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How To Profit From Telemarketing
jsprat writes: "From the Seattle PI: A man gets an automated message from a telemarketer. He complains. Two weeks later, he gets a check and an apology! In the article, another man is mentioned who claims to have collected $2650 dollars over the last year for illegal spam, faxes and automated calls. Another weapon to fight these clowns?" What's your personal cash-won record?
The hard part is proving you requested to be taken off their list. You usually need to at the least send a letter before it is "official" that you requested to be removed. You can request it when they call, and a lot of them will remove you, but if they don't there is no way for you to prove you requested it. It comes down to your word against theirs, and the burden of proof is on you. So yes, by law they have to remove you if you request it, but if they don't it's up to you to prove you requested it.
"Information wants to be expensive" - Stewart Brand, the same guy who said "Information wants to be free"
I think I speak for all the people just trying to spend a pleasant evening at home when I say,
We don't care how telemarketers feel.
They don't mind interupting our evenings, we don't mind being rude in return.
Especially the auto-dialers!
Napster-to-go says "Fill and refill your compatible MP3 player", which is a lie. It's not MP3. It's WMA with DRM.
One more this. This statement: "behave like an adult, and you'll curtail the calls you get" is absolutely not true.
I've had much better success being unfriendly and threatening than I have when I've tried to be engaging and nice about it.
Also, Mr. Offended Telemarketer, telling your target market to "act like adults" is pretty arrogant. Perhaps your industry should try acting like adults, rather that making crank calls for a living.
Napster-to-go says "Fill and refill your compatible MP3 player", which is a lie. It's not MP3. It's WMA with DRM.
You know, the company might actually be happy about the whole thing.
Many people read their website name in that article.
Sometimes even negative publicity is good publicity. Unfortunate but true, they are likely to get some sales as a result of that.
Just because it CAN be done, doesn't mean it should!