An open letter to telemarketers
Firstly let me say that I appreciate that you are doing a job and are therefore supporting yourself and your family. Therefore i do not have a problem with you per se. There are a number of issues I have with your behaviour.
Heading the list of gripes at the moment is how many of you introduce yourselves. It is quickly apparent when receiving your call that you are calling from an overseas call centre. While I don’t like the fact that jobs are being lost in Australia as call centres are moved off-shore, I accept it as a fact of life in a competitive global economy. What I object to is the voice at the other end of the line introducing himself as Bruce or Steve or Kevin in a thick Bangalore accent. Please don’t interpret this as a racist comment - it is not meant as one. But please don’t insult my intelligence either. I simply appreciate honesty. I would much rather you say your name is Sanjay or Hitesh or Dhirendra if that is what it is. Do the managers of these call centres really think that I am going to feel more comfortable talking to Bruce than Rajesh?
I do not buy, subscribe, sign up for or change to anything based on a cold call from a telemarketer. I just don’t do it. Ever! This includes giving money to charity. Do you really think that I am going to give my credit card details to someone who has rung me “out of the blue” claiming to be, for example, from the Royal Flying Doctor Service? (a worthy organisation nonetheless).
I do not need an “obligation free” mobile phone, I am not interested in changing telecommunications providers, I know how to pay my mortgage off quicker and I do not want a “free” home security system. Because I know that my answer is going to be negative even before I hear the sales pitch I will often tell you at the beginning of your call. I will get very annoyed when you tell me that you are not selling anything or asking me to sign up for something only to find out 10 minutes later that you are doing just that. Becoming angry, indignant or annoyed when I am being honest with you regarding my intentions will also not help and will probably result in me hanging up on you.
Finally, I recognise that my name is, for some people, difficult to pronounce (although I know some four year olds who can do it). Please do not think that this is an excuse to call me “mate” or “buddy” or “pal”. My first name will be just fine if you must.
Yours sincerely
Coach McGee
P.S. yesterday saw the opening of the National Do Not Call Register. It crashed within hours of going live under the weight of traffic.
