Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Raw Deal

A man knocks (loudly) on your front door and then, claiming to live across the street [you haven't seen him once in the 6 1/2 years you have lived in your house], says he is there to disregard HOA rules sell frozen steaks door-to-door. He offers to sell you a carton of 47 vacuum-packed steaks for $125, a steal, he says, at little more than $2/steak. [It's actually closer to $3/steak, but nevermind his inability to do simple math.] You're tempted, but...

Which of the following is a good reason to say no?

A. Your freezer holds little more than the ice maker, a package of corn dogs, and the requisite gallon or 2 of ice cream.
B. Your husband is a full-time student, i.e. unemployed for the better part of 3 full years. Every dime spent = a dime to be paid back later...with interest.
C. For health and dietary reasons, consumption of massive quantities of red meat by yourself or spouse is not advised.
D. Your children proclaim themselves to be vegetarians (with the exception of corn dogs and the occasional bite of a fast food chicken nugget or hamburger.)
E. You have not purchased 47 steaks in your entire lifetime, let alone in one afternoon.
F. You spent the equivalent of 635 of his steaks on essential car repairs this same afternoon.
G. All of the above.

My guess is as good as yours. After 2 excuses and 3 "no, thank you's," this guy FINALLY (but reluctantly) gets the hint, but not before throwing in a glare for free as he walks away. Some people...

8 comments:

Sarah said...

Seriously? I only ever get the homeless guy who wants to paint my house numbers on the curb. Where are my steaks?

Alison K. said...

Ohh that guy came to my house too. His claim was that these were his last two cases and he was giving me a great deal. He wouldent know a great deal if it ran him over with a truck.

Robin said...

Last 2 cases my foot! I guess that's just what he tells everyone. Way to do crappy business, man. You should have told him about The Grocery Game. :D

Kristin said...

Ever notice how rude people often give off the impression that you are the one who is in fact the rude one? That has GOT to be one of the most annoying things about them. One time I had someone who was selling something door to door say "Please, I really need the money" That actually just made me even more angry. What a ploy. If you need money, get a real job. Am I heartless?

Robin said...

I don't think about that too much, but you're right. If he didn't want to hear excuses (legit as they were), he could have stopped pressing me after I said no the first time. Sales is not a good field for people with poor people skills.

Kelly said...

That is SO annoying! I cannot stand that. Good for you. It feels like such an invasion of privacy when someone comes to the door to sell things.

Heidi said...

Getting to my house requires a somewhat scary drive up my driveway or a walk up my driveway that leaves most breathless. Still, I get the occasional salesman or religious person up here.

My answer to the salesman is always the same and quite simple yet seems to be very effective. I tell them that I do not purchase anything from anyone who comes to my door. It almost always gets them to move on right away. I think when I let them know that this is my rule and I'm not going to break it, they don't want to waste their time on me and they rush off to the next door.

The religious people are harder for me to get rid of.

Robin said...

I guess the easiest thing to do is just not open the door. Then you can save yourself the annoyance of having to deal with the situation. All the person can do is finally give up and leave.