do you call to make $?

[Torn Rose]

Just curious with this, but how many of you content providers look up domains and call the # listed to try and sell your content?

I get calls every now and then, and to be honest I despise phone marketers. A few times I’ve gone off on the caller and a few times I just hang up, but my question is does it really work where it’s worth the effort?

Today I got a call and from the sounds of her, she has no clue what she is doing, and sounded very new. And long story short asked to send me a user/pass for me to check out her stuff. Now the first thought to come to my mind is why didn’t you just send me the email in the first place?

I’m not really one to buy content, I’d rather get my own, but I’m also not totally against buying it, but if I did I know where to go to find what I want so a phone call isn’t going to change my mind at all.

Just curious to hear what anyone else thoughts are on this.

[Surfn]

I don't do phone. Anyone who calls my number listed somewhere would only get my voice mail. But to answer your question more directly, if someone did call me I wouldn't like it. I too do my own content or know where to buy it for free sites.

[DangerDave]

We still get the occasional call in the middle of the night from sponsors/providers etc that cant work out the bloody time difference.

DD

[Lucky_Martin]

Nothing annoys me more than people calling me, mostly on times you finally have some time to yourself, to try to sell you something...
And selling content through the phone to me sounds like trying to sell a radio to a deaf guy...

[Jim]

My whois phone number is very old and hasn't been in service for a few years. I did get a call from an online casino a week ago and have no idea how they got my number. They called to ask if I was interested in playing.

[SirMoby]

I do get calls but not often. Usually it's hosting companies offering huge discounts on hosting. So far not one of them seem to have plans that can handle more then a few hundred gig a month. It's pretty funny when I explain my bandwidth needs to them.

Personally I hate the letters that come to my home. It's full of ads and it always gets to the correct address. There aren't many places where they could be getting this information.

[Dr Bizzaro]

Up until about a year ago I would get like 3-5 calls a week.
Now I hardly get any.
Thank god.

[Cleo]

I basically give anyone hell that calls me up to try to sell me something.

I actually stopped buying from one content provided because they kept on calling me to see if I needed anything.

I also get people knocking on my front door all the time trying to sell me stuff or seeing if I would like my trees trimmed.

The bible thumpers haven't came to my door since I chased them out to the street naked a few years ago, they knocked on my door while I was in the shower.

[docholly]

OMG i'd take 10 calls from telemarketing over one Jesus saves. I always scream at them.. and here in washington it's the mormans.. in their nice little white shirts with ties who bless me... i tell them i don't need joseph smiths blessing, only the Goddess Venus!!

[urb]

First thing I do is check the caller display.
Second thing I do is pretend I am not me, and that I won't be available till next week.

Trouble is, they sometimes ask for my name and I say "Robert" or something... and then "Robert" starts getting calls.

[Cleo]

Yesterday I'm in the bathroom doing bathroom things when I hear really loud banging on my front door along with my doorbell being rang. Scared the hell out of me, I'm thinking it must be the police or something so I rush out of the bathroom trying to pull my jeans up, I had lace up stretch jeans so this is not an easy task, and run to my front door and there is this young girl all off about sixteen trying to sell me something. She starts up by saying that she is in a program to try to help her overcome fear of public speaking. I just screamed at her that I'm very busy and slammed the door in her face.

I wonder how that affected her fear of public speaking?

[urb]

Originally posted by Cleo
I wonder how that affected her fear of public speaking?

Sympathy sales tactics. She probably gets the door slammed on her 30 times a day.

[adamneve]

ok guys here is a question for you:
if you would get a phone call from a sponsor that you signed up for just for asking if you need anything or telling you about a new site/program how would you react?

[Cleo]

Originally posted by adamneve
ok guys here is a question for you:
if you would get a phone call from a sponsor that you signed up for just for asking if you need anything or telling you about a new site/program how would you react?

I would probably stop promoting that sponsor.

I don't mind getting an e-mail every now and then, but phone calls just piss me off. Most of the time when the phone rings I'm driving on I-95 or grocery shopping or taking a shit or doing a thousand other things without also dealing with the phone ringing with someone asking me if I fucking need anything.

[amadman]

Originally posted by adamneve
ok guys here is a question for you:
if you would get a phone call from a sponsor that you signed up for just for asking if you need anything or telling you about a new site/program how would you react?

I actually had this happen a day or so after signing up for a sponsor.|pissed| It really put me off on promoting them. We have email and such that they can use to communicate with us.

[NinjaSteve]

Originally posted by DangerDave
We still get the occasional call in the middle of the night from sponsors/providers etc that cant work out the bloody time difference.

DD

Ouch, that sucks

I get calls, but it's about business deals, not from content providers.

[HotLipsHooligan]

Unsolicited phone calls are worse than spam. Ugh. Although, once I have a working relationship with someone, I much prefer a phone call as opposed to an ICQ conversation any day.

[Torn Rose]

Wow, Thanks all, here I was thinking I was the one with the issue of being unprofessional. Glad to see I'm with the majority on this issue.

We got a new phone # when we got our house in 2001, and either the former owner of the # was a flake or it's really close to someone else #, but we would get DOZENS of calls every day and all about BIBLE STUDY and where the Church Meetings have been moved to.

It got so bad we had this on our answering machine:

"Hi, we are not home right now, if you are calling for the Henshaws, or anything relating to Bible Study, or any other Church activity, you have the wrong # please stop calling"

Kept it up for 6 months and then took it down. That last 2 days so I put it back up and just recently took it down and so far so good.

All Business is on my cell, so very few people in the business know my home #, but the few who do all think it's the funniest thing they ever heard and most will leave smart ass messages.

As far as door to Door, my first question to them is why did they assume I’m a Christian? And would they like it if I showed up at their door and preached my beliefs. But 9/10 times I don’t even bother answering the door anymore. We get a lot of kids and other door to door shit, had a guy drive 2 hours just to offer to sell me frozen meat, no idea where/how he found me, but he didn’t bother anyone else from where I could see in my office window.

Few years before we got our house we rented and the district councilman was going door to door and I was watching a really good game and just yelled “not interested” since the door was open and I was a few feet away and he could see me, and he then started to put his fliers on my door, that really pissed me off so I grabbed his stuff and made him come back and take it, he asked If I knew who he was and I said “Yeah, you’re the deaf dumbass who left shit on my door” Wish I had a camera for that look on his face, he was pretty pissed but grabbed it and walked away.

[urb]

I've had phone calls from two sponsors and that was ok coz we were making a lot of money with them at the time.

I've also had presents from sponsors which is far better than telephone calls.

What ever happened to sponsors sending me presents?

Greenguy gets a Viper. All I get are bonus checks and a box of mints.

Do you expect me to actually eat mints which are sent air-mail in a little silver box? They could have contained mind altering substances!!

[ecchi]

I find the quickest way to get rid of religious callers is to tell them I am a Satanist, and happy with my religion. That gets rid of about 25% of them on the spot. The other 75% get preached back at, I have a lovely speech that uses biblical references to prove that God is really the evil one and Satan is our true saviour. I have never got to the end of it before they leave.
|bat|

[ardentgent]

Originally posted by Cleo
Yesterday I'm in the bathroom doing bathroom things when I hear really loud banging on my front door along with my doorbell being rang. Scared the hell out of me, I'm thinking it must be the police or something so I rush out of the bathroom trying to pull my jeans up, I had lace up stretch jeans so this is not an easy task, and run to my front door and there is this young girl all off about sixteen trying to sell me something. She starts up by saying that she is in a program to try to help her overcome fear of public speaking. I just screamed at her that I'm very busy and slammed the door in her face.

I wonder how that affected her fear of public speaking?

Too freakin funny but I rather preach to you and have you chase me down the street naked!

[lassiter]

Originally posted by urb

Do you expect me to actually eat mints which are sent air-mail in a little silver box? They could have contained mind altering substances!!

Yes. You can't be too careful. Send 'em to me for tasting, er I mean testing. |rasta|

[Alphawolf]

Originally posted by Cleo
Yesterday I'm in the bathroom doing bathroom things when I hear really loud banging on my front door along with my doorbell being rang. Scared the hell out of me, I'm thinking it must be the police or something so I rush out of the bathroom trying to pull my jeans up, I had lace up stretch jeans so this is not an easy task, and run to my front door and there is this young girl all off about sixteen trying to sell me something. She starts up by saying that she is in a program to try to help her overcome fear of public speaking. I just screamed at her that I'm very busy and slammed the door in her face.

I wonder how that affected her fear of public speaking?

Why not get an "Attack Dog on property" sign and a "Proud to be in the NRA!" poster...hang outside and you should not be bothered again.

Or something like this:

http://www.guarddog.net/halarm.htm#al18

[finnbear]

Only one sponsor has called me in all these years. Musta been a expensive call, from USA to Finland, and to GSM phone.

Telemarketers have left me alone. If they call, and ask if I have time to listen, I say sure, tell me all. Then I put the phone on table and continue to do what I was doing. After 30 or 45 minutes I shut the phone. I don't know if that keeps their line occupied all that time anymore, as we have digital lines (that happened when lines were analog) but I hope so. Nice coffee break from hard calling, lol!

They learn quickly. No calls for a long time.

If someone plays my door bell, I go to a window and look who it is. If it is someone I know, I open the door. If not, I stand by the window as long as that dumbass sees me. I do nothing. Just stare them numbly as long as they walk away. I hope it pisses them off.

[BigBob]

Hi All, new to this board. Jim looks good, been popping in and out for a while.

I think the lesson here is NEVER type your number in any box for any one. Things change, and where they promised not to sell the data, it only takes one offer of 50 cents per info and your out there.

Have a great Holiday hope to see you guys at the show.

You did say FREE BEER right !!!!

BigBob