What is a day-in-the-life like for telemarketers and door-to-door salesman?

Question

I admit, I hate telemarketers and door-to-door salesmen (I swear a new Edward Jones office must open up in my neighborhood every other Saturday). However, a recent topic made me curious to hear the other side of the story. What is a day in the life like for telemarketers and door-to-door salesmen? Why did you take these jobs?

Answer 1

I imagine is would be somewhat like hell ,, but with pay.

Answer 2

I worked as one for a short period of time. 50% of the time you never hear the other person as they just hang up within the first five seconds. 30% will answer "no" in so many words, usually politely but you can tell they're annoyed. Another 10% will tell you flat out to go away or "take me off your call list". About 7% will actually cuss at you, call you names or even make death threats. Some will lead you along for awhile and then hang up just to make you waste your own time. Only about 2%-3% will actually buy anything.

This is just my experience. It's one of the first jobs I had when I was barely done with high school before I went to college and I hated it. There were others in the office that loved doing it and were a bit more successful than I was. I was only too happy to quit after 3 weeks or so.

Answer 3

I can't answer about door-to-door but I managed a telesales department once. Like most things, there is good and bad - it really depends on the company and the product. I had fun and made a lot of friends. We worked for a good company & really tried to be professional & provide a service people wanted. It's such a waste of time to try to talk to people who aren't interested that a good company tells salespeople to cut their losses and get out fast if someone isn't interested. But we had a product people wanted and a good price and sold business to business. Its probably a lot different if its a consumer product. Rent "Glengarry Glenross", "Boiler Room" and "The Last Seduction" for a day-in-the-life of the unhappier places to work. I understand they are pretty accurate.

Answer 4

Let me just tell you!!!!!!!!!!

I applied for a job called "Titan Group" as a "Management Account Executive"- this was the exact title of the position.

It was a marketing company, and they were hiring entry level positions for this title. Well, being that i was looking to get away from my job at the time, i was willing to give it a shot.

At the interview, they showed me some ads that we would be "representing". He explained them, and asked me if i thought it sounded like a good marketing campaign. I told him that it definitely was. It was my impression from the interview that i would be coming up with simaler marketing strategies, and working with a group of people to come up with these concepts. I am a very creative person, so this idea thrilled me.

I was then called for a second interview.
He told me that out of about 30 applications, only about 10 were chosen for the second interview. He also told me that only one, maybe two people would be hired.

He made it very clear to me that it was a competetive job. I was ready for the challange because i know that i can come up with compelling creative solutions.

When he told me that i was "chosen" for the second interview, he explained to me that it would be a full day (out in the field) working with clients. He told me to dress professionally but with comfortable shoes. And i was okay with that.

I showed up for the second interview in a black business suit, and comfortable dress shoes. I was introduced to several very professional looking employees of the company. Shook hands with all of them, introducing myself.

I was then paired up with one of them to go out in "the field".

We were DROPPED OFF in a neighborhood at 9 in the morning, with the intent to do DOOR-TO-DOOR sales until 2:00 in the afternoon.

No where in the entire "interview" process was i told that i would have to spend an entire day doing door-to-door sales. No where in the interview was i told to bring SUNSCREEN, WATER, or TENNIS SHOES to my "second interview".

I was, and still am FURIOUS with this company for their misleading "Hiring techniques". It was a huge LIE!!!


That is how people get those kinds of jobs!

Answer 5

Long hours of rejection. Occasionally, you will get a "live one" and it might look like you'll get the sale, but they always back out when it comes time to write the check.

I took the job because I needed it at the time.