Does anyone really listen to automated phone calls?

I am getting so many calls lately that are by robots. It is some recording telling me something or other when I answer. As soon as I discern the call is a recording, I hang up. A lot of the calls are about politics or polls or services. Today I got one about credit cards, telling me to call a number in order to lower my interest rate. I thought I was on a "no soliciting" call list. Isn't that credit card call considered soliciting? Do the companies that make the robot calls really think a lot of people listen to the calls? Does anyone here listen and if so, why? I consider it very rude that if someone wants my opinion, time, or business, they can't be bothered to have a human being call me. I think that is a main reason I hang up. If they want something from me, they need to be polite and have a human ask. If a political candidate keeps robot calling me, I am more likely to not vote for him/her.

Nope, I don't listen to them.

I think it should not be allowed that companies invade our private space with their sales or politicians with their recordings. I like to think my home is my sanctuary away from public matters. (but companies think otherwise)

fins

IF you have credit or have had credit with a company, they may call you, legally, and are not affected by the no call, since you do/did business with them. You have to actually talk to them and tell them to quit calling, but that only works if you no longer have an account presently.

I do listen to some, if I hear the phone and I'm in the mood to answer it. Especially around voting time, it's a good way to find out last minute issues or moves in the political scheme, rather than listening to the horrendous news media.

I have been called for polling by Gallup and Heritage etc. It's always interesting to be asked my opinion, and to find out (when the poll is published) how the stats turned out. It's supposed to be used by powers that be to know what society wants.

However, I am about to cancel my home phone permanently, so that will end. (No telling how anyone will get into the gated community if they want to see me though )

I like the ones where an automated recording says, please hold for the next available operator. Yeah right.

Drives me nuts - we're having municiple elections here so I've been getting a lotted of automated calls from people running for councel, trustee etc. Makes me less likely to vote for them. If you want my vote, have a real human call me.

--splitimage

YEah but it's harder to hang up on a real person, even if they're hanger-on-ers!

I actually sometimes like to do polls, but only if a real human is on the line. I think the polls may skew quite a bit in odd and unpredicted ways if they are using robots to call. They are selecting for a very specific bunch of people who will sit through robot calls. I think that select group may be different from the general population.

Right now we are having front page news in my area about how two leading polling companies have such different results from polling for our senate race. One shows candidate 1 leading by a slim margin. The other shows candidate 2 leading by a huge margin. There is no overlap even considering the polls published errors of margin. Perhaps one company is using the robo-calls and the other is having humans call.

i hang up

Greetings,

I have never received a call, from a politician, and I hope I never will.

Have a good one.

once i got an automated phone call that said (i swear): "we're sorry, no one is available to take your call at this time. please call back later to speak to a representative."

Did you know that your saying "Hello" is what begins the recording?
If you have caller ID and dont' recognize the number, let the caller say hello first

I have worked for several banks in the past. They do have a way to put you on their "do not call list" irregardless as to if you have a current account or not. You do have to contact them to have them turn off the choices. The banks should be able to turn off calls regarding any new lines of business and any "sister company" calls.

If you do have a current credit card with that bank and they are making an offer about that credit card, you will not be able to turn that option off. However, a different option would be to have them only be able to contact you by email. What I do is create an email account that I only use for solicitors and I give that email address out, however I rarely check that email account, but I can do it on my time, not necessarily when the email comes in.

Also about political calls, when you fill out your voter registration card and put your phone number on it the card, it is then given to the political party that you registered with. So if you do not want the calls to come, leave your phone number off the registration card.

hmmm I have an answering machine that says, "HELLO!" and then pauses then goes on with, " please leave a message..." and the robotic callers don't fall for it. The best thing is to have an answerer that gives the tones for a disconnected line, as I hear that takes the number off the list too

I'm registered as an "independent," so I guess I'm getting phone calls from both sides. I just listen for about, maybe, 20 seconds and then usually hang up......I am sometimes a terror when REAL people call to try to sell me something or to contribute to causes. (I know, BAD PAYNE1!)

I just hang up if it's a machine. I listen to folks talk all day. why should I listen to nosense that doesn't mean squat on my free time? Huggs all!

I guess I'm lucky that I don't get those phone calls. I DO get those "please hold for the next available service rep" ones, and I actually wait to talk to them sometimes, and I ask them why I had to wait for them, when I didn't call. Sometimes, depending on my mood, I can get sorta rude with them (because they're calling my cell phone... and NEVER give that out!), or I get playful and ask them if I can call them at home in the middle of the night and ask them to hold, and I can sing Celine Dion songs to them while they're "holding" for me.

I've actually had one person say, "Yeah, I'm really sorry. I've become the person I've despised - a telemarketer."

Celine Dion! Oh, that's good! Hugggs!

and just so you know, I can NOT sing. I'm a low alto voice... Celine Dion songs with my voice make a cat dying sound good.



But if I go out with some girlfriends and I have a couple of drinks, I get that good old bit of delusion going on -- where I think I can sing at karaoke and that I'm cute

My husband listens to them... I just hang up.

Hmmm in light of this thread, the next time my home phone rang, this morning, I answered it. It happened to be a real person asking, "Is this so-and-so?" I said, " It is." and they hung up. Guess the PI supposed to follow me today wanted to know if I had left my home yet or not.

Nope I just hang up

I do not bother, usually they are either scamers or politicians (is there really a difference) I just hang up.

It almost sounds to me as if these people are to cheap to hire "real" people to call you. They'd rather do the automated thing than pay someone to make calls. It is stupid though.