Thursday, July 16, 2009

Something To Share...

Got this very interesting piece of article from Daniel Wu's blog. And if you're wondering, yes he's the very cute HK actor, Daniel Wu. Good things are meant to be shared right? So here's some tips on how to handle the oh-so-very-annoying telemarketers.

Andy Rooney Tips for Handling Telemarketers

Three Little Words That Work !!
(1)The three little words are: 'Hold On, Please...'
Saying this, while putting down your phone and walking off (instead of hanging-up immediately) would make each telemarketing call so much more time-consuming that boiler room sales would grind to a halt.
Then when you eventually hear the phone company's 'beep-beep-beep' tone, you know it's time to go back and hang up your handset, which has efficiently completed its task.
These three little words will help eliminate telephone soliciting.

(2) Do you ever get those annoying phone calls with no one on the other end?
This is a telemarketing technique where a machine makes phone calls and records the time of day when a person answers the phone.
This technique is used to determine the best time of day for a 'real' sales person to call back and get someone at home.
What you can do after answering, if you notice there is no one there, is to immediately start hitting your # button on the phone, 6 or 7 times, as quickly as possible. This confuses the machine that dialed the call and it kicks your number out of their system. Gosh, what a shame not to have your name in their system any longer!

(3) Junk Mail Help:
This one is the best!
When you get 'ads' enclosed with your phone or utility bill, return these 'ads' with your payment. Let the sending companies throw their own junk mail away.
When you get those '
pre-approved' letters in the mail for everything from credit cards to 2nd mortgages and similar type junk, do not throw away the return envelope.
Most of these come with postage-paid return envelopes, right? It costs them more than the regular 37 cents postage 'IF' and when they receive them back.
It costs them nothing if you throw them away! The postage was around 50 cents before the la st increase and it is according to the weight. In that case, why not get rid of some of your other junk mail and put it in these cool little, postage-paid return envelopes.

One of Andy Rooney's (60 minutes) ideas.
Send an ad for your local chimney cleaner to American Express. Send a pizza coupon to Citibank. If you didn't get anything else that day, then just send them their blank application back! If you want to remain anonymous, just make sure your name isn't on anything you send them.
You can even send the envelope back empty if you want to just to keep them guessing! It still costs them 37 cents.
The banks and credit card companies are currently getting a lot of their own junk back in the mail, but folks, we need to OVERWHELM them. Let's let them know what it's like to get lots of junk mail, and best of all they're paying for it...Twice!
Let's help keep our postal service busy since they are saying that e-mail is cutting into their business profits, and that's why they need to increase postage cost s again. You get the idea !
If enough people follow these tips, it will work ---- I have been doing this for years, and I get very little junk mail anymore.

Do try it and let me know if it works for you...
Now, I am looking forward to try it on the next China swindler/insurance agent/you-strike-1st prize person who calls me...

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Being Random...

It's been a while since I last updated. So I decided to update on what I've done for the past weeks.

My great grandma passed away on the 23rd of June. She was placed at the Xiao En Bereavement Centre at Cheras. That place gave me a shock when I first went. It's more like a 5 star hotel's lobby than a mourning place. There's even free flow of coffee and tea. Not even a single eerie or scared or sad.

I met lots of relatives (those that I've heard of but never met) for the first time. So many 'titles' to remember. I even have to address a guy younger than me *my grand aunt's son* as my uncle...

A few days back, my sis and I are both down with flu, fever, cough and sore throat. My dad was so worried that he rushed us both to the General Hospital in KL. Thank God it's just normal flu. Unfortunately, the doctor refused to give us MC although he gave us ultra strong cough syrup, so I have to work the next day.

In the office the next day, all I did was sleep because the med is seriously too strong. So that very night, after work I went to see another doc. This doctor gave me 1 day MC. Since I got MC for Friday, I get to spend a long weekend at home.

At the moment, I'm still coughing but chill, it's no H1N1 nor it's Swine flu...

Till next time...