The problem is we keep feeding the beast. The primary reason for the existence of telemarketers and the multi-billion dollar telemarketing industry is – people still buy things over the phone.

It’s a fact – there is always that small percentage of consumers that accept calls, will buy things or achieve one of the other key objectives of telemarketers: swaying opinions and influencing other buying decisions. People will think about what they were told on the phone when buying any of thousands of products and services at stores, events and through other venues and service providers.

Telemarketing works – that is why it still exists and continues to thrive. Admittedly the percentage of people that get called and are converted to buyers may be lower, but it still happens. And as long as there are a few nuggets to be extracted from that golden vein, they will exist, persist and thrive.

Also, admittedly there are more telemarketers that cross the lines of aggression and persistence, and create the other extreme of call recipients – the passionate, frenzied anti-telemarketing camp that has images of doing very bad things to telemarketers when they call. More people are coming into this camp daily. And let’s face it, many telemarketers could care less about Do Not Call Registries, the FTC, the NANPA or breaking laws they are often very familiar with and – break anyway.

Worse news is that for every high tech gizmo you may have that is designed to thwart these cretins, another piece of even slicker software or strategy for use with their auto-dialing computers that can allow for voice monitoring of several calls or lines at once – to make sure they talk to the “fish” when the line is picked-up – is developed.

Kind of reminds you or MAD (mutually assured destruction) in the nuclear world, doesn’t it?

These calls and callers aren’t going to go away. If anything, there will be more of them. How many of these callers are even in the US anymore? Think about it – if call centers for incoming calls are relocating to third-world closets – what makes you think outbound, even more aggressive telemarketers and call centers aren’t going-up like crazy overseas too?

They’re already there and making money and doing well – thank you very much! Businesses can’t send them call lists fast enough.

Okay, so what do you do? The simplest answer is to make the word NO – an absolute staple in your conversations, which need to be followed by an equally fast hang-up. This makes for a war of attrition, and many will keep calling. For a period of time, it will seem like you’re getting nowhere. Practitioners of this steadfast “NO” to every question strategy swear that it does work over time, but it does take nerves of steel and a super-strong will to continue.

Many companies will still be US based, and they have more things in their bag of tricks than we can talk about here. But let’s apply some high tech resources of our own. Question the who, the what and the where behind every call. Ask them specific questions about who they are. If their number shows-up on caller ID, consider doing a reverse phone number lookup online through ReverseTelephoneLookup.org. A reverse phone lookup through this service will get you lots of information you can’t get any other way.

They use cell phones, you say? Do a reverse cell phone lookup. You can sometimes get more info about the caller through a reverse cell lookup. Once again, a reverse number lookup through might just be the ticket to making the guys that are out-of-bounds pay for bothering you when you follow through with complaints and other legal measures that can cost them dearly.

People often only think about using a reverse phone lookup service for illegal or potentially dangerous calls and situations. If your peace-and-quiet is disrupted often enough, they may make the “dangerous” club and force you to act to save your sanity.