Expand mobile version menu
  Skip to main content

Telemarketer

salary graphic

AVG. SALARY

$37,810

education graphic

EDUCATION

No standard requirement

job outlook graphic

JOB OUTLOOK

Stable

Real-Life Activities

Real-Life Decision Making

You are a telemarketer working at a call center. You are assigned to make calls to people to get them to sign up for subscriptions for a local newspaper. The newspaper is doing a promotion. They are offering the first month free. After that subscribers will be charged for the rest of the year.

Your shift today is four hours long. Your quota has been set for six successful subscriptions. Yesterday you were able to make 11 subscriptions. You feel confident as you begin your shift on the phones.

You are not having very good luck today. Three hours have passed and you haven't had a single successful call. You only have one hour left to make your quota.

You keep at it and make the next call. The woman who answers seems interested and she starts to ask you some questions about the subscription.

At first her questions are easy, and you have no trouble answering them. She wants to know if she can cancel the subscription if she moves. She asks about the different sections of the newspaper and who writes for the paper. You have all the answers.

But she keeps asking questions and they become more unusual. She asks what your favorite section of the paper is. She asks you where you like to read the paper. She asks you if you know where the editor of the paper was born. You look at the clock and you've been on the phone with her for 10 minutes already.

You only have another 50 minutes to make your quota of six successful subscriptions. When she asks you what column you choose to line your birdcage with, you begin to suspect she's wasting your time on purpose. You know that some people like to play tricks on telemarketers.

"It's hard to know when to draw the line of being messed with and serious people who are interested," says Meghan Zugibe. She is a telemarketer in Rockland County, New York.

It has now been 12 minutes and she's still asking questions. Most of your calls are over in two minutes.

What do you do?

Contact

  • Email Support

  • 1-800-GO-TO-XAP (1-800-468-6927)
    From outside the U.S., please call +1 (424) 750-3900

Support


Powered by XAP

OCAP believes that financial literacy and understanding the financial aid process are critical aspects of college planning and student success. OCAP staff who work with students, parents, educators and community partners in the areas of personal finance education, state and federal financial aid, and student loan management do not provide financial, investment, legal, and/or tax advice. This website and all information provided is for general educational purposes only, and is not intended to be construed as financial, investment, legal, and/or tax advice.