For those of us in the UK, you can sign up to the Telephone Preference Service. It blocks any marketing calls, surveys, political canvasing and loads of other calls you don't want. The only businesses allowed to call are those who have a good reason to - those you already do business with. Any calls you do receive, you can report to Ofcom and the company could get fined.

As for more fun tactics, I like to play repeat offenders any of my sister's music after informing them that I am busy and placing them on hold until a representative for me is available. Its worrying that most of them will patiently sit on the line for hours waiting. Sometimes they end up getting left there until I need to use the phone again

For a more 'interactive' way to annoy repeat callers, you can try this script from EGBG. Its great to turn the conversation around and start asking random questions to them.

Why would you add yourself to that list?
Have some fun.
Act like you're horny.
"I like your voice"
"I know you're not calling just to sell something"
"You know where i live, right?"
"I bet that your neck is just waiting for me to rub it after sitting all day long in that cramped office"
Have some lame fun with them...
"Would you be interested in buying a cattle prod for your office"
ME: Nah, but does it work with annoying telemarketers? I bet i'll get rich after i invent something to castrate people over the phone.
Have some fun. Scream at the bastards... Anything except hang up.

When telemarketers call, I say 'Um no thanks. Could you please take me off your list?"

I mean there will still be an ocasional call, but they will not be calling quite as often. From what I know, there is no hotline to call for them to take you off their list, because diffrent telemarkets are calling for diffrent companies, and a hotline may take you off of one telemarketers list, but not every telemarketers list.

Tetraca, that has to be the most hilarious thing to do.

But I have never heard of a hotline to add your phone to a "do not call" list.
Even if there is, what if a different telemarketing company calls? That would be a drag.

Just block every single call except those from your close friends, family, your boss, your... But it would cost much work and for 1000% sure, you will miss some of them and those "some of them" call next time, they'll get blocked. According to the Parkinson's law, the worst case usually occurs... i.e. you forgot to add your boyfriend or girlfriend or boss to the list...

This post has been edited by ktPatriot: Jan 2 2008, 02:53 PM

Just mess with them, that's what I do.

the best way to avoid the calls from tele marketers is to list yourself in your nations Do Not Call List. Even if you receive calls after that then you can report it to the authorities.

My wife works in telemarketing, her company is not like most of the telemarketing companies that usually only sell poor and useless products at a medium to a high price, no, she works in a very good company, at least they are honest and they sell a good product and proven quality, not BS like most of the companies in that business/market, and i am not defending her or else i would not reply to this topic, and just for the record, there are almost 15 enterprises of the same company all arround Portugal (Europe) and my wife is the second best tele-operator and she never lied to anyone that picked up the phone to listen to her presentation, and i am proud of saying what i am saying write now.

So keep it together when you or anyone else talks about telemarketing, i am here always and forever to wash the mouths to whoever offends this line of work or market, you are not forced to by anything too, only if you are a sucker, and if you are too afraid to listen because you know you will be influenced and hipnotized to buy buy buy, then that perhaps is the real problem, listening does not harm people, not to anyone, i am sure of it, and telemarketing, even for the disonest operators and companies, you just buy if you want.

Telemarketing is not the problem, disonesty and other defects of people is, so here is my solution for people afraid like yourself, if you do not want to listen to tele-operators:

If some tele-operator from some telemarketing calls you, tell him that her/him is paying 5 or 10 dollars/euros an hour or a minute, then i am sure she/he will close down the phone in a blink of an eye, if not, say in a nice way that you will never buy nothing and that you are afraid of her/him to hipnotize you to buy (he he he).

What do you think, is the first solution better then the second one, or is the second solution more real then the first one?
I guess you better do not talk bad of telemarketing again, and when they call you, if that happens by any chance, which there are a lot in the future according to my knwoledge of that market worldwide, say nicely to make her/him disconnect because you are not a litle bit interested in any of their products.

Remember, if you are nice to people, nice is what you will get from people, and vice-versa.

This post has been edited by Lyon2: Jan 3 2008, 08:57 PM

Yes, there is a list online you can sign up for and it prohibits telemarketers from calling you, however, due to many people being on this list you will be more likely to get junk mail in your mailbox everyday.