Junkies as telemarketers?

tibberous

Well-Known Member
I have a product that I need to sell to businesses, but it's hard to find good sales people. I was thinking about specifically trying to hire functioning opiate addicts.

General idea is this:

- there is no schedule, attendance, ect. - you just show up and work
- no drug tests - obviously
- outbound cold calls only. I'd handle leads and customer service, unless someone was doing really good
- straight commission, paid IN CASH, when the money was collected

I kind of want it to be like a scrap yard - show up, get sales, get money - no bullshit. Of course you wouldn't have to be a drug addict, and you could opt to get paid like a normal job; but if you wanted to come in, get 1 sale, make $400 and disappear for 3 days, you could do that too.

Think this would be doable / effective? I've seen on intervention where junkies will beg 10+ hours a day, so why wouldn't they do phone sales in a warm building for more money?

And I could only keep a few hundred on site and run to the atm whenever someone got a big sale.
 

see4

Well-Known Member
Good luck getting leads with functioning opiate addicts as your first impression. I wish you all the best in your extremely short journey.
 

tibberous

Well-Known Member
functioning is the key. It's still going to be a job with a screening processing.

I've met a few chicks that you'd never know shot up. I'll probably try and get mostly 25-35 year old girls, just because that's mainly who I know.
 

tibberous

Well-Known Member
i just wanna know what you're smoking that made you believe this was a good idea
I think it was a combination of seeing how diligently they'll panhandle and steal scrap. No shit - I saw on Intervention where a guy panhandled $200/day for heroin, that's more than I make working!
 

see4

Well-Known Member
tibby, I get it man. You are trying to help others while trying to help yourself. A totally noble gesture. But I think in this case, it may be more harmful to you than help.
 

kinetic

Well-Known Member
I've dealt with junkies, I couldn't have offered the kid a job sweeping up outside my house. Eventually he would have sold the broom when he left with it. So you're going to give junkies headsets, a phone system possibly computers to work with? You do realize all those things have copper right? That's what will happen after the pawn shops stop buying the tools they need to do the job that you as an employer will have to provide for.
 

cheechako

Well-Known Member
Don't be so down on this idea. He is only trying to help get a few junkies off the street and collecting credit card info over the phone. What's the worst that could happen?
 

Trolling

New Member
I have a product that I need to sell to businesses, but it's hard to find good sales people. I was thinking about specifically trying to hire functioning opiate addicts.

General idea is this:

- there is no schedule, attendance, ect. - you just show up and work
- no drug tests - obviously
- outbound cold calls only. I'd handle leads and customer service, unless someone was doing really good
- straight commission, paid IN CASH, when the money was collected

I kind of want it to be like a scrap yard - show up, get sales, get money - no bullshit. Of course you wouldn't have to be a drug addict, and you could opt to get paid like a normal job; but if you wanted to come in, get 1 sale, make $400 and disappear for 3 days, you could do that too.

Think this would be doable / effective? I've seen on intervention where junkies will beg 10+ hours a day, so why wouldn't they do phone sales in a warm building for more money?

And I could only keep a few hundred on site and run to the atm whenever someone got a big sale.
Didn't realize you people still existed...
 

Total Head

Well-Known Member
i have done telemarketing for several years. i haven't done it in years but the best ones were always cokeheads, drunks, and desperate borderline sociopaths. opiate addicts, not so much.

i am none of those things, but i can keep someone on the phone like no one's business. getting them to buy something is another thing entirely.

cokeheads, drunks, and sociopaths. that's the telemarketing trifecta of success. just being desperate isn't enough in itself to get shit done in that line of work, it takes a certain callous finesse to make magic happen.
 

weedx

Member
I like what your trying to do man just be careful, advertising directly to that crowd will draw in scammers that just need a quick buck and will take it straight off your desk.

on the other hand I would hire a junkie no problems, if they came in for an interview, looked like they cared and wanted the job and appeared honest. . . . . dunno
 
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