are driving me even less sane than usual.
There were three in a row yesterday. Two were from India. There is not much that can be done about these. The companies which use Indian call centres believe they can get away with anything. It makes no difference to them that you are on the "do not call register" because the call comes from outside the country the legislation applies to.
I have tried being polite. I have tried just hanging up. I have tried telling them not to call back. I have tried "we don't do business over the phone" and more. I don't like being rude. I know that the call centre job is someone's way of eating something that day.
But, I want to scream.
And then there was the third call in the row. "Hi, this is Vince from H.... Real Estate. How are you today."
I was in the middle of trying to rewrite a submission. It's an important submission. I need to get it to around 500 words but I also need to get a complex idea across. I am working. I do not wish to be interrupted.
I seethed. We have had more than one communication from this real estate company of late. Until now they have all come as flyers and "personalised" letters in our letter box. We do not want to sell our house.
Oh but this isn't about selling your house.
I am not interested.
I sent an email to the company concerned. It doesn't matter how they try and dress it up this is about business for them. They are breaking the law.
When we do need a real estate agent I won't be doing business with them.
And the "Paypal company" which sent me a message saying I had paid a hefty sum to another company...be warned. I have sent your email on to Paypal. They will track you down and deal with you.
Now, may I go back to writing that submission please?
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5 comments:
Cat, even though the callers are from Indian (or any other) call centers if they're calling as representatives of an Australian business, I would think that you could report them with at least some small expectation of results.
And if it's not imperative that the phone be available, try just laying the receiver down on a pillow and let them talk themselves out to the pillow. You should be able to hang it up again in a minute or two and only have wasted their time instead of yours.
Mother has this problem. She turns her hearing aid on to screech mode and holds it to the receiver.
When working from home, to avoid interruptions during important jobs, just switch on the answering machine! I managed my time by having set times of day to deal with phone calls and it was a much more efficient way of working. If there was an urgent message, I could still hear it and respond immediately if necessary.
These days, I'm not working any more and I move a lot slower. Inevitably a phone call will come through when I am at the opposite end of the house and just as I reach for the phone to answer it, the ringing will stop, so I still have my answering machine permanently on. The reduction of cold sales calls etc. is phenomenal. Call centre people never leave a message and usually hang up before the outgoing greeting has finished. Just about everyone who knows me or has business with me understands about my message machine and there have been no problems.
People seem to have forgotten their manners and personal boundaries when it comes to phones nowadays. The notion of "business hours" is lost on many. Since mobile phones have become the norm, people are expected to have them on and be available 24 hours a day which I find unreasonable. I'm teaching my children to make personal boundaries. In my home, I refuse to answer calls during mealtimes and between 6 pm and 8 pm because that is the time that most of the unsolicited sales calls come through and I am usually busy at that time anyway.
I thoroughly recommend a message machine or switching your phone to a voicemail or some other call diversion service when you need a block of uninterrupted time to concentrate on submissions etc.
It's a lovely idea Jodie but, much as I am tempted, it isn't always possible - especially when I am "on call".
Yes, that's a shame - "on call" makes it quite a dilemma.
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