Monday, June 21, 2004
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1 Eternal Soul: Sold!
I have just returned from an interview in Downtown Vancouver. Full time position that will become part-time in the fall so that I can return to full time studies. My hours will be 8:30am-4:30pm Mon-Fri for the rest of Summer. The catch? I'm a telemarketer for a firm that has contracts to sell long distance phone plans and newspaper subscriptions.
Whilst it's true that sales is an essential part of our life and culture, I think there's a specific level of hell that's reserved for telemarketers. For one thing, you should expect a pitch if you were walking through a shopping centre or some other such retail establishment. Yet telemarketers assault you in the privacy of you own home. Not to mention the universal dislike (and therefore directed hatred) could be potentially hazardous. Bonus points if you interrupt their dinner.
The way I see it, a job's a job. I have the potential to make $15-$25/hr because of the commission scale, if not it's a base wage of $10/hr. All things considered, it's an excellent position. The centre is open from 8:30am-8:45pm, which means that I cannot have shifts extending past those hours. They are absolutely willing to work with me when I return to
UBC in the fall. I just have to be thick-skinned about having people telling me to go to hell (or that I will be condemned to live out eternity there). Besides, the way I look at it, I'm letting people know about things that they don't know they want yet.
I start this Thursday and I'm anxious to start. I hope the training has a sales component in it because to be frank (and I wasn't in the interview) I'm not all that comfortable selling products and services to people in their homes. I'm sure that I will get over it once the money starts rolling in. I mean so I've taken 5 minutes out of someone's day. As long as I'm helping them save money, I think it's a fair deal for both sides. Sales is all about perspective, and I'm already honing mine.
Wish me luck!
posted by Joie! at
11:47 a.m.
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