Ding Dong: They’re Back!

I thought I'd seen the last of the Kirby vacuum cleaner salespeople. They hadn't been around for awhile.  I thought they had given up.  Nope.  Apparently, they ran out of salespeople and needed fresh blood. (I've never seen the same one twice).

I was in the middle of something important, not that I can remember now what it was but I’m sure it was important <grin> and the doorbell rang.  I answered the door and found a young, pretty, woman holding some type of leaflet.  I am losing my hearing so I only caught a word or two.  I glanced at the paper, inwardly groaned and handed the paper back to her.  “No, thank you.  I don’t do business with Kirby.”

That has become my standard response.  Why? Because the sales people are hired because they do not comprehend the word no.   But really it all started with the very first time a Kirby Vacuum Cleaner Salesperson rang my doorbell.

The girls were very little.  We were new to the neighborhood.  The doorbell rang and I was flustered.  A young man had a stack of raffle tickets and a pen.  He did NOT identify himself.  And did I mentioned I was flustered.  Four children.  One with major needs.  All of them under 6 years old.  And I homeschool.  He asked for our phone number.  Then handed me a raffle ticket. 

A few days (weeks?) later the phone rang.  Hi, you’ve won a free carpet cleaning.  This time I wasn’t flustered. (Girls must have sleeping or playing outside or something).  I said no I haven’t.  I’d see the raffle ticket sales gimmick before. The idea is that you give away a free chance for a drawing for a great prize.  You know like cash or a boat and the third prize is always something intended to sell you a product such as a gym membership or a vacuum cleaner. 

Kirby wanted to schedule a time when a representative could come out and give me my free carpet cleaning.  I refused.  To say I strongly dislike the raffle ticket method would be an understatement. 

That was only the beginning.  At first they came bearing “gifts”.  Items like a bottle of carpet shampoo.  The bottle was yours to keep if you let them enter.  I have reached the point where I just hand it back and say “no thank you.”

They’ve gotten more aggressive.  Some of them I have felt sorry for.  One even used the “can I come in and use your bathroom” in order to get inside the house.   For safety reasons I did not.  (There are fast food restaurants, a gas station and a grocery store 5 minutes up the road.  All with public restrooms.)

So today the doorbell rings.  The pretty woman smiled and I felt bad for her.  I returned her leaflet.  I forced myself to be polite and to have a pleasant tone.  “No thank you.  I won’t do business with Kirby”  She was flustered.  She asked why (not an unreasonable question but after 10 years I’m tired of trying to explain.).  I simply respond.  I don’t like the selling tactics.  She started to protest.  Maybe if she’d been number 3 or 4 or even number 5 to the door, I’d have had the energy to try to explain.  But I was becoming impatient.  I had to shoo the woman away like a small (but cute) kitten.  I really don’t like it when people fail to understand the word no.

I wonder if they’ve upped the prize for just getting inside my house?  Our family joke is that Kirby is offering a special bonus prize like an expense paid cruise to the first salesperson who actually gets inside my house.  Maybe next time I’ll ask them.  Maybe I’ll let them in if they’re willing to share the prize <grin>.

Comments

  1. LOL! Moving to the country stopped all visitors like that to our house, thankfully.

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  2. I had no idea Kirby still sold door-to-door?!

    We moved to the country too, and in 10 years here I can count on one hand the number of salespeople that have stopped at our door. One of the great benefits of living in the country!! ;-)

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