Cold calling must be the worst job in the world mustn't it? Outgoing call centres and the nuisance they create must be at the centre of many gritted teeth and tension headaches. I don't swear at them any more but I am pretty sure that call centre staff must be told to fuck off with depressing regularity.
The companies that use outgoing call centre (ie most of them) seem to believe that its a good way of selling themselves and their products - I guess they must get some people to buy after a tea-time call - but it's difficult to think of a worse way of interacting with potential customers.
Phone people when they're trying to have dinner or put dinner together. Don't announce who you are until you have already bothered the person you are calling. Try to sell them something (that they probably already have). Refuse to ring off when its clear that the person you are ringing is not interested at all. Yep this is going to make your company name a popular one in that household.
Eg. Morethan - I hold a household insurance policy with them - I have given then plenty of money and the only claim I have tried to make was refused. Fine, I understood why. We decided to get pet insurance, so I visited their site, got a quote and thought 'yeah right...for a dog?'. I did not pursue it. Next day I get a phone call from them. I told them I wasn't interested and told them politely not to call again. This morning they rang again - I told them that I was not interested - and told them I did not like cold calls. The caller told me that because I had given my phone number as part of the quote I had allowed them to ring me. She said that this was explicit on the site. It wasn't. I do not invite cold callers. It's possible that there is something on the site that explains this but I bet it wasn't it big prominent red letters? Morethan will not be top of my list when it comes to renew my house insurance policy.
They are no different from the other corporate scum who plague our lives of course. M&S might be awfully nice but they put annoying adverts with skinny Myleen up everywhere and do porn food ads. Tescos avoid taxation and overrun our towns, Sainsburys have Jamie Oliver on speed in their ads, the banks swindle us with their determination to hold on to our money (but charge like a wounded bull if you spend a minute overdrawn). Petrol companies are bastards (obviously) and power companies rogues.
What's the answer - that remote island off the Hebrides is looking attractive - but you can guarantee that if you have a phone - someone will find you and try to sell you double glazing.