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Self-Employed Freelancers & Small Home-Based Businesses:Dealing With Abusive Prospective Clients on the Phone
by RJ Peters
I
used to hang up on telemarketers. Now I *am* one. Funny how
putting the shoe on the other foot can change one's perspective.
When I started my online home-based business, I did expect
to get some hang ups, some snide comments, and a lot of "Sorry,
I'm no longer interested." And I do get those. For those
of you who call leads, you know what I'm talking about. If
we get two to five interested people out of 100 phone calls,
we count that as an average percentage.
But
what I was not prepared for in the beginning was the even
smaller percentage of those leads we call who are downright
abusive. Luckily, it's more rare than common, or I'm sure
I would have quit before I started making some headway in
my business. In fact, if I had reached one of these rude 'n'
crude types on my first day, that definitely would have been
IT.
But
by and large, most folks are polite and even nice to talk
with. Whew!
So
what should you do when you get hold of that curmudgeon who
"reams you a new one" over the phone? Well, unless
you are a masochist, or just curious to see what they have
to say, just hang up. Do it before they do it to you, actually.
It's more rewarding, if you could call it that. You don't
want to work with someone like that anyway, so there is not
one chance in a million you are going to sell them anything,
or recruit them, or even come away on a polite note. Those
people aren't nice. Period. You don't want them in your life.
IF
you can get a word in edge ways, which admittedly is pretty
difficult with these nut cases, just say something polite
and hang up. I know it's tempting to say things like, "Well,
heck with you too, you idiot!" But if they know who you
are, what company you are with, or anything traceable, you
will only risk having yourself reported and earning a black
mark for your company. You must remain professional and calm,
as hard as that may be, and you will come away from the encounter
knowing that you are the better person.
What
I often do, if they've gotten to me, is write them a letter,
telling them off as badly as they told me off. But then I
never mail it. I keep the letter handy and read it from time
to time. And what usually happens is that, oh, about a month
or two down the road, the next time you read that letter,
you laugh. You realize what a silly thing it is to yell at
people who don't know right from wrong when dealing with people.
You aren't going to "fix" them, and they aren't
going to see your point of view. Just let it go. It's their
loss.
RJ Peters may be contacted at http://ourtrueteam.com/peters2004
Dr. R.J. Peters retired several years ago from a 25-year career
in chiropractic. Well-versed in many health subjects, as well
as administrative issues including insurance claims, Dr. Peters
currently provides health benefits programs through a home-based
business as part of a retirement goal to continue helping
people with their health problems, while building a retirement
income stream.
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All Freelance Work is a Community for Freelance Workers Including Free Portfolios, Job Search, Job Posting, Helpful Articles, Forums, & More for the Self Employed.
