Outsourced Support, Now Outsourced Telemarketing?

Sir_Dill asks: "I was a little skeptical of the whole chicken-littlish sky is falling attitude about outsourcing to India, that is until it hit home. Over the last couple of days I have started to receive at least two calls a night from an unknown telemarketing company. First it was discovercard and tonight its a mortgage company called Parsec (whose webpage doesn't work in Firefox). Each time they ask for the person whose name is associated with my phone number in Google (an entirely different story altogether). When I inform them that they have the wrong number, they read the same script each time and each time I ask them to take me off their lists. Its getting old and I am feeling a little helpless in regards to this...and the worst part is...it is not an offer I can't refuse...it is one I can't understand. Has anyone else experienced this? How did you handle it and does the National Do Not Call list even apply?"

Comments

National Do-Not-Call list

[LouCifer]

What do you mean "..does the National Do Not Call list even apply?"

Of course it does. If the company they're calling for does business inside the U.S. then they're in violation of the DNC list, regardless of where the actual calls are coming from - the company placing the calls are an extension of the comapny they're representing.

Immediately file a complaint at https://www.donotcall.gov/Complain/ComplainCheck.a spx for each and every call you've received from this place.

AFAIK, you don't have to warn them or ask them to remove you from the list - its not your responsibility to tell them you're on the list. Its their responsibility to check the list against the numbers they're dialing. They fail to do so, then its their problem they get hit with the fines.

I've had to do this with at least three companies. I lodged complaints all of three times apiece. I've not got a single call from them again. IIRC, the fine is $500 each call.

Just tell them you died.

[toygeek]

When they ask for whoever it is they want, just say "I'm sorry that person passed away last week... "

Parsec's reply on Do Not Call lists:

[stuckatwork]

From their FAQ:

"6. How do you handle Do Not Call Legislation? PARSEC Interact has implemented a rigorous program that ensures full DNC compliance.

"As required by law, we ensure that all of our clients are properly registered for the states in which their programs are scheduled to run. This is required before the program can run. The process of registering is relatively painless, and we will walk you through every step.

"Once the list is procured, we scrub not only against the National DNC Registry, but also against state and local DNC lists that are pertinent to the campaign.

"All of our telemarketing agents are trained on how to handle customers who request to be put on the DNC Registry. They are also trained on which practices are acceptable, and which are not acceptable.

We take DNC compliance very seriously, and we are proud of the proactive steps we have taken to ensure compliance. For detailed information on how PARSEC handles DNC compliance, ask your PARSEC representative about our DNC Compliance Guidelines."



So, shouldn't you be able to make a claim against them?

https://www.donotcall.gov/Complain/ComplainCheck.a spx

Re:Real live people?

[toygeek]

I've started getting (here in the UK) recorded messages, in an American accent, apparently from Florida.

Thats silly. Americans don't have accents!

Re:Just hang up without expliantion

[j-turkey]

Just hang up on them the moment you realize what is going on. You both will be better off.

Actually, to make a difference, I'd go the other way around. When they ask for you, or the homeowner, or whomever, ask them to hold on while you find that person. Put the phone down, and walk away to do something else. If they hold for 10 minutes or more, you'll get a good laugh out of it.

This may tie up your phone line, but you're wasting their time (better than them wasting your time). Advertisers have to pay them, and you're decreasing their sales effectiveness. If enough people do this, telemarketing may be perceived as less effective.

Alternatively, politely and calmly ask them for their name, and the name of their firm (rather than being aggressive or letting them know what your intentions are). Then file a DNC complaint ASAP.

Here is their contact info

[sfjoe]

PARSEC Interact, Inc.
2672 Bayshore Parkway # 703
Mountain View, CA 94043
Phone: 866-9-PARSEC(866-972-7732)
650-960-1884
Fax: 650-960-1881
Email: info@parsecinteract.com

Probably a mail drop