Customer Reviews

Fun with Phone Solicitors: 50 Ways to Get Even

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Telemarketing should be banned, but because consumers are virtually powerless over businesses before the law, this book offers some brilliant ways to take revenge.

Now, each time the phone rings and I see 'Unavailable' on my Caller ID (sure sign of a telemarketer), instead of cringing I can't wait to pick up and get even!

The book has some brilliant ideas and encourages more creativity too. My favourite is to wait for the telemarketer to give you their whole story in one breath, as they always do, and then pretend you didn't hear any of it and have them repeat it.

After becoming very frustrated with all of the unsolicited phone calls I receive that I can't stop even with the national "no call list", I bought this book hoping to find some messages I could put on my phone that would at least give the callers a chuckle. Unfortunately I found these options in this book not only not useful, but also not very funny. I've found much better ones just searching on the internet.Fun with Phone Solicitors: 50 Ways to Get Even

Mr. Harris has taken something unpleasant, receiving an unsolicited telephone call to sell something, and turned it into a source of humor and acting practice! As I read this book, I found myself laughing out loud on almost every example. These are very funny suggestions!

"A solicitor! Yuk! What to do, what to do? Be polite? Get angry? Meekly hang up?"

"No, no, no! Be creative and enjoy yourself!"

If you are like me, you would probably never do any of these things, but just reading about them is a lot of fun. The 50 funny ideas are rated by how difficult they are to implement. You also get tips for variations, ways to have even more fun, and extra credit suggestions. At the end of the book is also some practical advice for steps you can take to stop getting these telephone calls in the first place.

Reading these scripts made me feel like I was watching a vaudeville act.

In many of the variations, you pretend to be someone you are not, such as . . . the order line for a telephone sex service, the telephone operator at a big company, an uncaring 14 year-old, someone who ssssttttuuuuuutttttttteeerrrrrrssssss!!!!!, a hard of hearing person (what did you say?), a security person (what's your password?), or someone who doesn't get it.

The more hilarious ones for me were the ones where you pretend to be the music on hold, recorded messages from the telephone company, and your own answering machine!

"Although not 100 percent reliable, they are humanity's best hope for combating obnoxious phone solicitors."

I could see turning this into a parlor game for parties. One person could pretend to be the obnoxious solicitor, and the other person could practice describing how the person being called had just dropped dead. I wonder . . . do you think Regis is available to do this on television?

After you enjoy lots of good laughs with this fine humor book, I suggest that you do think about what defenses you might use that you feel comfortable with. I find having the Internet on our main phone line at key times does a fine job of blocking out these calls, easily and effortlessly!

Where else could a frustrating occurrence be a source of invention and humor for you? How about filling out humorous replies to solicitations from direct mail companies? Or leaving ridiculous messages when the receptionist at the doctor's office puts you on hold for 20 minutes?

Then, turn it around. How could you make the solicitations that you need to make fun for the people who receive the solicitations (whether for charity, volunteer work, or whatever)?

I borrowed this book from a friend and loved it. It's a great way to get them back when they call right in the middle of dinner or any time of the day. This book is a sure way to bring you lots of laughs. I loved it so much, I going to get myself a copy.