I did it, I’m not proud of it and it’s all your fault.
Hello, my name is Beth and I’m listed on the national do-not-call registry.
I hadn’t intended on registering. I had never put my name on the Direct Marketing Association’s Telephone Preference Service. No, I’m not a personal fan of telephone sales. I prefer to shop by mail or online, where I can see a written record of the terms of what I’m purchasing. I’m of the MTV (now VH-1 and soon to be AARP) generation. Translation: I have a short attention span and my mind wanders easily. About a minute or two in I mentally tune out of any rep’s phone spiel and have no idea what they’re trying to sell me, so I’d much rather get a document or visit a Web site I can review at my leisure.
And yeah, there’s that whole “I don’t wanna be interrupted during dinner” and “Gosh, could you mispronounce my name any more poorly” thing, too.
But the real reason I never signed on to TPS was because I felt, as someone who covers the direct marketing industry, that I needed to make my home open to telemarketing pitches so I could listen to what other consumers were hearing.
So when the DNC floodgates opened, I stood my ground. And then the deluge began.
What had been three or four telemarketing calls a week turned into three or four per day. One morning, as I hung up from politely telling one caller on my home phone I wasn’t interested, my business line rang with another pitch. Five minutes later, my home phone rang again, with yet another call.
What was going on? Were companies trying to get as many calls in as they could under the Oct. 1 wire? Was I suddenly a much hotter prospect than before? I haven’t a clue. All I know is that the annoyance factor, and the fact several of the calls woke my infant son from morning naps, drove me to the Federal Trade Commission’s Web site, where I registered both of my phone lines quickly and easily.
If it was last-minute greed on the part of the telemarketing industry that drove up the number of incoming calls to my home, it’s a shame. I would have continued to keep my number in play for years were it not for the sudden onslaught.
But I didn’t, and faster than you can say “one ringy dingy” I was on the do-not-call list. If I — someone whose livelihood depends on the health of the DM industry and has a vested interest in seeing it survive — is willing to lock one corner of the business out of her home, how long do you think other consumers who were on the fence about registering took to make the decision?
A quick survey of Direct’s editorial and business staffs showed that a little less than half have put their numbers on the DNC list. Don’t get too excited, though — the majority who haven’t either plan to at some point, or have caller ID and screen out telemarketers regularly.
“The way [telemarketing] has evolved — bad timing, rude behavior, unintelligibility — has compounded it being a problem, and made my feelings more and more negative,” said one colleague. “I just can’t take the intrusion.”
“I receive so many calls for products and services that aren’t a fit for me or are inappropriate,” said another. “I’ve never purchased anything from a telephone solicitation and don’t have a level of trust to do so.”
“I signed up on the first day,” commented a third.
Pretty bad, huh? Especially considering — as I noted above — we’re the people who support the industry. A few months back I polled some non-direct marketing friends on their attitudes toward DM. Remember this reserved comment from our March 15 issue?
Telemarketers are the scum of the earth. They are a pain in the *&# selling me $@!p that I don’t want like g!#d$%m vacation shares and credit card offers…Thank God for caller ID. I screen my calls so I won’t have to answer the phone and listen to those scum-sucking maggots. I would love to pop one in the mouth…
Gee, wonder how long it took him to decide to register?
Folks, as of this month the pool of telemarketing prospects got a whole lot shallower. Let’s try not to drown the remaining swimmers, shall we?
BETH NEGUS VIVEIROS ([email protected]) is executive editor of Direct.
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