Posted on 2004-08-07 12:42:55, modified on 2006-01-09 16:29:22
Tags: Telemarketing, Rant
A telemarketer called, wanted to know if I would be interested in answering some questions with regarding to a new TV program. Being a vivid fan of the Australian ABC and SBS, I wouldn't let this opportunity pass.
The first question was easy: Are you the main buyer of grocery in this household? I am not, but didn't want to waste this chance, so I answered with a "yes". Now came the annoying part, where he explains to me that his supervisor can listen to the telephone conversation etc etc etc. We all know this by now, this disclaimer is getting old and annoying.
And then the question which started all the confusion: Are you living on the address I'm calling? I asked him to tell me the address, but he didn't get it. I told him to tell what the address was he was calling, and I would tell him if it was the right one. Again silence. After some seconds and a polite "Thank you for your time" I heard nothing from him anymore.
Did I blow an opportunity to help the ABC and SBS? Of course not, they just broadcast the programs without doing a lot of pre-marketing-research. Not bothered by commercial interests, they show the facts as they are. And if a show doesn't get a good rating, they don't pull it halfway the series. Long live public broadcasting!