Door Steppers - Part two

Part two of my rant against doorstepping companies using shady tactics to get a sale - these are my 'scripts' that you can use to throw the salesperson off balance..

knock knock...
Salesperson: Hi there, I won't take a moment of your time, I am just calling to see if you got your grant?
Me: I see - what is your name please (take badge, write down name and company - this has already halted the script and put you in charge of asking the next question - use as many from the list below as you think appropriate...)

• Does (energy company) think they have sent me a grant? (pen poised for writing any response down...)



• Does (energy company) approve of your technique of implying that I should have had a grant when it is clear that they should be fully aware that a grant has not been sent?
  


• So you are asking me if I have received a grant, when you have no way of knowing that I would qualify for it - Do you know what mis-selling is?
  


• Do you think (energy company) know that you are using a mis-leading technique to sell their products



• Do you understand that some people might be mis-led by your implication that they should be receiving a grant?

I am sure after you have fired a couple of these questions out, your visitor will not stay too long on your doorstep - you could even follow it up by following your hapless visitor down the street to see how they get on with your neighbours - you could offer suggestions like 'it's all made up', 'There's not actually a grant, 'It's all a bit of a con..' stuff like that. If this seems a little harsh, the reason I think this type of response is justified, is that vulnerable people will be mis-led into parting with their cash - nobody is ever going to sell anything to me on the doorstep - it's the elderly and those who are too trusting that we need to protect from this type of approach.

Hopefully other companies will follow the example set by British Gas, that's not to say that I think BG is being particularly honourable about this, I just think they've been found out and have consequently changed their tactics.

Chrysler accessories

With the launch of a new product, Chrysler are strengthening their brand in the UK. The Chrysler looks like a strong contender in the automobile market worldwide. Building a stronger brand means higher tempo production to keep up with demand and a growing support network to keep your customers supplied with servicing and spares. After all, you won't be able to pick up chrysler rubber mats at Halfords or any other spares store, if the parts and accessories are going to be in demand, Chrysler dealers will need to be represented nationwide.

Door Steppers - Part one

A few weeks back British Gas took notice of public opinion and vowed to stop cold-calling people on their doorstep. Whilst a personal call might be deemed beneficial in these cases, the nature of the sales pitch has proved to be little more than a con where near-lies are used to persuade the hapless victim to change energy suppliers - and in many cases finding themselves financially worse off despite a persuasive argument from the doorstep salesperson that they would undoubtedly save money...
It is sickening that big companies such as energy companies would stoop to such tactics, but at least British Gas have called a halt - the others however have not! I have been door-stepped twice this week and am frankly appalled by the 'con' approach that has been tried. In both cases the salesperson had the barefaced cheek to ask if I had received either my 'rebate' or my 'grant' when in both cases they were fully aware that I had not (and would not) be receiving anything of the sort.. They assume that starting the conversation in this way will engage me in a discussion to find out exactly how this grant/rebate might be obtained - in my case they were wrong!
The next time I will try to ascertain if this 'script' is approved by the company who sent them - or if it is a little 'con' that the salesperson has concocted - I shall start by getting thier name and company details, this will be followed up by communication to the said company to find out exactly where the story of a grant or rebate comes from - If there is actually money due to me, then I will pursue it through the proper channels where I am in charge of the enquiry, not via a grubby con artist who turns up on my doorstep.
I would urge everyone I can to do the same - never sign for anything on the doorstep - try asking for actual prices per KWh (kilowatt hour) from the electric company rep on your doorstep - 99% sure they won't be able to tell you - how is it then that they are so sure that they can save you money? It all in the statistics about average savings, but there is no guarantee that you are the average customer, and it could well be that your household will be worse off.
There is one simple trick to getting rid of the salesperson on your doorstep - when you get the knock at the door (assuming you are not expecting someone) you must already have the words 'no thank you I am not interested' on the tip of your tongue. Let them introduce themselves, then trot out your line and look them in the eye - they will hesitate for a second (not expecting an interruption to their script quite so early), start to close the door - and they are gone... For a more advanced rebuff, see my later post..

Quiet August

Although we are not really finished with August, this one has felt like a holiday month from a blogging perspective, not many paid opps, so not much blogging.
I have had a few opps from Blogsvertise recently, but I have to wait a month to get paid. There has been a few tapes (cassette to CD conversions) to do, so income has been steady.
I checked my results for last August, but there were plently of blogging opps then, so I don't think it's a seasonal thing. Whether the general economic climate is taking it's toll, is difficult to say, but low-cost advertising would probably remain attractive in a down-turn, so I don't think it has had a tremendous effect.

I have been able to get a new site started this month, and I have an idea for yet another site to follow when I have a little time to set it up. My latest mini-site is a Wordpress effort geared towards bringing together resources for building and hosting a website for free - yes it can be done!
If you are interested, you can visit the free webs site here - it's in early stages at the moment, I hope to get more resources added regularly. I am enjoying this first 'proper' journey into WP, and hope I get my head around it enough to knock out a few more... If September continues to be quiet, you can be sure I will have at least one more site up and running, especially now I have established that I can do it for free..

Online Dating

The rise of online dating is symptomatic of changes in society. Changes brought about by the internet itself of course, but also by technological developments which reduce face to face interaction in day-to-day life (automated tellers, non-attended checkouts at supermarkets etc..).

There are plenty of online dating agencies, but few of them actually offer free online dating. According to TV adverts I have seen, a good proportion of couples actually getting married, originally met on online dating sites. Hence the idea that online dating a last resort for aging singles is actually eroding quite rapidly.

Using social media

I have started using social media with a couple of websites just to see how they can be utilised effectively. My findings are thus:

I like Facebook as a feedback platform and have used it to link with two of my sites, my new cassette conversion site (you can see the FB page here..) and a home made cake site (you can see the FB page here..). I like the idea that you can interact with customers in this way, and hope that ultimately each of these pages will build up a lot of 'likes' - that way each update reaches loads of people directly on their facebook page.
I cannot say the same for Twitter, although I think using the RSS feed is a useful tool - to be really effective, you have to be a bit of a habitual twitterer (and I am not). I tend to do promotional stuff in 'fits and starts' (I wonder about the origin of that phrase?) by which I mean I will leave it months then devote a few hours to it, and then leave it for months again. You can certainly use Twitter in this way, but if you are displaying the RSS feed somewhere on your site (which is my preferred method of utilising it), It becomes obvious that there are large gaps between tweets - which may make the site look 'unattended'.

So, I am still not really 'into' Twitter as I have not experienced it actually doing anything for me, it has not bought me clients, although one of my Twitter accounts managed to pick up followers - with my sporadic tweeting, they are hardly likely to pay much attention. I must admit that one of the reasons for integrating these social sites into semi-commercial websites, was just so it would look good - as if linking with social media somehow in itself, endorses the site. I still happen to think that this is the case, much of this type of marketing is all about creating an impression. If Twitter and Facebook actually bring in customers, then that is just a bonus.

Pegboards

Point of sale material, displays and Pegboard are essential items for those considering opening or upgrading a high street store. Admittedly high street stores are not a growth area in the current economic climate, so it is important that a store makes the best use of the square footage available.
Some goods will always be sold in this way, convenience and snack foods, newspapers etc.. whereas many of the traditional retailers can be replaced by online shopping.
I was in retail for the first twelve years of my working life and would add that whilst good products sell themselves, good displays help to get the customer into the premises in the first place.

Coupons

Those looking to save a bit of money on their goods are already clued into using coupons for discounted purchasing. Every consumer would do well to look into websites that have a myriad a deals on offer, usually involving decent discounts off goods that you are already planning to purchase anyway.
Whether it be your regular shopping or if you are looking for a special gift for someone, it makes sense to check out the discounts you can get - they are already there waiting all you have to do is claim them....

The future of blogging

With the huge take-up of social media, by which I really mean.. Facebook, the future of blogging is under threat. Never mind linking blogs, Facebook and twitter together via RSS feeds and the like, certainly some 'goals' of blogging are achieved far more effectively via Facebook alone.
The concept of regular updates to keep others informed of your activities, or of sharing your photos online is far more effectively done via FB than via blogger or even the hippest Wordpress themed blog.
So is it all over for blogger?
To certain target groups, blogging is now a non-starter - an individual considering a platform for keeping friends informed of activities a few years ago, may have considered blogging as an option. Currently, Facebook would surely be the 'no-brainer' option... So where does that leave the humble blog? The blog is now possibly the tool of 'the campaigner' rather than the individual, the choice of someone who thinks they have a philosophy worth expounding. Blogs as corporate promotional tools still exist, but in most cases, there will also be a corresponding Facebook page too. Even 'paid to' bloggers are now encouraged to 'like' a clients FB page as well as write a promotional blog post.
The internet however, has many layers and the blog still has it's place as a promotional tool, and for bloggers, the rising popularity of facebook keeps the blogosphere less cluttered with half-started blogs, and narrows the competition when it comes to vying for paid postings. I said in a recent post, that two years counts as an 'era' on the internet such is the speed of change - the blog is not dead, but bloggers would be wise to embrace other communication tools.