Secrets to Having a Positive Experience with Phone Sales Reps

After working at O'Currance for several weeks, I have come up with a few tips that I've picked up from my experience so far. They might come in handy for any of my friends or family should they ever order anything over the phone.

(DISCLAIMER: These tips are for helping with Phone Sales Reps--not to be confused with Telemarketers. Telemarketers call you, but Phone Sales Reps don't; they just answer the phone when you call them.)

1. For all you internet-savvy people (which is pretty much all of you since you've managed to get online to find this blog), know that there truly are advantages to ordering over the phone versus the internet. If you're like me, you'd almost always pick the internet given a choice because it's faster, can feel safer (you're not giving your card number to a human, just a machine), and it keeps you from having to talk to anyone. However, keep the following in mind: you will often get offers over the phone that are not available on the net. Most people don't know this, and if they do, they don't care to listen to the shpeal about it from the PSR (Phone Sales Rep) because all they think about are dollar signs, but if you call in to order a product, you will almost always have options involving warranties (that won't break the bank, depending on the product), extra attachments or upgrades, or other related products or accessories at a discounted price. Also, if you are ever planning on ordering more than one of something, calling in to order will pretty much guarantee that the second one will not be as expensive as the first. If you don't want something, say no, most PSRs won't push you. However, if you are looking for a little extra and don't mind paying a little more for it, you will often get a pretty good deal.

2. Along the same lines, PSRs have power. Most of the scripts I use have ways to navigate around things like shipping and handling costs. Some are better than others--some can only take off 50% of S&H, some can take away all of it. However, some can take away an entire payment, saving anywhere from $20-$50 or more. You'll never know unless you get on the PSR's good side. If you're a jerk, they probably won't help you. Oh, and don't EVER ask for it. At least in my experience, if someone says to me "What kind of deal can you get me? Come on, I know you can at least cut off some of the shipping," I'm more likely to tell them "Sorry, but I can't." However, if someone has been listening to my shpeals politely (we don't like them any more than you) and then says something like "I'd really like to but I don't know if I can afford that much," I'm more likely to say "Well, let me see what I can do."

3. Don't be too quick to hang up. Oftentimes I get through my initial shpeal and a customer doesn't like it so they just hang up. Had they actually opened their mouths and communicated their concerns, I could have told them about their other options. We often have things called "downsells", where you can either get abbreviated versions of the offer and/or a discount. Not to mention the previously mentioned perks. Also, if you are rude and hang up, it could come back to haunt you. After ever non-sale, we are given a list of reasons and have to disposition the call. If we happen to click on "Wants a Call Back," you could find yourself dealing with more telemarketers.

4. Don't prank call Infomercial phone numbers. Seriously, beyond being completely juvenile and retarded, it's also a crime. Making prank calls across state lines (which is true for these numbers despite your location because there are call centers around the country taking your call) is grounds for us to report you to the police. Whatever you say can be used against you because all of these calls are recorded, and all of the call centers have caller ID, so your number is on record as well. My company has personally put cops on several doorsteps of stupid people. I can't think of anyone who reads this who would be that stupid, however I hope you all share this info with friends, family, and especially your kids.

5. If you are not interested in a product and have absolutely ZERO chance of being convinced to buy it anyway (especially if you don't have a credit or debit card), DON'T call the Infomercial number. This is not a "catch all" number for answering all your questions. If you just want more information, get online. Nowadays, every product has a website. If you still want to talk to human, find a Customer Service number on the website. These people are paid to answer your questions, while PSRs like us are paid to make sales. Not only do you ruin our statistics (we are measured by our sales percentage), but we'll often just tell you to call Customer Service anyway. And same goes for complaints. We can't do anything if you hate the product and you're just wasting our time.

6. Finally, don't be confused by "30-day Trials". If you're watching on TV and see the word trial, know that they aren't going to give you a full price right there, only a trial fee (you pay the trial fee at ordering but only make payments to own the product after the 30 days). If you want a full price, GO ONLINE. They'll tell you the full price if you call in, but if you already know it before you ruin their stats, you won't be wasting their time, or yours. If it doesn't say online, call Customer Service. However, "30-day Money Back Guarantee" is different. This just means you will get a refund if you return the product within that 30 days. You will have the make the first payment and pay S&H at time of ordering. I can't tell you how many horribly rude people I get who call in and won't even tell me their name before bellowing "What's the price?". Trust me, it's not worth the aggravation for anyone. Basically, do your research before you call.

Overall, if you're nice to us, we can be VERY nice to you. Happy Shopping!

Oh, IRS....

So here's the latest adventure...

I'll start from the beginning. We closed on our house at the beginning of April. About a week later we had my then co-worker, Caleb, help us file our amended return so we could get our $8000. We had filed our taxes in early March originally, and we used TurboTax, so we just went on and used them to get our amended return. We filled it out with no problem, printed it, signed it, and mailed it in. Little did we know what would go on since then. We didn't worry about it much. I went online a couple weeks ago and it said to give 8-12 weeks for processing, so I figured it was just the IRS being slow. We have been praying it would arrive because I am in desperate need of a new eye exam as well as new contacts (some may have noticed I have been wearing my glasses exclusively for about a year now), as well as some maternity clothes as my belly expands, all of which we have been holding out on until the $8000 comes for one reason or another.

Then one day, my sister-in-law, Heather, posts on Facebook that she and my brother, Andy, received their $8000. This sent up red flags in my head because they moved at least a month after us and if I remember correctly, they didn't close on their house until late May/early June. That means that we had been waiting for three months for something that was apparently coming in at closer to three weeks for others. Needless to say, we were going to call the IRS and find out what happened. Keep in mind that a few weeks ago, when I had tried to investigate where our money was, I had tried calling the IRS, and the phone tree was so extensive and the wait was so long I gave up before speaking to a human. This ended up being a big mistake.

So yesterday David called the IRS. Easier said than done. After one number said to call another number and then maybe even another, we got to the crazy phone tree and waiting period. I think he was on hold somewhere between 15 and 20 minutes. Finally, a human. We found out that our amended return had made it to Fresno, but a mistake was found and they sent it back to us. We, however, never received it. My best guess is that the address was wrong or that the post office lost it or just failed to forward it since there was a high chance it was addressed to our Clearfield address (this address was on the return because it was on our original return, however the address to our house was also on the return...but I doubt anyone thought to use it). Whatever the case may be, it never reached us, and so we sat in complete ignorance of the situation. Apparently what the IRS does in a case like this, is they send the return back and wait. They don't track it or anything so they don't know if we get it or not, they just assume we will. They wait three months and if they don't hear from us, our return is deleted out of the system completely as if we never sent it in the first place. So we found all this out, as well as the fact that we were a mere four days late for this three month deadline. Had I stuck with the phones the first time several weeks prior, the whole thing might have been different. Oh well. So our first return was wiped clean. We got the jump drive out with our amended return on it, reprinted it, and typed a letter of explanation to the IRS, per our instructions. We then signed everything and took all the paperwork to the post office, where we mailed them priority with delivery confirmation to avoid them getting lost a second time. If the problem they found the first time (which was erased with our original return so we don't know what it was because we called those four days late) still exists, hopefully we will actually get it back this time. If all is well, our money should be direct deposited within the next few weeks.

Stay tuned for updates...

For the Curious...

Here's me as a pregnant woman at 22 weeks. The lighting isn't fabulous so the gray shirt doesn't stand out but you can still see. I don't feel that big yet, but I hear I'll only get bigger. :-D

He is becoming more and more active, which I love because I get nervous if I can't feel him move for awhile. Last night was cool because either he was kicking extra hard or he had hiccups...I couldn't tell...but my tummy was jumping.

As excited as I am to meet him, I am grateful I still have a few more months to prepare!

Trying Times

This past week or so has been especially difficult for me. If it's not one thing, it's another. Maybe it's because it feels like everything is piling on, but things are upsetting me/annoying me more than they might have at other times. I'd go into more details but several of the things that are causing me a lot of stress and anxiety involve other people and I feel by expressing my thoughts and opinions it would only cause more problems. I try every day to just do my best, be a good person, try and do at least one productive thing...some days are better than others. One problem in particular is beyond frustrating because it is a situation I cannot do anything about. While it may sound like I'm wasting my time worrying about something that I have no control over (trust me, I've told this to myself many times), it is something that means a great deal to me as well as effects me in many aspects of my life. It makes me truly stop and question myself and my life, how I present myself, how I carry myself, how I can come across to people. The problem is that even as I look at myself and find things I can change, nothing I do will or can change the situation. Even doing nothing will not help in any way.

I find myself more easily angered and more depressed. I am more easily annoyed than ever before--in fact many days it just feels like I'm swimming in a pool of ignorance all around me. I suspect this comes from my pent up frustrations and depressed moods, and my job doesn't help. I'd say 60-70% of the people I talk to are rude, or just retarded, or they get angry at me when I'm doing everything in my power to stay calm and friendly. Even nice people who just ask dumb questions bother me. Most everyone will interrupt me, or hang up on me, and some days I can brush it off, but other days it feels like every one is a personal insult. The worst part is knowing I'm crazy. I know that I have all power to not allow things to bother me.

Bah.

Bang!

Becky and I played a western cowboy card game with friends last October. We had so much fun with it that we ddecided to buy it right away. We got online and checked the price only to find that it was a $40+ game. Well, we still wanted it so we decided to go ahead and get it. We put in the order and were told that it would be 6 weeks for delivery. Knowing this we marked our calander for late November and waited. In late November we got an e-mail that said the they released it but there were some problems with the game and it was recalled. The next release was set for sometime in January or February. We told them that we were still interested as they gave us an option for a refund, marked our calanders again, and waited. Well, the next cycle came and went and no game was recieved. In March we recieved another e-mail telling us sorry about the delay and that the game was not even released this time and was pushed off again but no one knew for how long or if it would ever even be released. Well, we did not mark our calanders as there was no date, but declined the refund again knowing how hard the game was to come by with hopes that we would one day get it. We waited and after a couple months forgot about the game completly. March ran by, then April, and May, and even June. Then one day out of the blue I get an e-mail that says they release is comming out in just one week and asking if we would still like the game. We got very excited, though by this time (9 months later) we had already forgotten how to play it. We told them yes, gave them our new address, and two weeks later it showed up in the mail. We set up a chance to play it with friends at a 4th of july party and all our friends loved it as much as we did. It is so fun and we are glad to keep adding to our game collection.

On other notes, we wanted to hang out with some of our family and have a BBQ so we set one up a couple weeks ago and after a bit of drama we ended up being the ones hosting it at our new house. First BBQ I have ever hosted and I am a bit nervous as I know very little about how to BBQ. Well, we went for it, invited and confirmed those interested in attending and withing a week and a half the number for the BBQ went from 4 to 10 adults. It will be a lot of fun, we already have all the food and plan on playing our new Bang! game with more of our friends as well tonight. We have designated 4th of July as a friends party time each year and it has been successful for two years now. Last year we went to Wendover, got like $500 of big fireworks that are illeagle to shoot off in Utah, and spent hours out in the Navada desert shooting them off. Much more fun, but the heat drove us to try something closer to home this year where there were at least some trees, shade, and air conditioning.

The Baby is doing fine and Becky can now feel it kick many times a day. This confirms to us that it is still healthy. I am glad to have the Nursery finished so that when the baby comes it has a nice room to grow and learn in. Nathan has not even been born yet and is already one of our greatest sources of joy. I would say more but Becky blogs about Nathan all the time so I will fill in other areas.

Our $900 dryer kicked the dust a couple weeks ago. The vent was backed up so it overheated, and instead of turning off like it is supposed to do if it overheats, it expanded the wires so that they were touching the dryer and because that created a ground it never shut off. Well, as a secondary backup the fuse is designed to blow so that our house does not burn down. Because of that we had to get the geeksquad out to fix it and good thing we got a 3 year warranty because it would have costs us $100 an hour. the trouble was they did not have the part on hand so they had to order a new fuse and we have been out of the ability to do laundry for two weeks. Good thing for visiting teachers. They are supposed to have the new part and have it installed by Wednsday. You never realaize how easy you have things until you have to go without them for a couple weeks.

Our brother Job and his new wife Jessie officially moved out two days ago so we have the house to ourselves for a couple weeks. Katie may come out in a few weeks and stay with us a bit which we are very excited for if she does but she is not sure and will not know till next Friday. Both ways it is nice to have Job and Jessie out on their own and building their own lives. He had to spend $40 to rent a U-Haul to move their bed as we could not find anyone who had a truck that we could barrow, but we feel that if the lord blesses us with extra we should use that to help those who need it, and Job and Jessie were deffinantly in that catagory. I would say the house is more quiet now, but two things, first, Job and Jessie were gennerally not laoud and spent their time in their room most of the time they were here, and two, we are out an about at friends and holliday parties enough that we do not really notice. The garage does not wake us up in the middle of the night when Job gets home from work anymore though which is nice.

We have plans to plant roses and trees in our back yard but have not got the time and are still using the next couple months to catch up on behind bills and also save for the baby so we may have to wait till later in the summer. Both ways it is nice to have a yard to play in and plant in. We should be getting a lawnmower in a couple weeks. A need we have put off for several months while we fought the economy. Glad to be getting ahead again though.

In another month Becky and I will have finished reading each of the standard works together. We started with the Book of Mormon, then the Pearl of Great Price, then the Old Testament, then the New Testament, and finally we are about 30 sections from finishing the Doctern and Covenantes. Quite the feat, but one chapter a day and a long established habbit of daily scripture study together has blessed our lives in many more ways then just the reaching of the goal. Though the next time around we plan on skipping the Old Testament. As far as habbits go, we had not missed a Month of going to the temple for 51 months. Our goal is 5 years, but we do not plan on stopping if we reach it but instead in shooting for 10. Another blessing that has added so much to our relationships with each other and our hevenly father.

Well, there is so much more in our lives, but I will save those for a later blog. This is long enough.

Nursery

David is awesome--he finished painting the nursery! When we moved in the room was lime green with surfboard wallpaper. Last week we tore the old wallpaper off, which ended up being easier then I thought it would once we actually got it started, and this week David painted. It is a pastel yellow called "Rain Lily" that I chose for a few reasons. One, I decided I didn't want blue because our room is blue and I didn't want all the rooms the same (boring!). Two, if we happen to have a girl while still in this house, I don't want to feel the need to repaint. This way I can move Nathan into what is now the guest room and keep my nursery the way I like it. Three, it is a bright, cheery color that matches my Winnie the Pooh theme pretty well. There are Winnie the Pooh wall sticker-things on the Wal-mart registry that will eventually end up on the wall so I can have a design without the hassle of wallpaper.

Anyway, here are some pictures, first the real "before" from before we moved in, then the semi-after, when we were prepped for painting and the wallpaper was off, and then the final product, which I don't think the camera truly does justice.