Lets annoy them back

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

When I get the telemarketers call my simple solution is:



"Hello, may I speak to Mr. MacKenzie, please?"



"Um, he's not here right now, would you like to leave a message?"





I was listening to a radio program the other day while driving across Montana and the subject was telemarketers. Listeners were calling in with their stories on how they handle them. One caller said he always would keep them on the line as long as possible and talk sports, politics and cars, then at the end of a half-hour conversation he would decline whatever it was they were offering.



Vaughn

 

[klenger]

Vaughn MacKenzie



You're much too polite with them.

 

[MCummings]

Originally posted by Vaughn MacKenzie

"Hello, may I speak to Mr. MacKenzie, please?"



"Um, he's not here right now, would you like to leave a message?"

What you need to do is just repeat whatever they said.



Conversation would be as Follows. .



Telemarketer : "Hello, may I speak to Mr. MacKenzie, please?"



You : "Hello, may I speak to Mr. MacKenzie, please?"



And so on, untill they hang up.



What you are trying to accomplish is to hold them up as long as possible. NOT get rid of them. Once they see they are taking 20 minutes to talk to you, and you are buying NOTHING, you'll be off the list for good.



Merrick Cummings Jr

 

[Forrest]

:-laf Oo.



- sending junk back ...

- aaah ... a use for those extra pennies ... don't need to wrap them anymore.



- some junk ideas ...

- wine bottle corks

- bottle caps

- look in kitchen junk drawer

- definitely worth the effort to start collecting ANYTHING!



- pounding on the # sign ...

- easy

- better than sitting down the phone

- if it doesn't delete my phone #, the telef'er will love it.

 

[me4osu]

When telemarketers call and say "I'm ____ with ___, may I speak with Mr. Payne? I say, "Just a minute" and hand the phone to our 2year old. He sometimes has quite a conversation with them. When they ask him to hand the phone back to me, I tell them "no thank you" and hang up.

 

[Eric Kahn]

please keep sending back the postage paid envolopes and cards, I need another raise, I work for the post office

It cost a minimum of 50 cents for every one of the things you send

so send them all, more revenue for the post office and maybe a bigger pay raise for me on the next contract

 

[Texas Diesel]

Originally posted by Eric Kahn

please keep sending back the postage paid envolopes and cards, I need another raise, I work for the post office

It cost a minimum of 50 cents for every one of the things you send

so send them all, more revenue for the post office and maybe a bigger pay raise for me on the next contract

Trust me, your raise is guaranteed I send everything back with some heavy "stuffing" included. Great fun.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Now that PA has a no call law, my junkers are very very minimal.



I knew this older couple with patience, perserverance and lots of time on their hands. They would go to these time share boiler room sales pitch sessions. Sit there all day like they were being sucked in. At the end, they would say okay, were not interested, we will take the toaster, microwave, whatever. These people giving the talk would be totally bent out of shape.

 

[bighammer]

I hate the junkmail, but I worry that sending stuff back and increasing costs for them might lead to more phone calls. (which I hate even more) I just recylce it and feel good that they didn't call me.

 

[klenger]

I got three of them ready to mail yesterday. The USPS needs the business.

 

[Scot]

Originally posted by Eric Kahn

please keep sending back the postage paid envolopes and cards, I need another raise, I work for the post office

It cost a minimum of 50 cents for every one of the things you send

so send them all, more revenue for the post office and maybe a bigger pay raise for me on the next contract

So what do you guess it cost that environmental terrorist group that I sent the old Dallas residential phone book to? Probably about 4" thick.

 

[Jeff H]

I've been sending back back those envelopes for quite some time. I can only wonder what they think. Especially when I stuff them full of Playboy stuf. I mean I stuff em too. Weight is the key. I usually do make sure they have my name. I may only get a few of these now. But thats what I was hoping for

 

[JSmith]

Thanks, you guys are the most annoying group of folks I have had the pleasure of

associating with. I will put junk mail in the mail from now on. Thanks again. :-laf :-laf

 

[pwr2tow]

Great idea guys, thanks.



I once was denied a loan, I couldn't figure out why since I pay all my loans on time and even pay them off early. I called the credit report place to find out why. They said i was denied because I had too much credit, it seems that everyone of those credit card places sent me I now had an account and the banks were too scared to loan me money because I could charge up a bunch and skip out, if I remember right I had over 20 credit cards.



Looks like a little pay back time is due.

 

[mjendrejcak]

Telemarketer “can I speak with Mr. Jendrejcak”



Me “yes”



Telemarketer “Is this Mr. Jendrejcak”



Me “ no”



Telemarketer “can he come to the phone”



Me “yes”



Telemarketer “can you put him on the phone”



Me “no”



Telemarketer “Why not”



Me “improper English”



Telemarketer “ huh”



Me “Your original question was can I speak with…. ,since you have shown the ability to speak the answer is yes. One of your other questions was can he come to the phone, yes he is capable of come to the phone. I can’t put him on the phone since he is much larger than the phone. If you asked may I speak with Mr. Jendrejcak the answer would have been no we don’t like telemarketers”





Usually this is followed by a disconnect.

 

[fkovalski]

When my father gets telemarketing calls asking for "Mrs. Kovalski" (i. e. my mother who is deceased), Dad will say in a very weeping voice (almost crying) that they will half to go down to Memorial Gardens and dig her up! They usually stumble to apologize, then my dad hangs up laughing at them. He takes it all with a grain of salt and I know that my Mom would have loved this method of dealing with the solicitors.

 

[JR2]

I have a single buddy here in AK and when he got his new house a year or so ago he signed up with the phone company in the name of his dog. So his listing in the book is Biancia Janis... his name is Paul. Anyway, whenever any one calls asking for Biancia he just hangs up. I laugh every time he calls and I see his dogs name on the caller ID...

 

[JohnE]

This has worked for a fast click by the telemarketers

"Excuse me, Federal law requires that I inform you this converstion may be recorded. It is for my protection and your possible prosecution. "

 

[JStieger]

One time a telemarketer called and I told her "My... what a sexy voice you have! What's your name?"... She hung up on me.



One of my friends tried the same thing and got a date among other things.



I guess it's all in the delivery!

 

[KL]

I have also started to send back the postage paid envelopes. After taking my name and address off the form I have thought about sending a Visa Credit Card application to Master Card and visa versa. That should get them guessing.



A thing I do when some telemarketers call is ask for their home number so that I can call them back at 3:00 a. m. (or some other annoying time) to continue the discussion. KL