with random dialling either.
As I said nearly two years and not one phone call.
 
1

13788

Guest
7x6andchg: Aussiechick-

My only wish then is that the "Baby Bells" here in the US were as ethical as the Australian Telecommunications companies seem to be.

I did sign up for my state's "do-not-call" list and they seem to have started slowing down to 1-2 a day. For any other US posters who live in a state with a "do not call" list, I recommend it.

7x6&C
 

Pecker

Retired Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2002
Posts
54,502
Media
0
Likes
323
Points
283
Unfortunately, unlisted or nonpublished numbers don't help anymore.

Telemarketers are using computers to dial every possible combination of exchange in a calling area. So no matter whether the phone company charges you for anonymity or not, the bums are gonna find you.

Pecker
 
1

13788

Guest
Mighty_Joe: My biggest problem is unwanted e-mail. It takes me about 15 minutes each morning after I turn on my PC to delete the advertisements for penile enlargement, pre-approved (?) loans, messages from horney girls (boy, if they only knew I was gay!) and other crap. I have found that by replying to be removed from their list, doesn't work most of the time plus it verifies your eddress. So, I delete and then do it all over the next day. It is getting aggrivating.. Any suggestions?
 

jonb

Sexy Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2002
Posts
7,578
Media
0
Likes
67
Points
258
Age
40
Thankfully, I have caller ID. But I do it differently. I answer, yell "PLONK!" at the top of my lungs, and then calmly call the phone company to block them. Of course, if it's just a machine scanning me, I just phreak them with seven pounds like FineDessert mentioned.
 

jonb

Sexy Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2002
Posts
7,578
Media
0
Likes
67
Points
258
Age
40
About spam, there are tricks for it. Look at the header. (You should have a command to view full headers, usually tied to the H key, such as ctrl-H or apple-H.) The Return Path and Reply-To headers tell you if they're on a service provider like Yahoo or Hotmail. (It's the last one on the Return Path or the only thing on Reply-To.) If they are, report to abuse@foo (Replace foo with the URL.)

As for web-based accounts, some simply have a view full headers command.

All others can just be reported to NANAE.
 

jonb

Sexy Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2002
Posts
7,578
Media
0
Likes
67
Points
258
Age
40
Ah, but what about house husbands? LOL

Seriously, you can do the same thing with your killfile. You wasted money buying anti-spamming programs.

Another thing you can do is munge your email addy on BBSs. For example, nameSPAM@foo.com or nameREMOVETHIS@foo.com is a common enough way to munge. Humans should be able to remove the munge easily enough, but the robots that harvest email addies don't.
 

B_DoubleMeatWhopper

Expert Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2002
Posts
4,941
Media
0
Likes
113
Points
268
Age
45
Location
Louisiana
Sexuality
100% Gay, 0% Straight
Gender
Male
[quote author=jonb link=board=99;num=1052309621;start=12#16 date=05/16/03 at 15:45:17]
Seriously, you can do the same thing with your killfile. You wasted money buying anti-spamming programs.
[/quote]

I don't have a killfile; I'm on WebTV. And I wasted no money because I spent no money; SpamCop offers free service!
 
D

deleted957600

Guest
7x6andchg: Aussiechick-

My only wish then is that the "Baby Bells" here in the US were as ethical as the Australian Telecommunications companies seem to be.

I did sign up for my state's "do-not-call" list and they seem to have started slowing down to 1-2 a day. For any other US posters who live in a state with a "do not call" list, I recommend it.

7x6&C
For the past several months, I have been getting the same telemarketing call with the same spiel. However, it's coming from different phone numbers. As they come in, I enter them into my call rejection phone list. If they happen to call again they will hear a message stating that calls are not being answered at this time.

And yes, I am on the National Do Not Call Registry. I'm considering collecting a lot of the various phone numbers which have been calling and then reporting them.
 
9

985282

Guest
That's why I have an auto attendant phone system for my home. Too bad if the caller doesn't know the extension number/s.
 
  • Like
Reactions: twoton