Ok, when you hear the word telemarketer fond memories probably don’t come to mind. I was, and in many ways still am, in that same boat. But my view on telemarketers has changed dramatically in the last 6 months, since I began working in a call center for fundraising.
First things first, you’ve got to remember that the voice on the other side of that phone is a person too. They have feelings and they don’t deserve your hatred. Second, remember that they’re just doing their job and it’s not their goal to annoy you. They don’t yell at you for taking their order at a restaurant or for restocking an empty shelf, so don’t yell at them for working hard to make money like the rest of us!
You may actually like what they have to say! If you hang up in the middle of their sentence, how will you ever know? Like I said, my job involves fundraising and, I think, it’s a very important job! It creates a lot of opportunities for a lot of people. We aren’t all bad and we don’t want you to waste your money anymore than you do. So give us a chance!
So, how do you get out of a conversation with a telemarketer without being rude? There’s always the option to not answer the phone. But if you find yourself in an unwanted convo with a telemarketer, these are some things you can say:
“I would really appreciate it if you would put me on your ‘Do Not Call List’. Thank you!”
“I am not interested right now, I hope that you have a great day/night!”
“Thank you for the call, but I am not interested today”
So the next time you’re about to be rude to a telemarketer, just remember we’re humans too. You don’t need to lie about why you can’t talk or yell at us for calling in the first place. There’s no need to be mean; you might find that we are quite pleasant.