Phone In

In surfing the web I cam across this little nugget, taken from a website that debunks common scams. I was a less than proud employee of LA Sound Division for two entire days of this exact same kind of shit.

An Unethical Guide to the Street-Sold Stereo Speaker Business:
- kindly submitted by Le Saint, of Montreal Canada.
Do you want to make money? Does the thought of bringing home a $1,000 a week while having the time of your life interest you?
It's easy as long as you (1) have a legal business license for the town you intend to sell in, (2) work for the local stereo speaker scam company, and (3) want to make money!
All you need to learn are these few skills: "The Hit"
Here you will learn to pick the best target to sell to. Within the business, these people are referred to as "hits." For obvious reasons, the ideal person to choose is the single male, age 20-35. These particular individuals seem to enjoy their electronic gadgets, regardless of cost, and the more high-tech they sound, the more they want them.
Men in expensive cars and trucks are the best to choose because they don't mind spending the extra money on nice things.
Preferably, these men are driving alone because when there is more than one person in the car, it makes it twice as difficult to focus your energy and influence on the "hit." Also, the other person can have time to think about what is going on and may clue in their companion. Avoid the elderly! Unless they seem to be particularly hip, the majority of the population of over-60 individuals in this country have no desire to spend their social security checks on big speakers. Also, you may be putting all of your energy into the show that will have no results while the perfect hit is driving right past you.
Wives and girlfriends can be dangerous to your efforts, as well. If you see someone fitting this description with your intended hit, pass on them unless you're feeling brave, because there is nothing more demoralizing than a spineless man who after buying into your whole story says "I love these things, but let me go ask my wife." Ninety-nine times out of a hundred the man will return, crestfallen to inform you that SHE doesn't want them.
A single woman in a car is a different story, however. While never as easy to sell as a man, women can also be convinced that they need speakers, but remember that you cannot be as aggressive with the sale.
"The Pitch"
This is the most important part of the entire process. The pitch is which you quickly (since you may be speeding down a road yelling out the window) tell your hit what you have to sell and why.
The story that you use is always the same. Why? Because we have been in this business since the seventies and it works! The pitch must be given with all the excitement that you can muster. Remember, you are trying to convince your hit that you are sitting on $6,000 of surplus equipment.
The pitch is: "Hey man, hey guy! Want a big set of speakers for your house? I work for an audio company and they just overloaded me!"
The majority of the population has an attention span of thirteen seconds before their mind begins to wander. This is because everyone is so used to the short spot commercials they see all day long on TV, so make it quick.
After shouting out the pitch, follow it immediately with "Pull over and I'll show you!"
Always tell your hit what to do. The concept is to take control of their mind, making them think in an ordered way as you follow through your routine. Therefore you never ask the hit to pull over, because they have the option of saying "No." Just tell them to and you will be surprised how many people follow you to the side of the road. "The Show"
This is the time to let your dramatic skill shine. You are about to bring the hit to the van and actually show them the product that you are trying to sell for much more than its worth, so you must be convincing.
You are only supposed to be a delivery driver who got overloaded, so don't act too knowledgeable about the speaker. You will be give a spec sheet that has the dimensions of the speakers and false power ranges and additions that do not exist, but they won't know this. All they see is the shiny, laminated, professional looking sheet, and you.
When the hit gets out of their car, bounce up to them and grab their hand, shaking it while explaining the following story. Be sure to include any possible detail that you think might have occurred, since it will make your story much more believable.
If you just won the lottery, I bet you could tell someone everything that happened to you that day, minute to minute.
You tell the hit that you arrived to work in order to pick up your daily deliveries, and someone in the confusion of the morning accidentally doubled your order since regular speakers come in pairs, but the "special" studio monitors that you have actually sold individually.
Treat the hit as thought they know more about everything than you do. Build their ego and they will become your instant friend. While at the warehouse, the foreman signed the invoice (an imitation copy given to you every morning at the office), and you left with the extra speakers.
Make your boss out to be a real hard-nose, so that they feel bad for you, the minimum wage earner, and forget about the moral side of the issue. You need to bring back $200 for each pair sold, but the suggested retail price on the spec. sheet is $850 apiece, so you have a lot of leeway since all other money over $ 200 is your to keep. While talking non-stop the whole time (don't give them time to think) occasionally shove the spec sheet in front of their face for emphasis, but not too often or the hit will concentrate on the sheet and your words will lose their emphasis.
Now show them the speaker, all the while telling them of the different interesting things that these "professional quality" speakers have that others don't. Remember, these people did not leave their house with the intention of buying any speakers that day, so it's up to you to convince them that they need these things.
Always look them in the eye, as well. It may make them nervous at first, but once they become caught up in your voice they will see you as less shady. Tap the woofer of the speaker to show them the quality of the polypropylene, but not too hard. In order to make it sound more solid, hit the wooden box of the speaker with the palm of your while your finger taps the woofer.
After going over the other qualities of the speaker, it's time for the sale. If the guy is still there at this point, you've got him interested so close the sale and get your money! The easiest way to reach this point is when you finish the whole story immediately follow it with "So Bill (always use their name if they tell it to you), what's the most you can do?"
Then STOP! Do not say another word.
The Close
This is the only part of the show where silence is golden. You have asked the buying question, now leave it to the hit to bring up a figure. Wait five minutes if you have to, all the time staring at the hit with an expectant look on your face.
After receiving his offer, blow it out of the water with a ridiculous over-offer. You never know how much money your hit can get his hands on, so don't cut yourself short.
Pitch 'em high, look 'em in the eye, and watch 'em buy. After haggling ("Come on guy, I know what these are worth, I'm not gonna just give 'em away! What's the most, most, most you can do?"), decide on how much you can get out of this person, and once your reach that figure, immediately say "Where do you have to go to get the money?"
As you say this, grab his hand again and shake it as if you just sealed the deal, pick up the speaker and start walking it to his car. If the door is unlocked, o pen it and stuff the speaker in. If the hit had any doubts about the status of the sale, they are gone now. This is called "the slam."
Off to the Bank
If you are working with a partner, ask the hit if you can ride with him to the bank, already assuming that you are going there: "Not that I don't trust you or anything, man, but you know how it is."
Have your partner follow the two of you in the van, in case the guy tries to flee with the goods. At the bank, get out and follow him to the ATM, teller, or whatever, and stand right next to him, all the while talking about something other than the sale, so that he does not think about the fact that he is about to take out hundreds of dollars for something that he doesn't need.
If you happen to see that he has more money in his account, don't be afraid to make a scene accusing him to trying to scam YOU: "Hey, guy, come on, these are worth almost $2,000 a pair and I'm giving them to you for $600 (a $400 profit under the false front of a good deal), you can do another fifty bucks." They may buy this, they may not, but it's worth the try, and the sale is technically already over so it's hard to screw up at this point, since you are in control.
You have just successfully made $400 (which you split with your partner) for fifteen minutes of work. Not bad! Of course, the majority of your pitches will not be successful, but the more you pitch, the more you sell. Happy Hunting!

http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/Crimes/InPerson/speaker_scams.htm