Has anyone here worked in Telesales?

[whiskygalore]

I've always imagined it to be my idea of Hell - talking on the phone all day to people who don't want to speak to you, repetitive, highly pressured with few end rewards and just generally rubbish. However, I'm going for an interview on Monday...for a telesales job! So before I do the dirty, I'd be grateful for any telesales people's experiences. Cheers!

[Lennon]

Patience is a big thing as you already know as you do have to be repetative. You have to be friendly and have a neutral and pleasant tone and not be overpowering as you can sometimes tease people into taking to you when they really don't want to. You have to be persistent for example I once had a massive list of phone numbers and I had to phone each one to get the name of the Marketing Director for a mailshot. You end up speaking to loads of snotty secretaries/receptionists who tell you its not company policy to give out names etc etc, so you have to be prepared but that will come with experience. They will see potential in you if you have it, and they'll know that the rest will come with time and experience. Good Luck, I hope it goes well for you!

[woodpam]

Many years ago I worked in a job where "persuading" people over the phone was a large part of the routine. The person who was best at it in the office was an older lady who didn't sound "salesy", just pleasant and friendly. My tips would be,
Don't assume that the man on the electoral roll or contact sheet is the bill paying head of the household if phoning homeowners, quite often the "man" is a grown up son, and the female head of the houshold won't be amused
Sound like you are pleased to be talking to the person, ie friendly and don't read from a script.
Don't dwell on it or take it personally when people tell you where to stick your product.
I hope it goes well, you can pick up some useful skills doing it. BTW How did your essay go?

[whiskygalore]

Thanks for the practical advice. Still waiting for essay results Pam, but I think I may have scraped through it. In the end, I locked myself in my room with the PC and a pack of Pro Plus, which did the trick!